Ships queue up at Vizhinjam International Port waiting to dock as the number of ships handled reached an all-time high of 40 ships and 75,000 containers in 28 days last month.
However, as more than five ships arrived, the port is taking time to dispatch them, though automated handling of cargo is offering better efficiency to shipping companies than other ports. Now, the port has three ships docked and two, including MSC Mia, the largest ship to arrive in an Indian port, are waiting in the outer anchorage. The vessel was supposed to sail in and berth on Saturday morning, but this was postponed.
An Adani Ports official said that MSC Mia is likely to sail in and dock by Sunday morning. The ships that are already in the port will leave. This is the first time Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has scheduled this many ships at the same time at Vizhinjam.
An official said that the efficiency of the port is far better than ports that have more berths than Vizhinjam. On Saturday, nine women operated cranes at the port to mark International Women’s Day. The port has semi-automatic and automatic cranes.
Divya S Iyer, MD, Vizhinjam International Seaport Ltd, said in a post that “India’s first port that hands over the control of its humongous crane operations to the hands that rock the cradle — Proudly presenting our skilled women crane operators of the Vizhinjam International Seaport family, on this International Women’s Day 2025.” It’s an example of how technology helps overcome gender bias in society, she added.
Minister of ports V N Vasavan said earlier that the port was included in MSC’s Jade Service (JADE) after trials. “With this, Vizhinjam will become a major hub in South Asia for this service. MSC has included ports capable of berthing large ships and handling a high volume of container transfers in this freight service that connects major ports worldwide. The inclusion of a port ready for commissioning after completing its trial run marks another milestone achievement for Vizhinjam,” he said.
The port has so far handled 200 ships in eight months.