Tasnim � An Iranian officials dismissed reports that the country�s southeastern port of Chabahar has been handed over to India, saying an Indian company is in charge of running the port as a mere operator.


The Indian operator �IPGL� has been tasked with administering and running the terminal of the first phase of �Beheshti harbor� at Chabahar port, deputy head of Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran for port affairs, Mohammad Ali Hassanzadeh said, noting that such contract would by no means spell India�s authority over the port.

He also explained that Iran is developing a terminal for the shipment of mineral products and has already set up terminals for oil and liquefied gas at Chabahar with which the Indian operator has nothing to do.

According to Hassanzadeh, the project of Chabahar developments involves four phases, which will increase the capacity of freight shipment at the port to 77.2 million tons once completed.

The Indian company �IPGL- is tasked with running only one of those four phases by supplying the equipment under a 10-year contract, he added.

India Ports Global and Aria Banader Iranian Port signed a deal in May 2016 to equip and operate containers and multi-purpose terminals at Shahid Beheshti port in Chabahar with the capital investment of $85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of $ 22.95 million on a 10-year lease.

Chabahar is the closest and best access point of Iran to the Indian Ocean and Iran has devised serious plans to turn it into a transit hub for immediate access to markets in the northern part of the Indian Ocean and Central Asia.

It aims to create a reliable transport corridor for the smooth transport and transit of goods and services through Chabahar Port between Afghanistan, India, and Iran.