Adani will have a 70% interest in the port while the remaining 30% stake will be owned by Gadot.

A consortium formed by India’s Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) and Gadot, a chemicals and logistics group, has won the bid to take over the Port of Haifa, Israel, with a concession period up to 2054.

Under the agreement, the consortium received the rights to purchase 100% equity in Haifa Port Company after placing the winning bid of nearly $1.18bn.

The privatization of the port, anticipated to boost competition, comes after a two-year tender process.

Adani will own a 70% interest in the port while Gadot will hold the remaining 30% stake.

Gadot CEO Opher Linchevski said: “The length of the lease and the growth that we anticipate in the Israel economy, as well as the surrounding regions, means we are well positioned to invest to build one of the best ports in this region.”

Haifa Port is situated in the north of Israel, around 90km away from the city of Tel Aviv. It currently has two container terminals as well as two multi-cargo terminals. and It is Israel’s leading port in Israel. Close to 30 million tons of cargo pass through the Port each year – more than any other port in Israel.

The port managed 2.56 million tonnes of general and bulk cargo as well as 1.46 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containers last year.

APSEZ Wholetime director and CEO Karan Adani called the win ‘strategic’, adding that it expands the firm’s reach in Israel.

Adani noted: “In the short term, we look forward to developing strategic trade lanes between our ports in India and Haifa and help facilitate trade between the two countries, diversifying the port cargo as well as leveraging our expertise to increase the operational efficiencies.

“Our portion of the investment is being funded through internal accruals and we are proud to work with Gadot as a reliable partner we have known for several years. In the long run, this is a tremendous port as we anticipate Israel becoming a connection both for Europe and the Middle East, and therefore we stand to benefit from the new possible trade lanes that will get created.”

In April, Adani Ports signed a $200m deal to buy Indian third-party marine services firm Ocean Sparkle (OSL) for $200m.