Chennai Port Trust (ChPT) is going to sign several MoUs with various agencies at the Maritime India Summit 2021 to be held online from March 2 to 4. Amongst the many pacts, primary ones would be development of a multi-modal logistics park (MMLP) and feasibility to run a ferry service between Chennai and Karaikal in Puducherry.  

“We plan to sign 15 MoUs with various agencies at the summit,” ChPT chairman P Raveendran said while disclosing some of the salient features of the event to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

An MoU will be signed with the Tamil Nadu government (through the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation) and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to form a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to develop the MMLP on 125 acres at Mappedu in Tiruvallur district at a cost of around Rs 1,500 crore, he said.

ChPT’s investment will be land, as per a report by The Hindu. The State government has sanctioned Rs 50 crore for the project and the NHAI will provide connectivity and flyover to the Chennai-Bengaluru high-speed corridor, he added.

S Balaji Arun Kumar, Deputy Chairman, ChPT, said MoUs will also be signed with IIT Madras; the National Institute of Ocean Technology; and Dredging Corporation of India and will be followed by firm legal agreements.