NYK, Wallenius Wilhelmsen to develop Mundra car terminal

 NYK Line and Wallenius Wilhelmsen Lines have signed a deal to set up a dedicated auto terminal at the Port of Mundra in western India, India's Daily News and Analysis and CargonewsAsia reported Thursday.

   The reports said the companies, two of the biggest in the global roll-on/roll-off business, plan to use the Mundra Port and Special Economic Zone as an export hub by tapping into the base of auto manufacturers in India's northwestern states.

   Nissan and Maruti Suzuki, India's market share leader for passenger cars, plan to start using Mundra as a gateway for exports to Europe as soon as 2009, before the dedicated car terminal would even be finished. No estimates for the capacity of the new terminal were given, but it's estimated the two Japanese carmakers plan to use Mundra's existing facilities to export 200,000 cars a year.

   Norway-based Wallenius Wilhelmsen has been eyeing India for a while, as the country seems set to become a major player in car exports.

   We have a fear that all Indian manufacturers are all looking at different ports for exports, said Mathias Wideroth, commercial vice president for Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics Asia, at an India automotive logistics conference earlier this year. That would drive inefficiency and cost up. We see a need for only one terminal on the East Coast and one, maybe two terminals on the West Coast.

Source: American Shipper