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Transhipment cargo
What it is
Containers unloaded at one port and reloaded onto another vessel rather than entering the local market. A large share of India's transhipment has historically been handled at Colombo, Singapore and Dubai rather than domestically
Capturing it requires deep draft, scale and efficient handling
Impact on industries
- A large identifiable prize - Indian-origin transhipment currently earns fees for foreign ports, and repatriating it needs no new trade growth
- Transhipment volumes are additive to a port's throughput without depending on local industrial demand
- It is highly competitive and price-sensitive, since a shipping line will move its hub for modest cost or time advantage
- Requires draft, crane productivity and connectivity at global standards, so it concentrates in a few deep-water ports rather than benefiting the sector broadly