The new jetties are to be located in an area designated for future green hydrogen plant development. Shukla expressed hope that companies involved in the green hydrogen projects may be interested in using these jetties for bunkering green fuels, although he clarified that this was speculative and not guaranteed. He pointed out that these companies are investing heavily, so it would be reasonable to expect some interest in the jetties.

In August, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways approved Deendayal Port Authority's proposal to develop the jetties at Old Kandla on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis, with the project aimed at enhancing India's liquid cargo handling capacity. Currently, the port has seven operational oil jetties, five of which are managed by the port authority, while the remaining two are run by Indian Oil Corporation and IFFCO. The completion of Oil Jetty 8 is anticipated shortly, increasing the port's combined capacity to 16.32 million tonnes (mt) and 23.49 mt by FY35.

To meet growing demand, the authority plans to develop three additional oil/liquid jetties, each capable of handling 3.2 mt of liquid cargo, excluding crude oil. A port official noted that developing oil jetties through private investment is an attractive PPP option, although this approach is uncommon, as ports typically prefer to manage oil jetties independently.

The under-construction Oil Jetty 8, which is being developed at a revised cost of Rs 225.85 crore, is critical for the future construction of jetties 9, 10, and 11. Shukla mentioned that the most challenging tasks, including building the pipeline trestle and other essential infrastructure, were being handled by the port authority, leaving the private investors to focus on the construction of the jetties themselves.

The port authority has already received environmental clearance for the project, and the necessary land is in the port's possession. The dredging and construction of the common trestle from Oil Jetty 8 to the landfall point will be funded by the port authority. Jetties 9 and 10 will not include storage, while Jetty 11 will feature a storage capacity of 1,30,132 kilolitres.