(Reuters) -India’s Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone plans to ramp up its investment to 100 billion rupees ($1.20 billion) to boost its southern India transshipment container port, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday.
The investment in Vizhinjam port in the state of Kerala is part of the second phase of the project that is expected to finish by 2028, the report, which cited people with knowledge of the matter, added.
Construction of the $900 million port had seen a four month-long standstill from protests in 2022.
The port, which has strategic importance for both India and company owner Gautam Adani, an ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will upon completion be the country’s first container transhipment hub, rivaling Dubai, Singapore and Sri Lanka, Adani Ports has said.
Container lines such as MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co., A.P. Moller – Maersk A/S, and Hapag-Lloyd are being wooed to call in at the port, Bloomberg News reported.
Adani Ports did not immediately respond to a Reuters’ request for comment.
($1 = 83.5020 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
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