THE Vallarpadam Terminal at Cochin, India saw April-to-August throughput surge 19 per cent to 227,962 TEU, up from 191,687 TEU over the same period a year earlier. August achieved a monthly handling record of 50,842 TEU. By comparison, the overall increase at major ports in the same five-month period was 6.4 per cent.
As a result of the solid performance, DP World is placing high hopes on the Vallarpadam Terminal, as the country's only full-fledged transshipment facility leads growth at major, or public, ports that are currently implementing a large-scale "makeover" to strength operational efficiency and reduce logistics costs, reported IHS Media.
"We, at DP World, are dedicated towards providing innovative and efficient services to our customers and partners in the supply chain," DP World Cochin CEO Jibu Kurien Itty was quoted as saying.
The company said the steady, industry-best growth has been a combined result of growing ship calls and better productivity levels following the introduction of a new terminal operating system: ZODIAC. The system has drastically reduced cargo processing times and operating costs, DP World said.
The terminal boasts average gross crane productivity of 30 moves per hour and 26-minute turnaround times for drayage, which are reportedly far above those at competing terminals in the region. Additionally, the company has lately been expanding its hinterland reach through rail upgrades to push up its market share.
As nearby rivals struggled to grow, traffic through Vallarpadam has been on the upswing in recent years, with fiscal year 2016 to 2017 volume up 17.2 per cent year over year to 491,000 TEU.
DP World Cochin's Phase I includes 1,969 feet of quay, a draft of 48 feet, 109 acres of backup area, four quay cranes, 15 rubber-tire gantry cranes, three reach stackers, and two on-dock intermodal rail-sidings, with a capacity to handle one million TEU per year. At full build out, the facility will have a quay line of 1,800 metres, 18 quay cranes, 54 gantry cranes, and an annual capacity of four million TEU.
