Philippines' ICTSI walks away from Indian container port contract

MANILA: Philippines-based port operator International Container Terminal Services Inc (ICTSI) said it agreed with an Indian shipbuilding venture to scrap a three-year-old contract to manage and operate a container terminal, saying the deal was "not beneficial" to either party.

According to a Manila stock exchange filing on Monday, the firm's ICTS (India) Pte Ltd unit terminated a contract with L&T Shipbuilding Ltd (LTSB) to operate the Kattupalli Container Terminal in Tamil Nadu, India, the Manila-based firm's first foray in Asia's third-largest economy.

The Philippine port operator said in the filing both parties deemed the contract "not beneficial", adding it will be reimbursed an undisclosed amount for the license fee to operate Kattupalli.

ICTSI didn't disclose full details in the filing on why the contract wasn't beneficial, but added it will continue to look for opportunities in India. Officials at ICTSI did not respond to requests for comment.

ICTSI, owned by the Philippines' fourth-richest man, Enqrique Razon, operates the Southeast Asian country's biggest ports and has terminal concessions and port development projects in more than a dozen other countries including China and the United States.

LTSB is a joint venture between Larsen & Toubro Limited and Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation.