Techomantra: “L&T Change the Katupalli Sea”

The erstwhile quaint seaside village of Kattupalli, some 30 kilometers north of Chennai is buzzing with construction activities over the last two years; what with numerous trucks ferrying tons of boulders from places as far as 100 kilometers?

Another sleepy fishing village called Kuppam that was part of the original topography has been relocated to give ‘berth’ to a sophisticated Shipyard and Port.The project “L&T Kattupalli Shipyard cum Port” took shape with the formation of L&T Ship Building

(LTSB)- a joint venture between L&T and Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO) to implement an integrated shipyard cum port project at Kattupalli over an area of 1200 acres at a cost outlay of Rs. 3000 crores.A glance at the overall project plan of the shipyard cum port project will instantly remind one of a

colossal pinball machine, that is poised to usher in ships, for repair and unloading of containers, while also launching newly built ships at incredible speeds and unbelievable

Sophistication.The Kattupalli project can be divided into four major components such as

Shiplift, production shops, commercial port and modular fabrication facility, which are turning into a reality due to the successful synchronization of different construction units of L&T. Once commissioned, Kattupalli will become one of the largest shipyards in Asia with an annual production capacity of 4,65,000 tons. Kattupalli is also slated to become the third major international destination for ship repair after Colombo and Singapore in the South East Asian region. Kattupalli port will have a 1.2 million TEU (Twenty foot

Equivalent Unit) annual capacity through two 350 meter long berths and a total terminal area of around 20 hectares.