Cochin Port continues to offer concessions on ship fees

INDIA's Cochin Port Authority (CPA) plans to extend the concessions on vessel-related charges that were granted earlier to mainline ships.

The extension coincides with a jump in container throughput in recent months, and will be implemented for an additional six month period, ending in March 2011.

Introduced in 2006, the scheme offers a 50 per cent rebate in port service charges applied to mainline vessels connecting major ports in the US, Europe, Africa, Australia and China, reports UK's Portworld.

It noted that Cochin is currently building a container transshipment terminal capable of handling 8,000-TEU ships under a public-private-partnership involving DP World.

The report added that shipping lines have been avoiding the port of late, owing to frequent labour disputes and chronic infrastructure constraints that are weakening Cochin's reputation.
(Source:www.schednet.com)