The Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) has signed an agreement with CMA CGM Group to build an integrated logistics platform at Jeddah Islamic Port.
The new facility of specialised container depots and warehouses will be established on 130,000 sq. metres of land leased by the port administration.
CMA CGM INLAND SERVICES (CCIS), the Group’s entity dedicated to inland transportation solutions development, and its logistics subsidiary CEVA collaborated on the project which includes a $130 million investment over the span of 20 years.
The agreement will create more than 150 direct jobs and hundreds of indirect ones within the logistics sector. It will be providing a trusted logistics hub in one of the busiest trading routes serving as an instrumental part of the global maritime trade connecting Saudi Arabia to the rest of the world.
CMA CGM subsidiaries, CCIS and CEVA, will be offering unique logistics solutions including advanced hub, export hub, value added services, temperature controlled bonded storage and multimodal transport solutions to cater for all customer needs.
Mawani’s President Omar Talal Hariri commented: “The logistics platform represents an important milestone in the authority’s continued endeavour to fulfil the objectives of the National Transport and Logistics Strategy (NTLS) in creating specialised logistics zones within the precincts of Saudi ports and beyond in the pursuit of positioning the Kingdom as a global logistics hub.
“It adds further momentum to our aspirations in building a booming and sustainable maritime sector, achieving the socioeconomic ambitions listed out in Vision 2030, and offering world class logistics services that can stimulate economic growth and enable strategic integration with the transportation ecosystem.”
Xavier Eiglier, Regional Director, Middle East Gulf, ISC, Indian Ocean Islands, Southern and Eastern Africa, of the CMA CGM Group said: “Today’s ceremony confirms our strong partnership with Mawani and affirms our commitment to contribute to the development of the logistics’ sector in the Kingdom.
“This project marks the Group’s first integrated logistics platform in the Middle East and will help in expanding our service offering to our Saudi and global customers to use Jeddah as a transit hub for trading across the wider region. It will also enable our Group to expand its regional shipping and logistics network, where we see a lot of growth potential.”
The deal was signed by HE Omar Talal Hariri, President of Mawani, and Xavier Eiglier, CMA CGM Group’s Regional Director for the Middle East Gulf, Indian Subcontinent, Indian Ocean Islands, and Southern and Eastern Africa, in the presence of senior officials from both sides and a host of leading industry executives.
Jeddah Islamic Port is Saudi Arabia’s top import and export destination, receiving 75 per cent of the nation’s total inbound maritime trade and transshipments.
With an annual capacity of 130 million tons, the Red Sea’s leading re-export hub features 62 berths and four terminals.
