Container port operators, both state-owned and private, are increasingly entering the empty container depot business, seeking to streamline empty-box handling, reduce terminal congestion and capture revenue that has traditionally gone to private depot operators backed by shipping lines.
Dubai-based RSA Global is set to operationalise the first phase of a 62-acre empty container yard at Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JN Port), following a 30-year licence from the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA). The ₹2,580-crore project, billed as India’s largest empty container yard, will initially utilise 20 acres and is planned to reach a capacity of 25,000 TEUs within two years and 1 lakh TEUs within five years.
JN Port handles around 1.6 million TEUs of empty EXIM containers annually, accounting for nearly 18% of its total throughput of about 8.2 million TEUs. The RSA facility will provide storage, maintenance and repair, inspection, SOLAS weighment, repositioning, CFS transfers and other services, with automated storage and retrieval systems planned for part of the facility.
The move follows similar initiatives at other major ports. At Chennai, PSA International has begun operating a 10,000-sq-metre empty container yard near its terminal, while Chennai Port Authority has offered additional land for PSA and DP World to develop empty depots. The objective is to free terminal yard space for laden containers and reduce last-minute movement of empty boxes through congested port roads.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) has also launched a dedicated empty container yard at Mundra Port, covering storage, maintenance, inspection and movement of empty containers. APSEZ has announced charges of ₹5,000 for 20-foot and ₹9,000 for 40-foot containers for empty pick-up/drop-off services, with 30 days of free storage followed by daily storage charges.
The emerging model marks a shift from the traditional system under which shipping lines have largely relied on privately operated empty depots, often without direct storage charges. Depot operators typically earn from lift-on/lift-off services paid by transporters handling containers for exporters.
Trade sources estimate that empty depots around JN Port and Mundra generate substantial revenues, although allegations have been made regarding unaccounted payments and informal arrangements involving the existing system. Port authorities and terminal operators are now seeking to bring greater regulation, transparency and efficiency to the segment.
At JN Port, around 74 empty container yards operate in the surrounding areas, of which about 60 are currently active for various shipping lines. Most are located on private or CIDCO land and, according to trade sources, operate outside a formal JNPA-approved framework.
RSA Global said shipping lines would eventually be charged for storage as the facility scales up, with pricing expected to reflect investment and service levels. The company said the objective is also to reduce excess empty-container inventory and improve efficiency across the ecosystem.
JNPA Deputy Chairman Ravish Kumar said the port sees potential in the business but faces land constraints. The authority is exploring the use of distant land parcels within its territory for additional empty-container facilities.
With empty containers accounting for a significant share of port traffic and terminal space increasingly valuable, port authorities are now looking at dedicated empty depots as a means of reducing congestion, improving asset utilisation and lowering logistics costs. However, industry sources expect greater regulation of the existing network of private empty depots as organised port-led facilities expand.