South Korea’s HMM—the world’s eight-largest container shipping company according to Alphaliner’s Top 100 list—has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with India’s Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA) to collaborate on developing Vadhvan Port.
Under the MOU, HMM will support the development and operation of Vadhvan Port, a large-scale project by the Indian government to become “one of the world’s top ten container ports by 2040”.
The port will handle 23 million TEUs annually and include nine container terminals. With a natural depth of 20 meters, deeper than the 15.5 meters at Nhava Sheva, the port will be able to accommodate HMM’s 24,000 TEU vessels and offer ‘strong’ connectivity to India’s inland logistics network.
India’s fast-growing market has drawn global attention, and HMM is expanding its services in the region, including India North Europe Express (INX), which will be starting in February this year, Far East-India Mediterranean (FIM) and India- America Express (IAX) routes.
Through this MOU, HMM said it plans to strengthen its Indian services and enhance its port business competitiveness.
“We hope this partnership leads to strong cooperation for port development. We will continue investing in terminals to grow our integrated logistics business, a key part of our mid-to-long-term strategy,” an HMM official said.
HMM recently named two newbuild LNG-powered 7,700 TEU containerships chartered from Greek shipowner Navios. HMM Ocean and HMM Sky will be deployed on the company’s Far East–India–Mediterranean service starting this January.
In September 2024, the South Korean carrier unveiled a massive KRW 23.5 trillion (about $16 billion) investment in sustainable growth by 2030.
As part of a mid-to-long-term strategy, the shipping company aims to expand its business portfolio for future growth and drive itself to be “a global green shipping and logistics carrier”.
To meet the market’s demand for eco-friendly transportation, HMM aims to acquire around 70 green vessels by 2030 and establish a carbon-neutral ecosystem across all transportation segments by 2045.
The plan also includes a KRW 4.2 trillion investment to enhance HMM’s shipping and logistics infrastructure.