"Normally, we handle around 2 lakh tonnes of coking coal a month. But, the figure has gone up to 4 lakh tonnes per month in the first quarter of this fiscal," said CPT vice-chairman and chief of HDC, Swapan Chakraborty.

He was informally talking to the reporters after the official launching of CPT's Rs 12-crore multi-purpose survey vessel MV Sarojini here on Wednesday. The vessel has been manufactured by a state public sector unit - The Shalimar Works (1980) Ltd. The vessel was launched by West Bengal's power, science & technology, public enterprises & industrial reconstruction minister Mrinal Banerjee.

Speaking at the launching of Sarojini, Shalimar Works chairman A Sengupta called for making his company's yard an ancillary of CPT, while CPT chairman HP Roy said the issue could be discussed at the proper forum.HDC, which ranks second in the country in terms of coking coal traffic volume, handled 32.84 lakh tonnes of coking coal in 1999-2000, which was 2.33 lakh tonnes or 7.64 per cent higher than what it handled in the previous fiscal. It handled 206.9 lakh tonnes of cargo last fiscal.

SAIL imports coking coal using berth 5 and Tisco uses berth 8. Berth 5 is equipped with two grab unloaders each having unloading capacity of 700 tonne per hour. There are director conveyor connections from this berth to the various storage sheds, bagging and stitching plants etc.

CPT has signed a memorandum of understanding with SAIL, according to which SAIL will have the right to use this berth for handling their imported coking coal traffic for 330 days in a year for 10 years, extendable for a further period of five years on mutual consent. It, however, will have to allow 12 vessels for Hindustan Lever Ltd each year.

CPT has also signed an MoU with Tisco according to which Tisco has the right to use berth 8 for handling their imported coking coal, pig iron, steel, scrap traffic and export of various steel materials for 330 days in a year for 10 years, extendable for a further period of five years on mutual consent.

Chakraborty said tenders had been called from the private parties for privatisation of berth nos 11 and 12.

Berth 11 has been commissioned in 1998 and is used for handling dry bulk and containerised cargo.

This berth has continuous quay face with berth nos 8, 9 and 10, and has a back up area of about 11,000 sq metres.

Berth 12 is now under construction at a cost of Rs 12 crore and will be completed by September this year.