DP World to develop 2-million-TEU Qingdao terminal

DP World to develop 2-million-TEU Qingdao terminal    Dubai-based port operator DP World has signed an agreement to develop a new container terminal with a projected capacity in excess of 2 million TEUs at a green field site in Qingdao, China.
   DP World, through its subsidiary DP World China Qingdao Ltd., will spend $500 million constructing the terminal, which will have a quay 1,320 meters (4,331 feet) long and four deep-draft berths.
   The agreement was signed with the Qingdao Government. Pending all the necessary final central government approvals, DP World said it expects to start construction work immediately with a target for the terminal to commence operations by 2008-2009. DP World will fully own the new terminal, and it will complement the port operators’ existing presence in the Chinese ports of Tianjin and Yantai.
   “The new terminal at Qingdao is a crucial development in our strategy of investing and developing ports in the world’s growth markets, particularly in China and North Asia,” said Jamal Majid Al Thaniah, chief executive officer of Dubai Ports and Free Zone Authority.
   The port of Qingdao, located in the Shandong Province in Eastern China, is one of the world’s top importers of oil, iron ore, coal and other raw materials, and currently handles more than 6 million TEUs annually.