The government has worked out a proposal to disinvest the stake of India Ports Global (IPGL) in India Ports Global Chabahar Free Zone (IPGCFZ) to an Iranian entity, said an official in the know.
US stocks today: US stocks close lower on fading hopes for quick Iran deal, mixed quarterly earnings
India’s activities at the Iranian port remain sanctions-free until Sunday, and it has been eyeing an arrangement where a local entity would take over operations until the US sanctions remain in effect, with a guarantee that it would be transferred to India again once those sanctions are lifted.
Queries sent to the Ministries of External Affairs, and Ports, Shipping and Waterways remained unanswered until the time of going to press.
Amid the West Asia war, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has been engaging with all stakeholders over the situation. India’s Chabahar operations were given an exemption from the US sanctions on Iran in November 2018.
In February 2025, the US administration had mandated the Secretary of State to modify or rescind sanctions waivers, particularly those that provide Iran any degree of economic or financial relief, including those related to Iran’s Chabahar port project. On September 29 last year, the US state department revoked the 2018 waiver.
“Following India’s representation, the US Department of the Treasury on 28th October, 2025, issued a Letter stating that activities at the Chabahar Port will not be exposed to U.S. sanctions till 26 April 2026,” the external affairs ministry told Parliament this February.
India has invested nearly $120 million in the Chabahar project in equipment procurement at the port, which was instrumental in providing humanitarian and other types of emergency assistance to Afghanistan, the ministry said.
In 2024, India had signed a 10-year agreement with Iran to operate the terminal at the port after several rounds of negotiations.
India considers its presence in the port strategically important, given its close proximity to Pakistan and Chinese investments in Pakistan’s Gwadar Port.
It is a critical gateway for the proposed International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) — a multi-modal route between India, Central Asia and Russia, reducing transit time for trade between the three regions.
Last year, the government had assessed the spillover effects of being invested in Chabahar – should the sanctions exemption not remain in place, and legal experts had opined that the companies involved could be affected. If they are also exposed to sanctions, it could hinder India’s plans to become a global ports player.
The operator of the India-financed Chabahar terminal, IPGL, is a 100 per cent subsidiary of Sagarmala Development Corporation (SDCL) – now rechristened as Sagarmala Finance Corporation. The company is India’s first maritime non-banking finance corporation. IPGL is also a part of the Bharat Global Ports consortium, which was launched by shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal in February 2025 to bid for foreign port projects. IPGL also operates the Sittwe Port in Myanmar.
If the stake transfer is effected to a local entity, those risks will dissipate.
Source link
#India #hand #Chabahar #port #reins #Iranian #entity
