Salalah Port’s Container Terminal upgrade project to start in H1

Salalah Port’s Container Terminal upgrade project to start in H1

Port of Salalah, the nation’s premier transshipment and logistics hub overseeing the Indian Ocean, says its investment in the upgrade of its Container Terminal is key to attracting a new generation of Ultra Large Container Vessels (ULCVs) to the maritime gateway.

Work on the Container Terminal Upgrade project is set to commence during the first half of this year and will run until Q1 2025, according to Keld Mosgaard Christensen, CEO – Salalah Port Services.

Last year, the publicly listed owner and operator of the port said it is investing around $66 million in suitably upgrading the Container Terminal to support the installation of a fleet of 10 special cranes to enable the handling of these mega containerships. The cranes will be leased from APM Terminals, one of the world’s largest port operating companies, which also owns a 30 per cent stake in Salalah Port Services (SPS).

A separate agreement reached with global shipping and logistics giant Maersk commits the latter to channeling large volumes of containers to Salalah Port by routing its mega containerships via the Omani hub. A mega containership is typically 366 metres long and capable of carrying over 14,500 containers.

“The Maersk volume commitment will support the financial cost of