Sohar Port’s container volumes grow 19 per cent in the first half

Muscat: Oman’s Sohar port has achieved an 18.6 per cent growth in container volume in the first half of 2016, over the same period of last year.
The port has handled more than 313,000 twenty foot equivalent units (TEUs) in the first half of 2016, against 264,000 TEUs in the same period of last year, according to a company release.
Fuelled by significant infrastructure investments in the country, break bulk cargo also grew significantly at Sohar Port in the first half of 2016, up by over 43 per cent in comparison to last year; increasing from 854,000 tonnes in the first-half of 2015, to over 1,227,000 tonnes in the first half of 2016. Liquid bulk also performed well, with an increase of over 15 per cent in the first half of 2016 compared to the same period last year, increasing by well over one million tonnes to 9.99 million tonnes.
Both the port and freezone continue to play a crucial role in the diversification and globalisation of Oman’s economy.
Dry bulk, which had a record first half in 2015, showed a drop of 2.7 million tonnes in the first half of 2016, to 10.6 million tonnes, due to current market conditions in the global iron and steel industry. Overall, vessel movements at the port were up by nearly 6 per cent compared to the first-half of 2015, with over 1,300 ships calling at Sohar between January and June 2016.
The Sultanate continues to invest heavily in economic diversification beyond its traditional petrochemical base, as it moves forward with Vision 2020 and plans to transform itself into a major industrial and logistics centre for the region.
“Despite any current global economic uncertainties, these figures confirm we are in the right place at the right time. We will take full advantage of the prime strategic location of Sohar Port and Freezone as we continueto expand our operations and support growth in our tenants’ businesses,” said Mark Geilenkirchen, the new chief executive officer of Sohar Port.