Penna Cements Cochin

Penna Cements' Cochin Operations

The arrival of Shipping Vessel 'Penna Suraksha' carrying 25,000 MT of cement from Krishnapatanam Port kickstarts the beginning of operations of the 4th cement terminal at Cochin Port.

The cement brought from Krishnapatnam Port is being transferred from the ship to the silos located in the cement terminal at Q6 berth of Ernakulam Wharf through pneumatic suction. Catering to the cement deficit Kerala market, the company has set up a Rs.60 crore facility to handle bulk cement.

This paradigm shift in the transportation of cement from the conventional road/ rail to shipping is another step towards promoting coastal shipping envisaged under the Sagarmala programme. Cement being a high-volume, low-value product, low-cost sea transport is set to be a game changer in logistics. The National Perspective Plan lists coastal movement of cement as an important segment of India’s coastal shipping potential.

The bagging terminal of Penna Cement is the fourth such terminal in Kochi. The terminal set up in 1.14 hectares land leased by the port is expected to handle 3 lakh tonnes of cement annually.

As of now, three bulk cement terminals, one each of Ambuja Cements, UltraTech Cements and Zuari Cements are in operation. Malabar Cements, a Kerala Govt. cement company has also been allotted land for setting up a cement bagging terminal. The three currently operational terminals handle 7,83,000 tonnes of cement annually and a throughput of 1.5 MMT is expected by 2020. The current annual sales volume of Penna Cements for the whole of India is 5.80 MMT, of which 0.30 MMT is in Kerala, which is confined to the Malabar Regions. The packing terminal here will be catering to the requirements of central and south Kerala.