India closes Mumbai ports after MSC ship and bulker collide

THE Government of India expects to take three days to clear containers sunk and afloat off Mumbai after an accident in which Kuwaiti tramp bulker collided with an MSC containership, closing Mumbai`s port facilities which handle more than 40 per cent of Indian exports, reported Bloomberg.

Jawaharlal Nehru Port and the neighbouring Mumbai harbour facilities were closed to shipping as salvage operators worked to recover the 250 containers that fell into the sea after the reportedly unlicensed 41,829-ton bulk carrier Khalijia 3 collided with the 2,314-TEU MSC Chitra.


Both Mumbai and JN ports have a common channel through which ships access cargo handling facilities.


Gulf Rocks Co, the Kuwaiti owner of the Khalijia 3 was not available for comment, reported London`s Containerisation International, adding that a criminal investigation is underway.


"The Khalijia was under salvage and was not fully certified to sail," said Deepak Tewari, chief executive of MSC Agency (India) Pvt Ltd, reported Live Mint Wall Street Journal.


MSC has launched operations to collect containers floating in the sea by putting them on a barge and taking them to safety. "The loss to exporters will be determined after a survey is carried out," Mr Tewari said.


He also said the Khalijia 3 had been involved in a grounding and a separate collision off the Mumbai in July. "After the salvage, the Khalijia was coming into the Mumbai port when the ship`s steering failed and it hit our ship," said Mr Tewari.


Western India Shippers Association vice president R Venkatesh said shipping lines have refused cargo bookings in the face of the closure of the Mumbai area docks, which handle 40 per cent of India`s exports.


Maersk Line, the world`s biggest container shipping firm, has stopped accepting bookings, according to an advisory issued to customers, said R Venkatesh, president of the Western India Shippers Association.


Seventeen ships were stranded and another 15 were awaiting berths after the shutdown. Mr Venkatesh, whose group represents 130 exporters and freight forwarders, said there hadn`t been a similar collision in the channels off Mumbai in his 30 years in the industry.


The Panamanian-flagged Chitra was deliberately beached following the incident and salvagers from Smit Internationale were working to stabilise the ship and its cargo, MSC said.


A loaded Maersk ship was unable to sail out of JN port due to the closure of the channel, Mr Venkatesh said. Two other Maersk vessels were awaiting berths.