New Delhi: Dubai-based logistics major DP World is lining up its next phase of expansion in India, with plans to bid for upcoming port and inland container depots at Vadhavan in Maharashtra and Dadri in Uttar Pradesh, and invest $700-800 million in the country in the short term. It is also eyeing longer-term joint ventures for its five terminal contracts nearing expiry, group chief executive officer Yuvraj Narayan said in an interview. The push reflects DP World’s long-term bet on India, even as returns from the country remain among the weakest in its global portfolio.

DP World wants the government to consider longer-term ownership structures for existing port concessions due to expire over the next five years, said Narayan, who took over the key role this year from Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem. The five terminals are Nhava Sheva International Container Terminal, Nhava Sheva (India) Gateway Terminal, Mundra, Vallarpadam and Chennai.

The company’s immediate investment pipeline in India is likely to include development of a new mega container terminal at Tuna Tekra in Gujarat, which is expected to become operational next year, Narayan said.

Pitching for a more predictable policy and regulatory environment, he said the government should focus on “rationalization, simplification and sensibility”, while building greater trust between public authorities and private investors.

Several of DP World’s Indian terminal concessions are approaching the end of their contractual lives 2027 onwards. Narayan argued that simply handing the assets back to the government at the end of a concession period could discourage operators from making fresh investments in equipment, technology and capacity. “What I would like is a long-term arrangement. I will continue to invest and expand, and you be a shareholder. If I make money, you make money,” he said.

Narayan favours joint ventures with perpetual or substantially longer tenures, with DP World retaining majority ownership where the economics require it. He said the government need not remain the controlling shareholder in such structures.

DP World has expanded beyond traditional port operations into inland logistics, freight forwarding and end-to-end supply chains in India.

“India is a growth place. It will feed into a network somewhere else,” said Narayan, who had joined DP World in 2004.

The New Delhi-raised chief executive said DP World is sourcing containers from Indian manufacturers, and has committed to buying two years’ output of a domestic manufacturer.

On India’s port infrastructure planning and low utilization issues, he said the main snag was hindered connectivity. “Why are we building more? Because you have them in the wrong places,” Narayan said, arguing that India should focus more on improving hinterland connectivity through rail, roads and coastal shipping, rather than simply adding terminals.

He said that the utilization across Indian container terminal capacity was below 60%, compared with around 95% at DP World’s own mature ports globally.

DP World’s key competitors in India include major global and domestic port operators and logistics companies such as A.P. Moller - Maersk, PSA International, CMA CGM, and Adani Ports and SEZ (Apsez).

DP World, which clocked $24.4 billion in global annual revenue in 2025, is looking at India, where it has invested about $2.5 billion so far, as a long-term growth market.

DP World's Indian revenues are not separately reported. India forms a part of the Asia Pacific business, which contributed almost half of the group's container throughput in 2025.

The chief executive's comments come amid the war-triggered trade disruptions in West Asia and the Red Sea.

Narayan said the disruption in the Persian Gulf has not caused any material damage to DP World’s operations, including at its flagship Jebel Ali port in Dubai. He disputed reports that the port had been damaged, saying the port infrastructure remained “fully intact”.

“Jebel Ali is fully intact… It is not damaged at all. It can be fully operational in 48 hours,” Narayan said. The ongoing war between the US and Iran in West Asia has disrupted key shipping routes since March, including the crucial Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea.

Narayan played down concerns that the conflict and disruption in the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea had resulted in a slowdown in global trade. Instead, he said that the container volumes handled by DP World have continued to grow.

Explaining how container handling volumes can rise even when the underlying trade growth is subdued, he said disruptions force cargoes to be rerouted, creating additional handling and transshipment activity. “Container volume is a multiplier of trade. What happens when there is disruption? Containers just get handled more. Trade does not necessarily grow,” he said.

Narayan said the impact of the disruption at sea was being felt more through congestion, longer routes and higher logistics costs, than through a collapse in trade flows. He also warned that prolonged disruptions in major maritime corridors, such as the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea, could eventually feed into inflation.

“I worry for prices and inflation. You cannot have a world where you suddenly close down the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea,” he said.

On the company's earnings prospects, Narayan said the company’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) is seen around $6 billion in 2026, only marginally lower than last year's $6.4 billion, despite global disruptions and ship movement curbs at its Jebel Ali port since March.

DP World has increasingly diversified into integrated logistics, with less than half of its revenue now coming from container terminals, according to Narayan. The company’s resilience, he said, reflects the breadth of its global logistics network, spanning ports, terminals, freight forwarding and other supply-chain businesses, allowing growth in one part of the network to offset weakness elsewhere.

The company's performance in the first-half of the calendar reflects this diversification, with revenue growing about 13.1%, while growth outside the Jebel Ali port remaining strong, Narayan said.