In a move aimed at boosting regional development and sharing experience, DP World and the Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) signed a 30-year agreement on Sunday to build a state-of-the-art, port-centric Logistics Park at the Jeddah Islamic Port, the Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported.
The agreement, with an investment value of more than Dh.490 million ($133.4 million), aims to establish a 415,000 sq. meter logistics park with an in-land container depot capacity of 250,000 TEUs (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units) and a warehousing storage space of 100,000 sq. meters. Future expansions could increase the storage space to 200,000 sq. meters.
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The signing ceremony was attended by Omar Bin Talal Hariri, President of Mawani; Sheikh Nahyan bin Saif al-Nahyan, UAE Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO of DP World; Mohammad Alshaikh, CEO DP World Saudi Arabia.
Those present included the Saudi Minister of Transport and Logistic Services and Chairman of Mawani Eng. Saleh Al Jasser, and a delegation of senior Saudi government officials, as well as representatives from DP World’s leadership team.
The purpose-built logistics park will expand DP World’s regional footprint and bring pioneering multi-modal logistics solutions to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The port-centric park will boost Jeddah Islamic Port’s re-export activities and reduce the time and cost of logistics for importers and exporters. It will provide an integrated service platform that links port operations with last-mile activities. It will also offer processing, labelling, fulfilment, consolidation, de-consolidation, and temperature-controlled storage for cargo.
Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO of DP World, said: “We are proud and honored to contribute effectively towards the achievement of Saudi Vision 2030. The strategic Vision 2030 framework includes the development of a prosperous and sustainable maritime transportation ecosystem that supports the Kingdom’s socio-economic ambitions and consolidates its status as a global logistics hub.”
“On this occasion, we reiterate our commitment to investing in the modernisation of this facility by providing the highest standards of logistics services and technology-enabled trade solutions. We are confident that today’s milestone will contribute to increasing efficiency and productivity levels and creating new jobs,” he said.
“We are committed to enhancing the role and the status of the Jeddah Islamic Port, which is strategically located on the Red Sea and has historically played a pivotal role in facilitating the movement of trade between the East and the West. As an end-to-end supply chain solutions provider, a key part of our strategy is to package logistical services for our customers and bridge existing market gaps. Facilities like this logistics park will enable us to make deeper inroads into the Kingdom by extending our collaboration with leading logistics service providers,” Bin Sulayem added.
Omar Hariri, President of Mawani, said: “The park will provide advanced and eco-friendly e-services by integrating the operations of the South Container Terminal with the new logistics park. The Authority’s move to develop a holistic logistics park will enhance the competitiveness of the Jeddah Islamic Port. It will also contribute to raising the quantity of trans-shipped goods in line with the national strategy for transport and logistics services.”
“This partnership will connect the port’s operations to the new logistics park to offer end-to-end logistics services with high efficiency. It will also help us further expand our collaboration with major logistics service providers, enhance the re-export operations and cut costs of the logistics services to provide best-in-class services to stakeholders and investors,” Hariri added.
DP World had signed a new concession agreement with Mawani in April 2020 to continue operating and managing the South Container Terminal at the Jeddah Islamic Port for 30 years, committing to invest more than Dh2.94 billion ($800 million) to expand and modernize the terminal, over four phases to be completed by 2024.
The project will see infrastructural upgrades, including the broadening of draft depth and quay, the installation of advanced equipment and technologies, automation and digitalisation programmes, and decarbonisation initiatives.
Once complete, the revamped terminal will increase Jeddah Islamic Port’s container handling capacity from the current 2.5 million TEUs to 4 million TEUs and enhance Jeddah Islamic Port’s status as a major trade and logistics center on the Red Sea coast.
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