As per the pre-qualification bid floated recently, the MbPT has sought construction of its second liquid cargo berth on build-operate-transfer (BoT) basis and the last date for bids was July 27, officials said.

The project, likely to cost over $45 million, envisaged construction of a berth for handling various grades of bulk liquid chemicals and specialised grades of petroleum oil and lubricants (POL) including refrigerated and pressurised liquified gases, Mumbai Port Trust chairman Arun K Mago told PTI.

The BOT project involved construction, operation, management and maintenance of the berth for a period of 30 years, Mago said adding the feasibility study of the project was done by Delhi-based Consulting Engineers India Ltd.

Construction of the second liquid chemical berth at Pir Pau is one of the three majorcapacity expansion projects Mumbai Port planned to undertake to offset decline in cargo traffic which had gone to neighbouring Jawaharlal Nehru Port.

Cargo handled by Mumbai Port has declined from 32.10 million tonnes (mt) in 1997-98 to 30.97 mt in 1998-99 and current year had been pegged at 28.67 mt. The port had awarded the contract for construction of a 1.5 mt capacity captive coal and general cargo berth at Pir Pau, at an estimated cost of Rs 250 crore, to Tata Electric Co on BOOT basis, MbPT chairman said.

Mumbai Port was also planning to construct three deep-drafted offshore jetties, at an estimated cost of around Rs 2,000 crore, with a planned water-draft of 13.5 meters for handling container vessels, Mago said.The three offshore jetties, as per the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) master plan, would enable Mumbai Port to handle container vessels of 2000 to 2500 twenty feet equivalent unit (teu) capacity and an annual traffic of one million teus, he said.

Jica had also recommendedfilling up of victoria dock to form a back-up container yard for the jetties, he said.

MbPT had received technical bids for leasing of two dry docks along with the surrounding area, work shop buildings, electrical substations and equipment and machinery and with two wet berths for operating and managing the ship repair activities on commercial basis, Mago said.

PTI "We are examining the technical bids which were opened on June 12. Shortlising of pre-qualified bidders will be done in the next couple of months," he said.

Port authorities were also examining the sole bid of consortia of Hyderabad-based Vrinchi Constructions, Klang Port Authority of Malaysia, Shriyer Shipping of Mumbai and IVS infrastructure of Hyderabad for leasing of two container terminals of 2.4 mt capacity, Mago added.