Nargol port project

Introduction
Located about 140km north of Mumbai and 120km south of Surat, Nargol
was proposed to be a multi-function port capable of managing solid, liquid,
and container cargo. It was confirmed as the new port site after a port
project at Maroli, approximately 10 km away from Nargol, was abandoned
due to protests from local fishermen.

Aim Approach/concept of planning

Nargol port was proposed to be a project
multi-function port capable of
BOOT model for a period of 30- 50 years
managing solid, liquid, and
container cargo. Nargol port
project has been one of the most Timeline of the project
ambitious port projects by the
Initially, 30 years for building the port,
Gujarat government in recent
which was extended to 50 years after
times.
the concession period under the state’s
Major stakeholders involved build-operate-own-transfer (BOOT)
policy has been extended by the Gujrat
Cargo Motors and Israel Ports won
Government.
the bid for constructing the Port.
Gujrat Maritime Board was the
authority responsible for releasing
the tender.

Reference - https://apm.iar.ubc.ca/two-challenges-for-the-mu
mbai-eastern-freeway-congestion-and-equity/

Highlights of the project
Cargo Motors and Israel Ports won
the bid by offering high waterfront
charges of 171% to develop Nargol
port in August 2012. While Israel
Ports soon backed out from the
project, the development of the port
was stuck as Cargo Motors missed
several deadlines and were
eventually out of the project, said an
official at GMB.
Implementation challenges
The local fishermen’s community
feared that a modern port might
damage the biodiversity of the area
and disrupt fishing and agricultural
activities. And the village panchayat
ruled out the proposal to build any
Port there.
Technical challenges
One of their main concerns was that
a large port was planned only 50
kms from Nargol, at Vadhwan in
Maharashtra by the Central
government for an investment of
₹65,000 crore.
Existing Scenario
The Gujarat government last year
invited global bids for development
of the ambitious Nargol greenfield
port that was to be built for an
estimated project cost of ₹3,800
crore in the first phase.
Reference - https://www.team-bhp.com/news/mumbai-eastern
-freeway-all-you-need-know
For a state that handles nearly one-
third of the country’s sea traffic, it was
almost after a decade that the state
maritime regulator or the Gujarat
Maritime Board (GMB) invited bids
from private companies for
development of a greenfield port. This
was after the port developer Cargo
Motors failed to meet project deadlines
and the regulator had to cancel the
work awarded to it for Nargol port
development.
Future Scope
The state government made some
relaxations in the bidding process like it
increased the concession period from
30 years to 50 years, all to attract
prospective bidders. After extending
the deadline more than five times, the
government failed to draw a single
bidder when the deadline ended on
February 4, 2022. Thus due to the non-
availability of bidders, the port
development is being reconsidered.
Key Takeaways & Conclusion
While proposing such ambitious
projects, the government should
conduct a pre-feasibility test of the
project and should take into
consideration the opinion of the local
residents and take them into
confidence before rolling out such
ambitious projects.