Photos by Salim Matramkot © The Peninsula
Doha: Hamad Port, the largest port in the region, yesterday held a ceremony to mark the handling of its first one million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) containers. The Port achieved this feat in less 14 months, which is well ahead of its expected schedule. The $7.4bn Port plans to achieve the next one million container throughput by the end of this year.
Speaking at the event held at Hamad Port, Minister of Transport and Communications H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti said that this achievement, under the current exceptional circumstances, would not have been possible without Emir
H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani’s vision and Prime Minister and Interior Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani’s unlimited support.
The Prime Minister’s directives, he added, played a key role in enhancing the ranking of the port and transforming it into a key regional logistics hub, despite being relatively new. In such a record short time, he explained, Hamad Port marked the handling of one million TEUs coming from regional and global seaports via 22 direct navigation routes and around 120 navigation destinations.
“It is a significant milestone. Normally ports would take a lot longer to reach one million TEU throughput, but Hamad Port, has reached that in just under 14 months,” said Neville Bissett, Chief Executive Officer talking to the media on the sideline of the event. “We are hoping that two million will be achieved this year. We will be looking at doing an additional one million TEU in a much shorter period of time. Perhaps towards September, October, November, we will be at the two millionth TEU coming through Hamad Port,” he added.
Mwani Qatar along with partners has successfully launched 22 direct shipping routes between Hamad Port and several regional and international seaports and some 120 navigation destinations.
The Minister of Transport and Communications said that the synergy of efforts among all stakeholders has played a key role in boosting productivity and accelerating handling operations. Work will continue towards further achievements and will thus generate more support for the national economy, as well as for providing fast, effective services at the port, the Minister said.
The Minister of Transport and Communications, H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti, speaks during the ceremony to mark 1,000,000 TEUs at Hamad Port yesterday. Pic: Salim Matramkot/The Peninsula
Hamad Port, he added, has proved highly capable of not only flexibly handling the logistics challenges that have emerged from the current circumstances, but also overcoming them efficiently.
“The shipping routes that have been launched between Hamad Port and regional and international ports have provided additional reliable options and solutions for customers, playing a significant role in enhancing container handling operations and boosting trade via the Port,” said Captain Abdulla Al-Khanji, CEO, Qatar Ports Management Company (Mwani Qatar).
Mwani Qatar, he added, “continues supporting the establishment of Hamad Port’s network of navigation routes and broadening the services provided to customers according to the plan that MOTC oversees”.
Since its inauguration, Hamad Port has been making headlines with widely recognised success stories in a record short time, and has significantly enhanced its share of regional trade volume in the Middle East.
