DP World seeks expiation from Kochi Port for vessel delay

DP World has sought compensation from the Port Trust for the delay occurred in berthing of the Chinese vessel which brought the Post Panamax cranes required for the International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICTT) at Vallarpadam, reported The Hindu.

Though officials at the terminal operator have confirmed the issue of compensation, they declined to divulge the amount sought from the port management.

However, sources close to the shipping community put the figure at several crores of rupees.

The company has sent a letter to the port management seeking compensation on account of the detention of the Chinese vessel Zenhua 10 for nearly 45 days in Kochi, which forced the vessel owners to pay charter hire on each day.

The vessel was detained due to non-availability of berths as the ICTT berth basin area, which lacked sufficient depth for the ship to drop anchor.

The berthing of the vessel was originally scheduled in June last and it had arrived promptly, but was held up due to lack of required depth uniformly.

The vessel had brought four ship-to-shore gantry cranes capable of lifting containers at the ICTT at Vallarpadam, which is getting ready for commissioning in a couple of months.
Due to the delay in berthing of the vessel, the port had to carry out additional dredging in the area to provide 10.7m draught uniformly to enable the entry of the vessel.

Unexpected obstruction in the ICTT berth basin had resulted in the delay of anchoring of the vessel.

According to sources, it all started with the vessel owners asking for reimbursement of detention charges from DP World and the latter in turn put the ball in the Port Trust court.

The letter sent by the DP World is likely to be placed before the next meeting of the Port's Board of Trustees.

However, it is learned that efforts are on to sort out the issue in an amicable manner.

According to the licence agreement with the Port Trust, both the parties are eligible for asking compensation for the delay in completing any work related with the setting up of the terminal.

Meanwhile, the capital dredging work in the berth basin is in progress, which is expected to be completed by December end.

The work on NH and rail connectivity is almost complete and the terminal is likely to be inaugurated in January.
(Source:www.cargonewsasia.com)