DP World and Saudi Ports Authority sign 30-year agreement

New 415,000 square metre port-centric Logistics Park to be located alongside Jeddah Islamic Port.

DP World and Saudi Ports Authority sign 30-year agreement

New facility offers an in-land container depot with handling capacity of 250,000 TEU and warehouse space of 100,000 square metres.

Integrated with the recently awarded 30-year concession for the South Container Terminal, the state-of-the-art Logistics Park will bolster trade to enable Saudi Arabia’s strategy to become an economic powerhouse by 2030.

DP World and the Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) today announced the signing of a 30-year agreement with an investment value of more than SAR 500 million ($133.33 million) to build a state-of-the-art, port-centric Logistics Park at the Jeddah Islamic Port.

The agreement aims to establish a logistics park which spans over 415,000 square metres, with an in-land container depot capacity of approximately 250,000 TEU and warehousing storage space of 100,000 square metres. Future expansions could increase the storage space to 200,000 square metres.

The 415,000 square metre purpose-built facility will bolster DP World’s footprint in the region and will bring pioneering multi-modal logistics solutions to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The port-centric Logistics Park will boost Jeddah Islamic Port’s re-export activities, reducing the time and cost of logistics for importers and exporters, alike. It will provide an integrated platform of services that link port-operations with last-mile activities, providing temperature-controlled storage for cargo, in addition to its processing, labelling, fulfilment, consolidation and de-consolidation.

Commenting on the announcement, His Excellency Omar Hariri, The President of The Saudi Ports Authority, said:

“The park will provide advanced and eco-friendly e-services by integrating the operations of south container terminal with the new logistics park, in a move from the Authority to offer holistic logistics parks which will enhance the competitiveness of Jeddah Islamic Port. It will also contribute to raising the quantities of trans-shipped goods, in line with the national strategy for transport and logistics services.” 

“This partnership will connect the port's operations to the new logistics park to offer end-to-end logistics services with high efficiency. It will also help us expand our joint collaboration further with major logistics service providers, enhance the re-export operations and cut costs of the logistics services in order to provide the best-in-class services to stakeholders and investors."

DP World signed a new concession agreement with Mawani in April 2020 to continue operating and managing the South Container Terminal at the Jeddah Islamic Port for the next 30 years, committing to invest a total of more than SAR 3 billion ($800 million) to expand and modernise the terminal. The overhaul project, which will take place over four phases and is set to be completed by 2024, will see infrastructural upgrades, including the broadening of draft depth and quay, and the installation of advanced equipment and technologies, automation and digitalisation programmes, in addition to decarbonisation initiatives.

When complete, the revamped terminal will double Jeddah Islamic Port’s container handling capacity from 2.5 million TEUs currently to 4 million TEUs and solidify Jeddah Islamic Port standing as a major trade and logistics centre on the Red Sea coast.