Nissan India is planning to move its export base from the Ennore port to the Kattupalli port owing to lack of infrastructure at Ennore. The company has been has been facing delays in the requisite infrastructure and high vessel-related charges at the Ennore port which is India’s first corporatized port. Talks have been going on between Nissan and Larsen & Toubro, the builder of the Kattupalli port, regarding the shift.
According to Nissan officials, the company is finding it too expensive to export cars from the Ennore port given its high charges. The company officials further claim that the port is the most expensive port in India as well as in the world.
Moreover, the Ennore port has not been able to provide the export efficiency required by the company in terms of infrastructure and costs. This is due to the delay in the completion of the necessary infrastructure at the port.
At the time of establishing manufacturing base in India, Oragadam was chosen by the Japanese carmaker owing to its proximity to the Chennai port. When the Chennai port was unavailable to the company, it accepted the Ennore port as an alternative instead. The charges at Ennore port are however nearly double of that at the Chennai port, states an official at Nissan.