India Ports Global Ltd (IPGL) expects to start operations at the Iranian port of Chabahar by the end of May this year, following the delivery of a second batch of heavy equipment which included two 100tonne mobile cranes at the Shahid Beheshti port and with US sanctions alleviated.
[s2If is_user_logged_in()]Chabahar, a gateway to landlocked Central Asia and Afghanistan will cut Indian logistics costs once full operations begin at the port. Indian Shipping Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said the country has remained optimistic, regarding the sanctions imposed by the previous US president on Iran, and in the face of a lack of clarity from the new administration.
“India is late but has finally arrived”, said Arun Kumar Gupta, ex-managing director at IPGL – the special purpose vehicle formed to develop Chabahar Port.
Gupta led the port’s development from its inception and facilitated the formal contract between India and Iran for Chabahar’s development in 2016, he believes the facility is suffering from US sanctions, but even more so because Joe Biden has remained silent on the issue.
India has invested US$85 million in Chabahar under a long-term contract. “Apart from sanctions, one challenge the port faces is low volumes. An average of five-six vessels call [weekly], but no mainline vessels are calling at Iran. It’s only Iranian vessel owners,” said Gupta indicating that operations at the port are difficult with sanctions in place.
The Port is situated in southern Iran at the mouth of the Gulf of Oman, and has a 1.3km quay, 650m of which have a 16m draught, as good as any international standard.
“Chabahar is an oceanic port with both strategic and commercial importance,” said Gupta, “In years to come it can develop into an important transhipment hub, but the problem is US sanctions”.
The US gave the port a waiver, exempting it from sanctions that no-one honored, and the banks do not accept cargo documents in particular “calling them flawed”, explained Gupta, claiming the banks, “don’t want to get on the wrong side of the US”.
Sheuly Ghosh
Indian Correspondent
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