KoPT incurs Rs 298 cr deficit in FY'13: Report

KOLKATA: Kolkata Port Trust ( KoPT) today incurred a deficit of Rs 298 crore for the year ended March 2013 compared to surplus of Rs 90 crore in 2011-12, sources said.

"The board today cleared the accounts for the year which saw a deficit of Rs 298 crore for the year," company sources said after the board of trustees meeting.

The deficit was expected after the exit of Haldia Bulk Terminals ( HBT) as KoPT had lost close to Rs 200 crore from the operation of berths 2 & 8 at Haldia docks.

Today, the board today decided to invite fresh applications for mechanized cargo handling at the two berths for the third time after rejecting a tender in which the lowest bid was Rs 173 a tonne by a company, the sources said.

HBT was charging Rs 75 per tonne on an average for the two berths. The port authorities have proposed for inclusion of a risk and purchase clause in the contract this time.

The Board, the sources said, formally expressed concerns over repeated receipts of high-value bids from the interested bidders.

There have been reports that the tender had been rejected twice earlier in order to benefit certain stevedores.