The Andhra Pradesh Cabinet has given approval for development of Bhavanapadu port and the detailed project report (DPR) prepared by RITES. The government is now focusing on land acquisition and fund raising Rs 3,669.95 crore project. The port is in Srikakulam district. While the DPR prepared for development of Ramayapatnam Port, in Prakasham district, was already approved and administrative sanction accorded, the RITES draft DPR for Bhavanapadu was approved in a recent Cabinet meet. TATA Consulting Engineers was selected for rendering project management consultancy services for development of Bhavanapadu port. Under Phase-I, the project will have three general cargo berths and one bulk cargo berth and infrastructure spread over 500 acre to be completed within 36 months.
While the estimated cost for Phase-I is Rs 3,669.95 crore, including the cost of land Rs 261 crore supported by the state for acquiring 500 acre land, the government has accorded permission to raise debt of Rs 2,123 crore with the appropriate support of the state government. It is proposed to utilise certain portion of its revenue as equity and through an escrow account in future for debt funding/servicing. The efforts are underway to develop the Visakhapatnam–Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC). The government has drawn plans to develop ports at Kakinada SEZ port in East Godavari and Machilipatnam port in Krishna district. The Kakinada SEZ port has been awarded to GMR SEZ Gateway. As a part of the overall development of the state, the Andhra Pradesh government is keen on developing these four non-major ports to cater to the increasing demand of various types of bulk and container cargo which is expected to increase to 300-350 million tonne by 2024-25 as per estimates.