The Upcoming Transshipment Port In The Great Nicobar Along with an Airbase Is A Major Gain For International Commercial Shipping And The Andaman Theatre Military Command

The recently opened Vizhinjam International Transshipment Deepwater Multipurpose Seaport on the tip of Kerala facing the Indian Ocean, is already a resounding success.

It has been used by the largest container ships in the world, and its state-of-the-art automated AI assisted facilities are deeply appreciated by international shipping plying in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

Vizhinjam is situated just 10 nautical miles from major international East-West shipping routes. Developed as a public-private partnership with port major, the Adani Group, Phase 1 already handles 1 million TEUs (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units). It is going to be expanded in due course to 6.2 million TEUs in later phases. The deepwater transshipment port has a natural draft of 20-24 metres and minimal littoral drift.

Now India has announced it is going to replicate this lucrative, strategic and commercial breakthrough, the first of its kind on the subcontinent, with another deepwater transshipment port in the Great Nicobar Islands located strategically just 40 nautical miles from the extremely busy Malacca Straits.

China, active in the IOR for several years now, has a number of port bases in various countries, but no deepwater transshipment ports. The nearest transshipment port in the IOR beyond Vizhinjam, is in Colombo, Singapore, and Port Klang. The others are farther away in the Asia-Pacific.

The International Container Transshipment Port (ICTP) at Galathea Bay in the Great Nicobar Island will be constructed alongside a fully equipped airbase with stretch runways for large and heavy civilian/military aircraft, power infrastructure, and other  defence installations plus an integrated purpose built township.

The overall investment eventually will be in the region of Rs.100,000 crores, starting with the first phase of the port at a cost of some Rs. 20,000 crores.

Like Vizhinjam, the Galathea Bay transshipment Port (ICTP) also has a natural draught depth of over 20 metres. The first phase is expected to be commissioned by 2028, with a handling capacity of 4 million TEUs, rising to 16 million TEUs in phase 4. The First phase of the Galathea Bay Port includes two breakwaters, a 400 meter wide channel for navigation, an 800 metre wide turning circle, seven berths at over 2.3 km length, a container yard with 125 ha, automated equipment for handling the containers including RMQCs (Rail mounted Quay Crane) and RTGs (Rubber Tyred Gantry) and two berths to handle liquid cargo. Like Vizhingam, It will also be a public private partnership and invite foreign investment as well.

Adani, with considerable port expertise at Mundhra and other ports in India, is already cooperating with Marseille Port in France and others in Israel and Greece as well.

 The ITCP transshipment port spread over 166 sq.km. is located southwest of Campbell Bay and the INZ Baez Naval Port. It is currently connected by the Campbell Bay-Galathea Bay road and Galathea Bridge No.46 built by the BRO(Border Roads Organisation). All these are likely to be enhanced to suit the development.  

Positioned ideally to tap into the trade between Asia, Africa, the US and Europe that passes through the IOR, the ICTP at Galathea Bay will compete with Singapore, Colombo and Port Klang in the near area that presently handles the transhipped cargo in the region that has not been tapped by Vizhinjam in Kerala.

The potential commercially is enormous if one realises that the prosperity of Shanghai, Shenzen and Singapore is partially and substantially based on its port efficiencies, its logistical sophistication, and the massive transshipment cargoes they handle. The ITCP at Galathea Bay is projected to generate at least Rs. 30,000 crores per annum in the first phase and provide over 50,000 jobs.

Great Nicobar Island  is the southernmost and largest of the Nicobar islands group. It is about 520 Km from Port Blair. It is located  on the main east-west international shipping route almost equidistant from Colombo, Malaysia’s Port Klang, and Singapore.

India’s container traffic stood at 17 million TEUs in 2020 compared to China’s 246 million TEUs. This provides some idea of the scope for growth India is now tapping into, with its two strategically located transshipment ports. Till now, India’s own transshipment cargo was being handled by other ports.

The entire Andaman & Nicobar Islands are also being gradually developed for tourism and fisheries, while defence is a key objective in several of the islands, as in Lakshadweep which is very close to the Maldives and not very far from Mauritius.  

Simultaneously, India is developing its existing and new greenfield ports along both sea boards. It is also expanding its ship-building, submarine and aircraft carrier building capacity, for military and civilian applications for both domestic use and exports. These include oil tankers and on-order ships for other countries. India is also turning into a repair and refurbishing hub for itself and allied naval fleets, including those of the US operating in the IOR and the Asia-Pacific.

India is also looking into deep water mineral harvesting and blue water economies in deep sea fishing to a much more organised degree, given that China is already very active in these areas too. Other countries are even fishing in our territorial waters.

Most importantly, developments in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are positioning India as a strategic and commercial partner in the Arabian Sea, the IOR and the Bay of Bengal without losing any more time over it.

(882 words)

February 18^th, 2026

For: Firstpost/News18.com

Gautam Mukherjee