Four banned quay cranes are being delivered to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Mumbai and will arrive on 29 November.
The cranes were manufactured by Chinese state-owned company Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co (ZPMC).
The Indian security services have banned the company from supplying India’s state-owned ports due to its links with the Chinese government.
Jawaharlal Nehru Port is owned by the government but the cranes are for a new terminal which is operated by DP World.
Unlike other state-owned ports, Jawaharlal Nehru port has not sought security clearance from the government for the cranes, which were ordered by DP World last year.
Industry sources have suggested that the port did not seek security clearance because it needs to increase its capacity quickly and does not want to delay the opening of DP World’s new terminal.
Between April 2013 and April 2014, the port handled 4.16m teu which is more than its official capacity of 3.6m teu.
In 2011, the Indian shipping ministry announced plans which involved the port handling 11m teu by 2016 and 23m teu by 2020.
ZPMC is currently the biggest port crane maker in the world and the largest supplier of port gear to Indian ports, with about 146 cranes in operation there.
A DP World spokesperson said: “The necessary permissions from the Port Authority have been granted for the purchase of ZPMC cranes and we have not been informed of any ban by Government authorities.”
