India strengthens Iranian port of Chabahar
India has supplied two mobile harbour cranes to the port.
By Vikram Malik, Maritime Direct India Correspondent
India is assisting Iran in developing its Shahid Beheshti Port in Chabahar. The $25 million contract signed between the two countries for this involves supplying a total of six mobile harbour cranes. Of these, two were supplied today, which arrived from the port of Marghera in Italy, and are undergoing trials currently.
These cranes were to be supplied originally in January as per a $30 million contract signed with the Chinese company, Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries. This contract was subsequently cancelled owing to inordinate delays in equipment supply – orders for which were placed back in 2017.
Presently, the two 140-tonne cranes carrying a value of $8.5 million have come from Italian port & offshore cranes company, Italgru S.r.l. Their delivery activates the abovementioned contract between Iran and India. It also paves the way for India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) to provide an array of Bulk, Container, and General Cargo services at Chabahar port.
Chabahar port’s strategic location not only provides easy connectivity between Iran and India but also helps landlocked countries in the vicinity like Afghanistan and Uzbekistan, with their cargo movement.
