As India’s port workers agreed to a new contract that prevented a nationwide port strike last week, torrential rains wreaked havoc on the western side of the country, resulting in container backlogs at India’s largest container gateway.
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The extreme weather caused chaos in and near Mundra Port, further pressuring the outward flow of cargo and exacerbating capacity concerns as volume builds up.
Multiple reports from Indian logistics publication Logistics Insider and supply chain publication The Loadstar said shipping operations at Mundra were put at a standstill for three days last week. The reports indicated it could take up to an extra week, or even longer, for cargo flow to improve, subject to weather events fading.
On Aug. 26, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a “red alert” warning for several districts in the western state of Gujarat due to the heavy rains and ensuing flooding ahead of the formation of Cyclone Asna. That alert was extended through Friday. As of Monday, 36 people have died in rain-related incidents. The storm came just days after another system hit neighboring Bangladesh , resulting in the deaths of 71 people.
According to a port operational update from Kuehne + Nagel last Thursday, the storm heavily impacted operations at Mundra, as well as other Gujarat-based ports including Kandla and Pipavav.
India-based logistics services provider FreightMango said in a customer advisory Friday that stakeholders should expect delays in both inbound and outbound shipments until the situation improves.
The adverse weather has not only caused delays in vessel berthing but has also disrupted cargo rail movements in the Saurashtra region of Gujarat, FreightMango said. More than 50 percent of Mundra’s volumes moves by rail, or is held at one of its local inland container depots (ICDs).
Mumbai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Port, also known as Nhava Sheva Port, also took on some impact as supply chains feel the ripple effects of the flood. The Loadstar report said truckers and freight station owners alike voiced frustration over escalating cargo gate-in and out delays and road closures in recent days, further creating a backlog of shipments.
The Kuehne + Nagel update said that the waiting period for empty pickup was two to three days, and trucker queues were 1.2 miles to 1.8 miles in most yards. In response to the congestion, Nhava Sheva has applied move count restrictions, which limited pre-gate-in requests.
Any impact on Mundra and the surrounding area is a significant concern when accounting for the port’s role in facilitating exports out of India.
Mundra managed 7.4 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in the 2024 fiscal year ended March 31 amid total cargo volumes of 180 million metric tons. In the first quarter of 2025, Mundra handled the highest ever quarterly volume by any Indian port at 51 million metric tons, according to owner Adani Ports.
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In June, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited (APSEZ) got the environmental regulatory go-ahead to build out a new expansion that would double the port’s capacity.
In a project that would cost 45,000 crore rupees ($5.4 billion), APSEZ will expand the port’s capacity by 289 million metric tons to 514 million metric tons. Mundra currently has capacity to handle 225 million metric tons of cargo annually, including 9.5 million TEUs.
The APSEZ network of 13 private ports handled roughly 27 percent of India’s total cargo and 44 percent of container cargo in 2024.
India breaks ground on $9 billion mega-port
Mundra isn’t the only major maritime expansion endeavor in India.
On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the Vadhvan Port project, a nine-terminal mega-seaport that will cost 76,220 crore rupees ($9.1 billion) to build.
The massive project is anticipated to handle 23.2 million TEUs per year, which would make it one of the top 10 ports by capacity in the world upon completion. Vadhvan is expected to be operational by 2030.
The west coast port is intended to handle ultra-large vessels and cargo ships, strengthening India’s trade connection with Central Asia, the Asia-to-Europe International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) and Russia—all with the goal to improve India’s standing in global maritime trade.
Additionally, the new gateway is expected to reduce congestion at Jawaharlal Nehru Port. Vadhvan is in Dahanu, a coastal town that is roughly 70 miles north of Mumbai.
The port’s container terminals will each be roughly 3,300 meters long, and four multi-functional berths. The port will span 3,578 acres of sea area and will include construction of 6.3 miles of offshore breakwater and cargo storage facilities.
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