Jeddah terminal’s growth prompts investment

Jeddah terminal’s growth prompts investment    Container throughputs at the South Container Terminal in the port of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, have grown to a monthly average of 110,000 TEUs, 58 percent more than the average for the first two quarters of 2003, said Siyanco DPA, a local joint venture company.
   South Container Terminal, managed by Dubai Ports International, was the first terminal in Saudi Arabia to reach an annual volume of 1 million TEUs. Siyanco DPA predicts a 2004 traffic volume of 1.3 million TEUs at the terminal if current trends are maintained.
   As a result, the terminal has ordered equipment worth almost $50 million to bring the terminal’s capacity up to more that 2 million TEUs. This includes 13 rubber-tired gantries from Kalmar Industries, which will bring the terminal’s total to 20, and two “super post-Panamax” quay cranes from ZPMC, raising the quay crane total to 17. Siyanco DPA has ordered 33 “head-trucks” and trailers to complement the new gantries.
   The terminal operating company said that several factors have contributed to the increase in volumes. It cited a diversion of cargo away from the congested port of Aqaba, which has led some shipping lines to omit the Jordanian port from their schedules and transship containers over Jeddah instead. The Saudi Arabian terminal has also attracted 10 extra vessel calls a week, including 6 feeder calls, Siyanco DPA said.