V O Chidambaranar Port Authority, Tuticorin, organized a stakeholder meeting with major shipping lines and industry representatives in Mumbai to discuss key initiatives aimed at strengthening the Port’s container ecosystem and global connectivity.

The meeting, chaired by Susanta Kumar Purohit, IRSEE, Chairperson, along with Rajesh Soundararajan, IAS, Deputy Chairperson, focused on the development of the Outer Harbour Container Terminal Project, containerisation of Berth No. 7 under the PPP-DBFOT model, and the possibility of introducing weekly mainline container vessel services connecting VOC Port with the Americas, Europe, and the Far East.

Representatives from leading shipping lines including CMA CGM, HMM, ZIM, X-Press Feeders, Ocean Network Express (ONE), Hapag-Lloyd, Sima Marine, PSA India, JM Baxi and other industry stakeholders participated in the discussions and shared valuable insights and suggestions on the proposed initiatives.

The meeting also witnessed the participation of Capt. Deepak Tewari, Chairman, Container Shipping Lines Association (CSLA), and Sunil K Vaswani, Executive Director, CSLA, whose valuable inputs enriched the deliberations. The interactive session provided an opportunity to gather industry perspectives and explore collaborative pathways for enhancing container traffic, operational efficiency, and international trade connectivity through VOC Port.