GSCCO sign deal to operate King Fahad Industrial Port

Business Bureau, Gulf Today

Gulf Stevedoring Contracting Company (GSCCO), part of the Gulftainer group of companies, has entered an agreement with Red Sea Marine Services Company Limited to manage and operate King Fahad Industrial Port in Yanbu (KFIP).

This takes GSCCO’s portfolio of terminals in Saudi Arabia up to four, cementing the company’s position as the largest and most geographically diverse port operator in the country.

GSCCO will handle all types of cargo at KFIP, including containers, breakbulk cargo, vehicles and bulk cargo. To support operations at the port, the company will invest in significant amounts of new equipment to ensure it can deliver its award-winning levels of operational excellence and turn KFIP into another jewel in the crown of Saudi Arabia’s growing maritime presence.

The decision to award the operation of the port to GSCCO was taken by Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) in recognition of the company’s long-standing reputation for operational excellence - both at the Northern Container Terminal in Jeddah, which has long enjoyed the reputation of being the most productive and customer-centric terminal in the port, and at Jubail Commercial Port, which has consistently delivered the highest levels of productivity in the Arabian Gulf while achieving double-digit cargo volume growth year on year for the past five years.

GSCCO also celebrated another major milestone in 2018 when it passed the 30-million-TEU mark in container volume, corresponding to a 50 per cent increase in throughput in just five years across all its facilities.

Speaking on the new agreement, Richard James, Managing Director of GSCCO, said: “We are delighted at the well-earned trust that Mawani continues to place in GSCCO, and are truly excited at the potential to develop KFIP in Yanbu into another industry-leading port. In line with the strong commitment to the maritime and logistics industry expressed in the Saudi Vision 2030, we look forward to providing best-in-class services to the communities and markets around Yanbu and throughout the Northwest of the country.”

The current infrastructure at KIFP enables the handling of container vessels with up to 8,000 TEU capacity. With roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) capabilities, a range of cargo-handling equipment and water depth of 18 metres at low tide, the port is equipped to handle all types and sizes of cargo to support the growing developments in the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu and the surrounding areas in the Northwest of Saudi Arabia.

GSCCO’s long-term plans include investing in additional equipment on an extended quay in support of the Saudi Vision 2030 objective to establish the country as a primary hub for logistics and transportation to serve mainline vessels calling on the major East-West trade lane between Asia and Europe, and act as a regional hub for transhipment to the fast-growing markets of the Red Sea and North Africa.

Founded in 1985 as part of the Gulftainer group of companies, Gulf Stevedoring Contracting Company (GSCCO) specialises in the management, operation and maintenance of seaports. The company is one of the leading operators in the port services sector, currently handling four projects in Saudi Arabia - the Northern Container Terminal (NCT) at Jeddah Islamic Port (JIP), a container, bulk and general cargo handling terminal at Jubail Commercial Port (JCP), 27 commercial berths at King Fahad Industrial Port in Jubail, and now managing the entire port operations at King Fahad Industrial Port at Yanbu.

Gulftainer is the world’s largest privately owned independent port operator. Established in Sharjah in 1976, the rapidly expanding ports and logistics company has built a strong global presence. In the UAE, the company operates three main ports on behalf of the Sharjah Port Authority — Sharjah Container Terminal (SCT), Khorfakkan Container Terminal (KCT) and Hamriyah Port. Its flagship terminal, the award-winning KCT, is recognised as one of the most productive container terminals in the world.

In March 2019, Gulftainer introduced the Sharjah Port of Trade (SPOT) service, a new strategic sea cargo clearance proposition in the UAE. Located in the UAE’s commercial centre, S.P.O.T. significantly raises the bar for service levels in the industry with substantial cost and time savings, enhanced online customs clearance and 24-hour access to major roads. It also offers a state-of-the-art facility for on-site cargo inspection, quality sampling and testing services at the importers’ premises.

Globally, the Gulftainer Group operates and manages ports and logistics businesses in several countries, including Iraq (Iraq Container Terminal, Iraq Project Terminal, Iraq South Terminal and Umm Qasr Logistics Centre), Pakistan (GTL-MTI) and Lebanon (Tripoli Container Terminal).