India inks 10-year deal to operate Chabahar Port in Iran

TEHRAN: India on Monday signed a 10-year contract with Iran to develop and operate the strategic port of Chabahar. With this, Chabahar will become a major hub for goods movement from India to Afghanistan and Central Asia. An endless market will also open for Indian products. The contract was signed in the presence of Union Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Iran Minister Mehrdad Bazrpash. The contract may be renewed after expiry.

India has been developing the port in Chabahar on Iran's south-eastern coast along the Gulf of Oman as a way to transport goods to Iran, Afghanistan and central Asian countries, bypassing the port of Karachi and Gwadar in its rival Pakistan.

U.S. sanctions on Iran, however, slowed the port's development.

"Chabahar Port's significance transcends its role as a mere conduit between India and Iran; it serves as a vital trade artery connecting India with Afghanistan and Central Asian Countries," India's Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said in Tehran, after the signing of the agreement.

"This linkage has unlocked new avenues for trade and fortified supply chain resilience across the region," he added.

The long-term deal was signed between Indian Ports Global Limited (IPGL) and the Port & Maritime Organisation of Iran, authorities in both countries said.

Under the agreement, IPGL will invest about $120 million while there will be an additional $250 million in financing, bringing the contract's value to $370 million, said Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Mehrdad Bazrpash.

IPGL first took over operations of the port at the end of 2018 and has since handled container traffic of more than 90,000 TEUs and bulk and general cargo of more than 8.4 million tonnes, an Indian government official said.

A total of 2.5 million tonnes of wheat and 2,000 tonnes of pulses have been shipped from India to Afghanistan through Chabahar Port, the official added.

"It will clear the pathway for bigger investments to be made in the port," Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar told reporters in Mumbai on Monday.

Chabahar Port

• Located in Sistan Baluchistan province
• Opened in 1983
• Two separate ports- Shahid Kalantari and Shahid Beheshti.
• Control – Indian Ports Global Limited
• Harbor on 1,200 acres
• About a thousand employees
• Quick access to the Oman Sea and Persian Gulf