Bhubaneswar, May 30: The construction of the proposed all weather port in coastal Balasore is likely to begin within three months.

Chennai-based Creative Port Development Private Limited would set up the Rs 2187 crore deep water, mechanised port at Kirtania on the Subernarekha mouth in Balasore.

The port holds huge promise for neighbouring landlocked states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Bengal and the Northeast. The port will not only handle Orissa cargo, but will also provide services to hinterland states.

ArcelorMittal is looking forward to the port for easy transportation of raw materials for the proposed Jharkhand steel plant, sources said.

A senior officer of the commerce department said the Chennai authority had submitted a detailed project report (DPR) to the government and the construction would start soon after the land is handed over.

The land acquisition process is in the advanced stages and is expected to be over within the next three months.

But land acquisition for the 36km Rupsa-Kirtania rail-link is likely to take time.

The company signed an MoU with the government in December 2006.

The first phase of the port with a handling capacity of 10MTPA is expected to be commissioned by 2010 and ultimately its capacity would go up to 50MTPA by the tenth year.

The company signed a concession deal with the state on January 11, 2008, enabling the latter to share revenue at the rate of five per cent from the first to fifth year, eight per cent from sixth to tenth year, 10 per cent from the 11th to 15th year and 12 per cent for the remaining 15. The company would enjoy the concession for a period of 30 years, extendable by an additional period of 20 years.

In the first phase, the company plans to build four berths and then add more till the capacity reaches 50MTPA by the tenth year.

The port would be developed on build, own, operate, share and transfer (boost) basis for 34 years and would include a dedicated rail-cum-road connection from NH-5 and a rail network at Jaleswar.

Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh-based Navyug Engineering Limited has evinced its interest in building a port at Astarang in Puri at an estimated cost of Rs 6,000 crore.

Last month, the company chief C. Viswanath Rao met chief minister Naveen Patnaik and put forth a proposal.

The proposed port is expected to be built in three phases with two coal berths, an iron and steel berth and another multi-cargo berth. After the commissioning of the phase-I, the port will have a cargo handling capacity ranging between 12.75MT and 23.25MTPA. The final capacity would be around 47MTPA.