Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala has signed a supplementary concession agreement with Adani Vizhinjam Port Pvt Ltd to extend the project timeline by five years. This was announced by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday. The port is now slated for commissioning in December 2024.

"We have entered a supplementary concession agreement with Adani Vizhinjam Port PVT LTD on @PortOfVizhinjam to extend the project period for 5 years & commission the port by December. As the 2nd & 3rd phases near completion by 2028, an investment of ₹10,000 crore will be made, expanding the port's capacity to 30 lakh TEU," Vijayan said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

"This milestone underlines our commitment to comprehensive development & global connectivity," he added.

The project timeline was extended taking into account things such as the Covid-19 pandemic, cyclone Ockhi and floods. Due to delays, a penalty of Rs 219 crore has been imposed, with Rs 43.8 crore to be paid to the state. The remaining amount will be withheld until 2028.

If the project is not fully completed by 2028, the five-year extension will be cancelled, and the government will collect the withheld amount.

Earlier, the Kerala government and Adani Vizhinjam Port Pvt Ltd had agreed to the supplementary concession agreement for the Vizhinjam International Port Project. The state cabinet meeting, chaired by Vijayan, on Wednesday, approved the draft supplementary concession agreement.