Switzerland-based global shipping giant Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) is investing US$4 billion (Rs 13,220 crore) in Vizhinjam Port. MSC has decided to join hands with Adani Vizhinjam Port Pvt Ltd (ACPPL), a subsidiary of the Adani Group. MSC will acquire a 49% stake in the Adani-owned project. This is the largest foreign investment in Bharat’s shipping sector and a major boost for the country’s maritime industry.
MSC is a Switzerland-based company that owns and operates about 900 ships. The investment will be used to enhance the capacity of Vizhinjam Port to 5.7 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs, or 20-foot containers) by December 2028, increasing its handling capacity by 3.5 times.
The existing handling capacity of Vizhinjam Port is 1.6 million TEUs per year. The investment will be routed through Terminal Investment Limited (TIL), the terminal operating arm of the MSC Group. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) will continue to hold a 51% stake, retaining majority control. The new investment is expected to push Keralam to the forefront of global ocean trade and transform Vizhinjam into a major transhipment hub for Asia.
Shipping observers opine that MSC’s colossal investment will bring more container traffic and expedite the development of infrastructure at Vizhinjam Port.
Vizhinjam is the country’s first natural deep-draft mega transhipment port. Another speciality of Vizhinjam Port is its strategic location. It is barely 10 nautical miles from the international east-west shipping channel. With a natural depth of 18–20 metres, even the world’s largest vessels can call at Vizhinjam Port.
TIL, the subsidiary of MSC, is one of the world’s largest terminal operators. It manages more than 100 container terminals across five continents and handles about 70 million containers annually.
