Keralam CM flags off containers from Vizhinjam, marking start of EXIM operations

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister of Keralam V D Satheesan on Tuesday flagged off two containers from Vizhinjam, marking the commencement of EXIM operations from the international seaport here.

Satheesan was accompanied by state Minister for Industries, Information Technology, and Commerce P K Kunhalikutty and Congress MLA M Vincent.

In an X post, the CM said that the state government held strategic discussions with diverse investor groups to explore key opportunities for scaling EXIM operations at Vizhinjam to the next level.

"To ensure seamless commercial expansion, the government is committing comprehensive support, regulatory facilitation, and infrastructure backing to help investors expand global export activities through the port," he said.

"The same Arabian Sea, which has shaped our nation for centuries and welcomed travelers from all over the world with open arms, is today opening the historic door to the development of a new era Keralam. Let us move forward together into the new era of prosperity that Vizhinjam opens," Satheesan said in a Facebook post.

Alongside beginning the EXIM operations, the Keralam government will also launch Mission Samudra, a port-led industrial and logistics development scheme.

The move towards full export-import operations at Vizhinjam follows the successful completion of a trial run involving the port's first export container, which was shipped to Valencia in Spain.

The deep-water port has been developed by Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ), India's largest port developer and part of the Adani Group, under a public-private partnership model at an estimated cost of Rs 8,867 crore.

The port was dedicated to the nation in May 2025 and had received commercial commissioning certificate in December 2024.