He was speaking at a conference held to discuss the opportunities and threats to the Indian shipping industry here on Thursday.

According to Pinto, Indian shipping had completely missed the container revolution. For instance, of the 6.69 lakh containers handled by JNP, barely 10 per cent was accounted for by Indian shipping companies. The bulk of this 10 per cent again came from Shipping Corporation of India and its consortium members. It therefore should be careful not to miss the next big business opportunity in LNG transportation. According to data provided by the directorate general of shipping, LNG imports are expected to touch 20 million tonnes by 2010. This would require more than 16 vessels - making it the single largest growth area for the shipping industry.

Currently there is no shippingcompany that owns an LNG vessel. Only Shipping Corporation of India has entered into a tie-up with OSK Mitsui and Enron for one LNG vessel for the Dabhol power plant. In fact, several private sector companies, especially Gesco had also pitched for the deal and claimed that it was unfairly edged out. SCI is also considering the possibility of carrying LNG for the Rs 21,000 crore LNG pipeline project on the east coast. LNG has emerged as a strategic industry as it will be the preferred fuel for power plants.

The main issue for Indian shipping companies will be cost of LNG carriers. Each standard size carrier is estimated to cost $225 million. If local shipping companies are not able to make the investment, India would incur a foreign exchange outgo of close to $0.82 billion per annum at the current estimated rate of $140,000 per ship per day.

The Indian shipping industry is going through one of its worst crises in the current year. While freight rates have dropped to an all time high, Indian shipping has nopresence in the fastest growing segment - containers. Pinto advised the industry to view the recession as a time to build capacity and consolidate operations to be ready for the boom, a policy that has enabled China to increase its tonnage manifold. According to Pinto, policy makers and captains of shipping industry need to work together to formulate a strategy for Indian shipping in the next cycle. It also had to be combined with more innovative means of financing shipping.

JNP improves productivity

The Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNP) has achieved the highest throughput of 6.69 lakh teus in 1998-99 compared to 5.04 lakh teus in 1997-98, registering a growth of 32.72 per cent.

Tentative financial results released by the port indicate that the operating income would be Rs 383.62 crore, up 20 per cent from Rs 226.81 crore. The net surplus has gone up by 11 per cent from Rs 204.76 crore last year to Rs 320.04 crore in 1998-99. JNP's improved performance has come in the face of one of the worst yearsfor the shipping industry. According to port officials, the higher volumes were really a result of productivity gains. Labour productivity and berth productivity per crane has also been the best ever in the port's history.