In 1639, the British East India Company bought a three-mile long strip of land lying along the coast between the Cooum delta and the Egmore River encompassing an area of about five square kilometres from the Vijayanagara King Peda Venkata Rayalu.

At the time, the natural harbour was so shallow that ships had to anchor over 1 km (0.62 mi) offshore, and cargo was delivered to and from the shore in masula boats[23][24] and catamarans.

[25] Cargo losses were high, close to 90 percent, in addition to pilfering with several goods from the ships often taken to the nearby evening bazaar.

The same year, construction of the south pier was commenced with concrete blocks weighing 33 tonnes each brought from Pallavaram,[8] and the port started handling ships inside the harbour from 1881.

Being an artificial harbour, the port was vulnerable to cyclones and accretion of sand inside the basin due to underwater currents, which reduced the draft.

The port is also planning a mega container terminal, capable of handling 4 million TEUs per annum expected to be operational from 2013, when the first phase of the project will be completed.

[39] Situated on a coast that constitutes chiefly of sandy shelving breaker-swept beaches, the region surrounding the port falls under Seismic Zone III indicating a moderate risk of earthquake.

[56] This is primarily due to capacity addition with the second terminal commencing operations coupled with new services starting to call the Chennai port.

The port handles Suezmax oil tankers (mid-sized cargo vessels) of up to a draft of 17 m at BD3 during day light, high tide as the per the present navigational practice and also during night hours subject to fulfilment of safety considerations on a ship-to-ship basis.

The container terminal has direct services to Europe, China, the United States, Korea, Thailand, the Mediterranean region, and West Africa.

It has services to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Korea, China, Mediterranean, Europe, Australia and the United States.

[69] The terminal will have a continuous quay length of 2 km (1.2 mi) with 18–22 m (59–72 ft) side along draft, capable of handling ultra-large container ships carrying over 15,000 TEUs.

The terminal is capable of handling fifth-generation vessels up to 6,400 TEU and has direct services to China, West Africa, Europe and the United States.

The operator has also taken over from Chennai Port 4 quay cranes, 10 RTGs, 3 reach stackers, 240 reefer plugs, and 2 top lifters and one empty container handler.

[78] A container freight station, with a covered area of 6,500 m2 (70,000 sq ft), operates within the port offering such services as inspection, LCL de-stuffing and delivery of import cargo.

[95] The port has had passenger and tourist services to Burma, Malaya, Singapore, Manila, London, Suez, Aden and Colombo for over 100 years.

[32] The conveyor system is expected to remain functional for about 5 years, till Ennore Port is ready to handle coal for all the clients.

This is a 30 m temporary facility with a draft of 2.5 to 3.0 m. This jetty is used exclusively by Indian Oil Corporation for bunkering of Navy, Coast Guard, bulk carriers and container ships—both coastal and foreign ships.

[102] In 2007, a fully automated, round-the-clock helpline for providing information on the ships berthed and waiting, the scale of rates and facilities available at the port, the first of its kind in the country, was established.

[103] In the same year, the Indian government agreed to lift restrictions on concessionary Sri Lankan tea and apparel exports at the port.

[104] On 11 May 2011, the Madras High Court directed the Shipping Secretary that only clean cargo such as containers and cars be allotted to the port for handling from 1 October 2011.

[120] An 18.3-kilometre (11.4 mi) long, 20-metre (66 ft) wide elevated road project connecting the port with Maduravoyal is under construction at a cost of ₹ 16,550 million.

[126] The port has broad gauge railway lines running up to 68.8 km (42.8 mi) and handled 25 percent of the total volume of the cargo, 4,360 rakes (239,412 wagons) during 2009–10.

[131] CPCL is planning to replace this with 42-inch-diameter pipeline at a cost of ₹ 1,260 million along the proposed Quadrilateral Road Network from Chennai Port to Ennore-Manali Highway.

A bathymetry survey conducted by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) to measure the depth of the sea has revealed the entry channel to the port has deepened enabling the berthing of vessels of deeper drafts.

[140][141][142] The mega container terminal project, expected to be the single largest terminal ever built in India,[143] is to be developed north of existing Bharathi Dock with two new breakwaters (total length of 4.23 km (2.63 mi)), continuous quay length of 2 km (1.2 mi) with 22 m (72 ft) alongside depth (ultimate) and a basin area of 300 hectares and back up area of 100 hectares.

In September 2011, Mundra Port and Special Economic Zone Ltd (MPSEZ) emerged as the sole and lowest bidder for constructing the mega terminal.

After coal handling is moved out, the port will reclaim land by constructing groynes—rigid hydraulic structures built from an ocean shore that interrupt water flow and limit the movement of sediment.

A total of 125 acres of land at Mappedu in the Sriperumbudur SEZ allotted by SIPCOT of the Government of Tamil Nadu is being acquired for the project on a 99-year lease basis.

[150] In December 2011, as part of security measures, the Directorate of Logistics, Customs and Central Excise planned to get a fixed mega container scanner within the next few months at a location near the Zero Gate of the port at a cost of ₹ 600 million from a U.S.-based company.