Construction of three seaports will be completed by end of 2026, says Infrastructure Minister Janardhan Reddy

Minister for Infrastructure & Investments B.C. Janardhan Reddy informed the Legislative Council on Thursday that Andhra Pradesh was poised to ramp up its maritime handling capacity by completing the construction of Ramayapatnam, Machilipatnam and Mulapeta seaports by the end of 2026.

Responding to a question asked by MLCs Perabathula Rajasekharam, B.T. Naidu, and Beeda Ravichandra, the Minister said Visakhapatnam port was the only major port in the State operating under the Central Government’s control with an annual cargo handling capacity of 141.60 Million Metric Tons, while the Adani-Gangavaram (64 MMTPA), Krishnapatnam (98 MMTPA) and the Kakinada deepwater port (26 MMTPA) were under the administrative purview of the AP Maritime Board (APMB).

The Kakinada anchorage port (5 MMTPA) and Ravva port in Konaseema district (2 MMTPA) were under the direct management of the APMB.

The Minister said the Ramayapatnam port was poised to be completed by the end of April 2026, Mulapeta port by November 2026 and the Machilipatnam port towards the end of 2026.

The APMB was bearing the cost of land acquisition under the ‘landlord model’ and construction of the essential rail and roads links.

The National Highways Authority of India was providing road connectivity to NH-16 and the State government was facilitating land acquisition for rail connectivity at the concessionaire’s expense. The integration of these ports with a proper logistics network would establish Andhra Pradesh as a leading maritime gateway of India, the Minister added.