<p data-path-to-node="2"><b data-path-to-node="2" data-index-in-node="0">THOOTHUKUDI</b> — The V.O. Chidambaranar Port Authority (VOC Port) has officially cleared the detailed engineering tenders and financial structure for its flagship ₹17,167-crore Outer Harbour development project, marking a transformative leap in India’s maritime gateway strategy along the southern littoral. Engineered under the public-private partnership (PPP) framework of the Sagarmala programme, the project creates an ultra-deepwater maritime basin capable of handling next-generation container ships without tidal delays.</p><p data-path-to-node="3">The core of the multi-phase master plan involves constructing a dedicated artificial basin flanked by two massive breakwaters extending 5.5 kilometres seaward, dredged to a natural operational draft of 18 metres, with long-term expandable provisions for 20 metres. This profile allows the port to berth Ultra Large Container Vessels (ULCVs) exceeding 24,000 TEU capacity. Once fully operational across its staggered phases, the Outer Harbour will add four automated container berths with combined quay lengths of 2,000 metres and an annual handling throughput capacity of over 4 million TEUs, positioning Thoothukudi as a direct competitor to traditional regional transshipment hubs across the Indian Ocean basin.</p><p data-path-to-node="4">Key infrastructural works sanctioned under the initial ₹7,200-crore phase include offshore capital dredging, the construction of reinforced quayside aprons, and extensive land reclamation totaling over 450 acres. Quayside operations will be supported by automated Ship-to-Shore (STS) rail-mounted gantry cranes with outreach spans exceeding 24 container rows, complemented by an all-electric Rubber-Tyred Gantry (e-RTG) container yard grid.</p><p data-path-to-node="5">To prevent inland bottlenecks, the port authority has integrated an electrified railhead linking the container staging yards directly with Southern Railway’s Madurai-Thoothukudi freight trunk line. The intermodal link allows double-stack container rakes to transit straight to production clusters in Coimbatore, Tirupur, Karur, and Bengaluru, eliminating highway transit delays and slashing domestic drayage expenses by up to 22%.</p><p data-path-to-node="6">Port Authority Chairman highlighted that establishing deep-draft handling on India's southeastern coastline addresses an urgent commercial imperative. At present, a substantial share of export containers originating from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka requires transshipment at Colombo or Singapore, which inflates feeder costs and lengthens transit turnarounds by four to six days. Providing mainline ocean carriers direct access to a deepwater berth at Thoothukudi provides Indian manufacturing exporters direct connectivity to European and Mediterranean trade lanes, safeguarding delivery schedules and lowering landed freight costs.</p><p data-path-to-node="7">Groundwork on Phase-1 marine dredging and breakwater placement is slated to commence before the end of the current fiscal quarter, with the first commercial container berth targeted for operational commissioning by early 2029.</p>