APM Terminals Mumbai [GTI – Gateway Terminals India Pvt. Ltd.] and Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA) have signed a Settlement Agreement to reach an amicable solution and resolve a decade-long pending issue on Tariff related matter pertaining to the year 2012. The principles of the Settlement Agreement were formulated by the Conciliation and Settlement Committee (CSC) as per the guidelines issued by the Indian Port Association (an apex body of Major Ports under the administrative control of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways) for settlement of pending issues between the operators and the port authority at Major Ports in India. The principles of agreement have been settled in the framework. The calculations on tariff differential will be done post the court orders.
The signing ceremony was attended by various dignitaries including H.E. Freddy Svane – Ambassador of Royal Danish Embassy to India, Mr. Sanjay Sethi – IAS & Chairman of JNPA, Mr. Jonathan Goldner – Head of Terminal Asia & Chairman of GTI, Mr. Gopal Krishna – Chairman of CSC, Dr. C. Chandramouli and Mr. Shambhu Singh – members of the CSC and key personnel of JNPA and GTI.
On this momentous occasion H.E. Freddy Svane, Ambassador of Royal Danish Embassy mentioned, “Today’s milestone is an important development in the logistics sector of India. It could not have been possible without the role played by the Conciliation and Settlement Committee, JNPA and APM Terminals. This is a progressive step in creating an environment of trust and ease of doing business for investors. We are moving towards a future where logistics will play an important role in India becoming a major player economically and politically.”
He further added, “A need to find resolution to this issue and other long-standing issues in the maritime sector was agreed at the highest government levels between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen earlier. Cabinet Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and senior officials in the Ministry of Ports and Shipping including Secretary Sanjeev Ranjan were instrumental in suggesting CSC as a platform for arriving at a solution to this long-standing issue.”
Mr. Girish Aggarwal, Chief Operating Officer, Gateway Terminals India said, “We are pleased to amicably resolve this decade old tariff related dispute. We thank the Government of India; Ministry of Port, Shipping & Waterways for forming IPA, Danish Embassy & CSC to address this issue swiftly. We are delighted to resolve this issue in complete alignment with JNPA. This will impact the trade and the port industry positively.”
Shri Sanjay Sethi, IAS and Chairman of JNPA said, “The dispute resolution mechanism through settlement process as developed by Government through CSC is likely to bring about transformative change in the maritime industry. We are glad that we have been able to come to settlement with GTI through this mechanism and are grateful to the Government for helping this resolve it harmoniously.”
Mr. Gopal Krishna, Chairman of CSC said, “Disputes between various stakeholders in the industry have been impacting the efficiency and operational excellence of the industry players. It was imperative to establish a mechanism that not only resolve the disputes, but also reduces the burden of pending cases in the Court. Conciliation and Settlement Committee (CSC) was envisaged with the intention of achieving the settlement among the stakeholders in the least possible time, thereby saving on financial burden on the industry players as well. This will go a long way in Ease of Doing Business and attract private players in the maritime industry.”
