Sical Logistics Ltd

History of Sical Logistics Ltd

Sical Logistics Limited was incorporated in 1955 as a Private Limited Company as South India Corporation Agencies Limited. The Company changed its name form South India Corporation (Agencies) Limited to Sical Logistics Limited with effect from February 14, 2006. The Company is a leading integrated multimodal logistics solutions providers for bulk and containerized cargo. It is the handler of more than 26 million tons of bulk group cargo and 500,000 TEUs of containerized cargo annually. The Company is into every aspect of logistics namely port handling, road and rail transport, warehousing, shipping, stevedoring, customs handling, trucking, retail logistics, mining and integrated logistics. Apart from this, Company owns and operates a container terminal at Tuticorin in joint venture with the Port of Singapore Authority, which is engaged in ports and terminals business. It provides end-to-end solutions in Bulk Logistics-stevedoring, which includes port terminals, customs house and shipping agency, trucking, railroad and warehousing; container logistics, which includes container terminals, ICD and CFS; and Offshore Logistics, which includes platform supply vessel and cutter suction dredger. In 1972, the company incorporated Agro Cargo Transport to provide trucking services to group companies. Also, they established the Ship Repair Division with their base at Chennai. In the year 1988, the company diversified in the area of fabrication and building of steel barges e ...lectro hydraulic grabs pay-loader buckets and survey launches. In the year 1989, the Ship Repair Division undertook fabrication of floating platform storage tanks as sub-contractors for Chokkani International Ltd. In the year 1996, Agro Cargo Transport merged with the company, which is currently operating as Sical's trucking division. In July 1998, the company signed a joint venture agreement with PSA India Pte Ltd, Singapore and Nur Investments and Trading Pte Ltd for development management and operation of the seventh berth at Tuticorin as a full-fledged container terminal on BOT basis. In the year 1999, MAC Agro Industries Ltd was amalgamated with the company. Also, the company won a major long-term coal handling contract on BOT basis from Tamil Nadu Electricity Board for the new port at Ennore. In the year 2000, the company entered into a joint venture agreement with Coeclerici Logistics, Italy and formed a 50:50 company, namely SICAL Coeclerici Logistics Ltd. In addition, the company hived off their profit making auto components division to a joint venture company. During the year 2004-05, the company added new business lines in their port handling and trucking divisions. In November 2005, the company hived off non-core business to focus mainly on logistics business. In February 2006, they incorporated MAC Oil Palm Ltd to focus on the palm oil business. The company made an application to the Indian Railways to operate container trains on an all-India license for export-import and domestic cargo including all the four categories offered by the Indian Railways. In April 2006, the Maharashtra Airport Development Company issued the letter of intent to the company for setting up a rail terminal as part of the proposed Multi-modal International Hub Airport at Nagpur During the year 2006-07, the company formed a special purpose vehicle, namely Nagpur Sical Gupto Logistics Ltd for the road terminal at MIHAN. For the road terminal at MIHAN, a special purpose vehicle, Nagpur Sical Gupta Road Terminal Ltd, was formed with Sical as the lead consortium partner with 51% stake; the state-run MADC owns 26% of equity for contributing land towards the project. The company transferred their oil palm undertaking to their wholly owned subsidiary Mac Oil Palm Ltd through a Scheme of Arrangement. In addition, they sold their refractory division and executed the Business Transfer Agreements for their cytozyme and flexible shafts. In September 2006, the company acquired Singapore-based Bergen Offshore Logistics Pte Ltd, a provider of specialized logistics for offshore oil and gas exploration. During the year 2007-08, the company hived off their trading, services and coffee plantation undertakings to Sicagen India Ltd with effect from October 1, 2006. In addition, the company transferred the shareholding in Sical Distriparks Ltd to Sical Infra Assets Ltd. In August 2007, they acquired cutter suction dredger, which is currently operating in China. In August 2007, the company sold their manufacturing facilities and assets of their auto components division, Indrad Auto Components, to Lucas TVS Ltd for Rs 14.69 crore. In March 2008, the company's first container train flagged off at Hatta Road station in Madhya Pradesh. The company was awarded the Best Business Partner Award for having handled the highest volume of cargo at Chennai Port during the financial year 2007-08. Also, the company was selected as the Organisation of Excellence in Traffic Performance for the year 2007-08 by the Tuticorin Port Trust. The company was awarded the Best Stevedorer for the year 2008-09 for handling highest volume of coal at Ennore Port. In August 2008, the company initiated the operations of their second container train from Melpakkam rail terminal, 70 km form Chennai to a private rail sliding at Patil, near Gurgaon. In February 2009, the company signed a strategic partnership with MMTC Ltd for their Greenfield iron ore terminal project at Ennore Port. In April 2009, the company signed Business Transfer Agreement for transfer of their drums division to Sicagen India Ltd effective from April 01, 2009. In May 2009, the company signed an MoU with Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd for the launch of a joint venture to operate a completed car yard at Ennore Port near Chennai. The joint venture will be engaged in yard operations such as storage and preparation for loading of vehicles at the export port, of all operations for exports of Nissan vehicles, for which MOL has already secured a contract. In 2010, the company has bagged a contract for Rs. 163 crore from Hindustan Copper for the multimodal port, train, and road logistics of copper concentrates, cathodes, and continuous cast copper wire rods. The contract has a term of two years and is extendable by one more year. In 2011, the Company was acquired by Coffee Day Group, with interests ranging from Coffee Retail Business, stakeholdings in leading IT and embedded technology companies, to technology parks and SEZs and hospitality. In 2012, the company entered in to cold supply chain business. The company also achieved a rare distinction during the year by creating a new record of the highest quantity of coal handled 35,733 mt. discharged in 24 hrs at Mangalore Port. The Company commenced surface mining and transportation contracts at Bharatpur and Lajukura Coal mines of Mahanadhi Coal Fields during the year 2015. The prestigious contract for movement of coal from Mahanadhi Coal Fields in Odisha to the power plant of NLC at Tuticorin through road-rail- sea movement commenced its operations in 2015-16 and handled 575904 tonnes. Further, the Company commenced the operation of removal and transportation of overburden at Samaleshwari mines in 2015-16. Pursuant to the initiation of Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process by the order of the Honourable NCLT Chennai Bench dated 10th March, 2021, the company has not ventured into any new business areas and could only continue the existing business. The TANGEDCO BOT contract at Kamarajar Port for handling coal concluded during February, 2022. Apart from this, the Company could operate mining activities at Amlohri during year 2021-22. Few operations were carried out in trucking, warehousing, vending logistics, cold chain division and dredging.