Salt pans in and around the city contribute majorly to the economy of the city. The salt pans produce 12 lakh tonnes of salt every year, contributing to 90% of the salt produced in the state and 50% needed by the chemical industries of the state. The other major industries are shipping, fishing, agricultural, power and chemical industries. The Thoothukudi Thermal Power Station has five 210 megawatt generators. The first generator was commissioned in July, 1979. The thermal power plants under construction include the coal-based 1000 MW NLC TNEB Power Plant. Southern Petrochemical Industrial Corporation(SPIC), Tuticorin Alkali Chemicals, Heavy water plant, Sterlite, Venus Home Appliances, Maris Associates, VVD Coconut oil, Ramesh flowers and KSPS Salts are some of the small scale and large scale industries in the city. Thoothukudi has been a centre for maritime trade and pearl fishery for more than a century. Its natural harbour with a rich hinterland, facilitated development of the port. Thoothukudi was declared as a minor anchorage port in 1868. In 1906, V. O. Chidambaram Pillai, with the help of Bal Gangadhar Tilak, launched the first swadeshi ship S.S. Gaelia and S.S.Lawoe in British India from Thoothukudi Port.
To cope with the increasing trade through Thoothukudi, the Government of India sanctioned the construction of an all-weather Port at Thoothukudi. On 11 July 1974, the newly-constructed Thoothukudi port was declared the tenth major port in India Second only to JN Port (Mumbai) in size. Thoothukudi is an artificial port. This is the third international port in Tamil Nadu and its second all-weather port. The port also helps to increase the tourism in the region. A new ferry has been commenced between Thoothukudi and Colombo
