Qatari ports witness significant rise in cargo handling last month
14 Feb 2020 – 0:58
A ship decks at Hamad port in Doha Qatar. (Reuters file photo / Naseem Zeitoon)
Starting the new year on a positive note, Qatari ports have delivered strong performance in January. Hamad Port, Doha Port and Ruwais Port have witnessed significant rise in cargo handling in the first month of this year.
These ports handled over 50 percent more vehicles in January this year compared to same month in 2019, according to Mwani Qatar. General cargo volumes increased 22 percent, while container traffic increased by five percent during the month, said Mwani Qatar in a tweet.
These ports handled 8,638 vehicles; 57,016 tonnes of general cargo and 115,837 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEU) containers in January 2020.
The ports had handled 30,693 tonnes of building materials; 22,641 tonnes of aggregates in January 2018. The ports had received 46,764 tonnes of general cargo; 5,749 vehicles and 71,896 heads of livestock in January last year.
Total 290 vessels docked at Qatari ports in January this year.
Ports positive performance in January comes after a successful year. Qatar’s maritime sector set new volume and productivity benchmarks in 2019. Hamad Port, Ruwais Port and Doha Port received 4,082 vessels and handled 1.34 million TEUs containers during the year.
Qatar’s maritime sector is expected to witness another year of strong growth as various steps have been taken by the concerned authorities to boost goods traffic at the ports. One of the major steps include expansions of Hamad Port.
The development works of Phase II of the Hamad Port, which consist of second container terminal (CT-2), has already begun. As part of the development of CT-2, QTerminals had announced in December last year that it had placed an order for 24 Terminal Trailers.
The agreement will play important role in transforming Qatar into a vibrant regional trading hub in the region. The agreement will also help in attracting more trans-shipment containers and encourage more international shipping lines to add Hamad Port to their regional routes and sign similar agreements in the future.
Mwani Qatar had also signed a container services agreement in November last year, with the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) to use Hamad Port as a regional hub to manage transshipments for up to 150,000 TEUs per year, growing to one million TEUs by 2023.
Hamad Port, one of the largest ports in the Middle East, has led from the front in boosting Qatar maritime sector as it occupied the lion’s share in the overall port traffic.
Mwani Qatar has inked agreements with a number of local, regional and international players to strengthen Hamad Port’s status in the region.
While Hamad Port has become Qatar’s gateway to world trade, Ruwais Port is also playing a vital role in stimulating country’s economy.
The port has cemented its position as the alternate gateway for country’s maritime trade. The port has become one of the most important ports to meet the increasing needs of the domestic market of foodstuff, meat and fresh and chilled products.
Ruwais Port, the second commercial port, is located at the northern tip of Qatar. The port plays the role of an additional access facility to promote the regional commercial shipments and to revive and invigorate the economy of the northern part of Qatar. It is playing an important role in meeting the requirements of different projects being implemented in Al Shamal. The port is already going through the process of expansion.
