To accommodate cruise ships, 50 hectares of land will be acquired for yard development, customs, security systems, and allied infrastructure, while dredging operations will be undertaken directly from the sea to support berth construction. Railway connectivity is also planned, with a 10.7-km track including a 9.2-metre tunnel.

Land acquisition is progressing and construction is expected to begin soon. Road connectivity to the national highway has already been approved, including a cloverleaf interchange to support large-scale business operations.

Vizhinjam completed its first year of commercial operations on December 3. Against a target of 1 million containers, the port handled 1.325 million containers through 616 ships. As of Tuesday, 636 ships had docked, pushing the total to nearly 1.4 million containers. The port became the first in India to handle more than 40 ultra-large container ships measuring 399 metres in length.

More than 155 ships exceeding 300 metres and 45 ships with drafts over 16 metres also arrived at Vizhinjam. The government earned Rs 97 crore in tax revenue from operations. A standout achievement has been Vizhinjam’s ability to attract vessels that had never docked in Asia before, including some of the world’s largest ships such as MSC Turkiye, MSC Irena and MSC Verona.

Ambitious plans

Existing 800-m berth to be extended by 1,200 m to create a 2,000-m berth, enabling multiple ultra-large vessels to load and unload simultaneously

2.96-km breakwater to be lengthened by 920m

Revised contract says phases II-IV must be completed by 2028, advancing it from the original 2045 deadline