Ennore Port Limited in India has announced that has awarded the project to develop the Rs.12,700-million (US$220 million) container terminal at Ennore Port to Adani Port and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ).

Adani Port emerged as the highest bidder by offering a revenue share of 37 per cent, beating Dubai-based DP World, which offered 27 per cent. For the Gujarat based US$9 billion Adani group, it will be the first container terminal project in an Indian eastern port.

InfraPPP understands that other ten bidders registered interest for the project. These include: Hindustan Ports, Gammon Infrastructure Projects, Essar Ports, Sterlite Ports, Consortium of Concast Infratech Limited & Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd, Consortium of Bollore Africa Logistics & Megalift Material Handling, L&T IDPL, APM Terminals B.V., Consortium of IMC-SEW and PSA Chennai Investments Pte Ltd.

The port terminal will be developed on design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT) basis for a concession period of 30 years.

The terminal will have a capacity to handle annually 1.4 million twenty-foot equivalent units of containers. Ennore Port is located on the Coromandel Coast about 24 km north of Chennai Port. It is the 12th major port of India, and the first port in India which is a public company.

Ennore Port rolled out a Rs5 billion ($80M) tax-free public bond issue yesterday announcing that the cash would be primarily used for capital dredging projects, augmenting rail-road connectivity and constructing a third coal berth.