EGYPT – Egypt is set to upgrade the Abu Qir port in Alexandria to improve maritime transport in the Mediterranean region.
The government of Egypt has already contracted DEME Group, a leading company in the fields of dredging and land reclamation, to dredge the port so as to make it capable of handling large vessels.
A statement from Egypt’s Presidency revealed that the country’s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met with the DEME Group’s Chief Executive Officer to discuss the project.
President Sisi in the statement explained that the dredging project was aimed at upgrading the infrastructure at the port to international standards.
He further noted that upon completion the Abu Qir Port will become the biggest port off the Mediterranean Sea.
The Egyptian head of state also urged the dredging company to execute the port project in accordance with the latest technology and highest international standards.
Earlier, the Egyptian Naval Forces and Hutchison Ports signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish containers terminal at Abu Qir Port, with a capacity of two million containers annually.
The new terminal is projected to have a positive impact on the country’s maritime transport particularly in enhancing transport efficiency in the Mediterranean Sea as creating more job opportunities for the unemployed youths in Egypt.
The Alexandria region where the port is located handles over three quarters of Egypt’s foreign trades with nearly 80% of the country’s imports and exports passing through the city.
The region is comprised of over 15 ports with the Port of Alexandria being the largest and is reported to handle approximately 55% of Egypt’s international trade.
Dredging of the Abu Quir port will thus enable it to handle larger ships, giving the Alexandria region more capacity to handle the increasing number of ships docking at its ports.
Upgrading of the Abu Qir port follows an upgrade project on the port of Alexandria that involved the construction of a new cargo truck overpass at a cost of US$53.31 million.
Port Alexandria is also proceeding with work on a multi-storey garage that can hold 3,400 cars.
Suez Canal Container Terminal has on the other hand signed an agreement with the SCZone to invest US$50 million to expand its mooring and docking facilities and terminals to accommodate larger cargo vessels.
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