News / Capacity boost at BMCT attracts new box services out of Nhava Sheva

Riding on the capacity strength from the launch of phase 2 operations, PSA’s flagship container terminal at India’s Nhava Sheva port (JNPA) is rapidly consolidating its market share in the region.

PSA Mumbai, also known as Bharat Mumbai Container Terminals (BMCT), recently doubled its annual capacity, to 4.8m teu, making it the largest container handling facility in the country.

That capacity boost has already yielded a wave of service gains for BMCT, as container carriers frustrated by fewer berthing window slots at JNPA, eye greater operational flexibility and quicker vessel turnarounds.

The latest customer win is noteworthy for Indian trades: Italy’s Messina Line, a traditional ro-ro carrier, which has opened a container service out of India, its first box operation in that market. A call from the 6,300-teu Jolly Verde last week marked the launch of the India-Mediterranean (INDME) service.

“The new service connects ports across the Mediterranean, Red Sea, Indian Subcontinent and Middle East, boosting trade flows between Europe, West Asia and South Asia,” said PSA India.

According to industry sources, the INDME rotation is Nhava Sheva-Mundra-Jeddah-Djibouti-Mota Berth-Napoli-Genoa-Fos-sur-Mer-Castellon-Barcelona.

Messina’s operations in India are handled by Mumbai-based agent Samsara Shipping, and a port executive told The Loadstar: “A significant portion of loadings was nomination cargo.

“The vessel, which joined Messina’s fleet in April 2024, had a decent berth productivity rate on its first call.”

Sources in Nhava Sheva expect the service frequency to be upgraded to weekly from some sort of a fortnightly operation in the initial few months.

“The Jolly Verde is the first of two particularly versatile sister ships suitable for traffic to/from the Middle East and India,” the Genoa-based carrier said.

As direct India-Red Sea trades increasingly draw capacity injections from feeder or regional operators, there are also indications that Singapore-headquartered X-Press Feeders has signed on for, or was looking to buy, slots from Messina to boost its network.

INDME is the second service win for BMCT in as many weeks, with the terminal set to add another intra-Asia connection from Cosco Shipping, the inaugural call lined up for 6 October, according to port sources.

The SE1 service has a rotation of Nhava Sheva-Port Klang-Singapore-Surabaya-Jakarta-Nhava Sheva, deploying three mid-size ships, initially.

BMCT already hosts the maximum number of intra-Asia services operating out of JNPA, data shows.

The terminal’s volumes in the current fiscal year through August soared 27% year on year, and sources expect that pace to accelerate in the coming months with more service additions.