India's JSW Infrastructure Wins INR 600 Million Punjab Rail Freight Terminal Project

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On November 13, JSW Minerals Rail Logistics, a wholly-owned subsidiary of India's JSW Infrastructure Limited, received a project award letter from the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL), securing the right to build, develop and operate a multimodal freight terminal on the Indian national rail freight network at New Shambhu station near Rajpura in Punjab. The disclosed project value is approximately INR 600 million, with a contract term of 35 years, including the construction period and extension period.

The terminal is located on Freight Line No. 4 on the Ambala side of New Shambhu station, using land owned by Indian Railways and DFCCIL. According to the project tender technical documents previously published by DFCCIL, the minimum construction requirements include a loading and unloading platform 750 meters long and 22.6 meters wide, a service building with a floor area of approximately 180 square meters, as well as 750 meters of retaining wall and 800 meters of drainage facilities. The platform area of approximately 16,950 square meters will serve as the primary site for cargo handling and rail freight operations.

Supporting works also include overhead catenary systems, platform lighting, road lighting, signaling and communication facilities, and an electronic dynamic track scale. The dynamic track scale is used for weighing cargo while trains are in motion and is equipped with computers, uninterruptible power supplies and related peripheral equipment. The terminal also requires access roads, warehousing facilities and loading and unloading operation areas, with the specific layout to be determined based on the approval results of the Engineering Scale Plan (ESP) and site conditions.

The project construction timeline is linked to land delivery and engineering approvals. JSW Minerals must commence construction within 3 months after the later of the two conditions—approval of the Engineering Scale Plan or handover of railway land—is completed, and must complete construction within 18 months from the same baseline. The 35-year contract term is calculated from the date of issuance of the project award letter, and the specific rights and obligations will be determined through the freight terminal agreement to be subsequently signed between JSW Minerals and DFCCIL.

The New Shambhu terminal is located in an important rail freight region of Punjab, with surrounding coverage of markets including Rajpura, Ambala, Chandigarh and Shimla. The project is approximately 18 kilometers from Ambala and approximately 44 kilometers from Chandigarh, and can connect to the road transport network via India's National Highway 44.