Mumbai, Jan 21 (IANS): Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, on Tuesday launched multiple projects worth nearly Rs 2,000 crore in order to expand capacity at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port here.

The Union Minister also launched one solar-powered boat, two indigenously developed 70T tugs and three fire tenders, boosting the safety and efficiency of the port.

“JNPA is among top global ports and India’s largest port by crossing 10+ million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) capacity in January 2025 and poised to achieve 10 million TEUs throughput by 2027,” said the minister.

In 2024, the port handled highest ever container volume of 7.05 million TEUs, performing at more than 90 per cent capacity. It had an annual growth of 11 per cent YoY last year as compared to the previous calendar year.

“It is a remarkable feat for JNPA as well as for the whole of the marine sector of India. Under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, there has been a concerted effort to unlock value by sweating our assets,” said Sonowal.

With growing infrastructure, including creating capacity to handle larger vessels, JNPA is poised to play a crucial role as a key gateway for India’s global trade, he mentioned.

With the commissioning of the second phase of Bharat Mumbai Container Terminal (BMCT) in January this year, another 2.4 million TEUs is added to JNPA’s total capacity.

The upgradation of Nhava Sheva Freeport Terminal (NSFT) in 2025 is also likely to add capacity to the port. With the growth projections of current rate, the container handling capacity is expected to go up to 10.4 million TEUs.

“We believe that JNPA’s elevation as one of the few ports of the world to handle 10 million TEUs is a testament to the effort being put in by the PM Modi government since 2014 towards enabling India’s marine sector to become one of the top marine countries of the world,” said the Union Minister.