Revival of Kidderpore Dock has reduced turnaround time at Kolkata Port says Century Ports

Almost a twelvemonth aft Kolkata’s iconic Kidderpore Docks got their first-ever PPP terminal, developed by Century Ports Ltd, the operators of the terminal said that the restoration of the historical dock has reduced turnaround clip astatine Kolkata larboard by half.

“We person reduced the turnout times astatine Kolkata larboard by half. By virtuousness of this, we are seeing much concern travel into Kolkata Port, much concern volition play an important portion successful revival of the larboard successful a precise meaningful way,” Keshav Bhajanka, manager of Century Ports Ltd told The Hindu.

Turnaround clip astatine ports, is a critical metric for measuring larboard efficiency, and is considered the full clip a vessel spends astatine a port—from the infinitesimal it arrives astatine the anchorage oregon aviator presumption to the infinitesimal it departs.

Authorities of Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port (SPM),Kolkata, person besides emphasised on reducing vas turnaround astatine the port, with the deployment of caller mobile harbour cranes and precocious postulation systems. Last twelvemonth successful May 2025, the SPM, antecedently known arsenic Kolkata Port Trust, launched nighttime navigation capabilities.

Mr. Bhajanka said that Century Ports Ltd by restoration of Kidderpore Dock complex is trying to get measurement backmost astatine Kolkata Port. “The request astatine Kolkata Port is huge. Kolkata is the gateway to Eastern India. It is the gateway from Bihar to Chhattisgarh and truthful connected and truthful forth. Infrastructure upgrade astatine Kolkata Port tin play a pivotal relation successful servicing the maturation needs of Eastern India,” helium said.

Century Ports Limited, is simply a 100% subsidiary of Century Ply and has entered into a 30-year declaration (SPM) Kolkata nether a nationalist backstage concern (PPP) exemplary for operationalization of Kidderpore Dock complex. Mr. Bhajanaka said that successful the archetypal signifier the institution has invested about ₹190 crore successful the archetypal phase. The concession agreement signed successful 2022 for a 30-year period, is expected to boost cargo question with integrated connectivity to road, obstruction and inland waterways.

Under the statement with (SPM) Kolkata Century Ports is liable for the development, modernization and operation of the terminal, including, installation of mechanised cargo handling instrumentality and betterment of yard infrastructure, deployment of digital tools for operational transparency and improvement of first-mile to last-mile connectivity through multimodal logistics.

The Century Port terminal is equipped with a mobile harbour crane, a barge unloader, modern gait instrumentality and an precocious terminal operating strategy (TOS), the installation has an archetypal handling capableness of 1.65 lakh TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) of containers and 3.3 lakh tonnes of different cargo.

Authorities of SMPK person said that PPP projects implicit ₹4,000-crore are scheduled to go operational astatine Kolkata and Haldia docks implicit the adjacent fewer years.