DP World gets nod for Jeddah Port development

Dubai-based ports operator DP World has received approval from the Saudi Arabian ports authority for its plans to transform Jeddah Islamic Port, Bloomberg reported on Sunday, citing company chief executive Sultan Ahmad Bin Sulayem.

In October 2017, the company said the development plans of Jeddah port, strategically placed on the Red Sea, is in support of the Saudi Vision 2030 reform program and will include increasing efficiencies using innovative tech solutions and transforming it into a semi-automated facility to create skilled jobs for Saudi nationals.

Bin Sulayem said the company is “in the final stages of talking to the Saudi ministry on a date to start” its expansion. He added the port was strategically placed on the Red Sea, an important route between Europe to the Far East.

DP World operates the South Container Terminal at Jeddah Port, which serves as a major domestic cargo base in Saudi Arabia. The port handles 59 percent of the Kingdom’s imports by sea.