VOC Port achieves 7% growth in container traffic

MADURAI: V O Chidambaranar Port in Tuticorin registered 7% growth till Dec 2024 of this financial year, handling 581,557 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent) compared to the 543,531 TEUs handled during the same period in the previous year.

Over the last decade, the port’s container handling saw a steady rise, increasing from 507,735 TEUs in 2013–14 to 747,363 TEUs in 2023–24, reflecting its commitment to operational efficiency and capacity enhancement. Moreover, the port was ranked first across the ports of the country in turnaround time of containers in the financial years 2022-23 and 2023–24.

The terminals offer 30 container moves per hour, on a par with global standards.

VOC Port has maintained its position as the top performer among major ports, with an exceptional average container turnaround time of 19.92 hours till December 2024 in the ongoing financial year, said port authorities.

With a combined capacity of 1.6 million TEUs per annum, the container terminals at V O Chidambaranar Port, Tuticorin International Container Terminal, Dakshin Bharat Gateway Terminals, and PSA SICAL Container Terminal cater to growing demand. The port is supported by two inland container depots and 15 container freight stations in the vicinity, ensuring smooth container flow to and from the port.

The terminals of the port operate eight sailings to Colombo every week. Additionally, the port offers sailings to Mundra, Pipavav, Cochin, Jebal Ali, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, China and Far East countries, strengthening its international trade connectivity.

VOC Port Authority chairman Susanta Kumar Purohit said the port holds immense potential to become a leading hub for gateway and transhipment container traffic on the east coast of India. “With its strategic location, evolving infrastructure development and collective commitment, we are poised to seize new opportunities in global trade,” he sai3d.

The port has proposed to develop an outer harbour to meet the exponential growth of container traffic. It would have two terminals with a quay length of one km each, a draft of 16.5 metre, with a capacity to handle four million TEUs of container traffic. The tender had been floated and the response to it was encouraging, added Purohit.