Sohar Bulk Terminal to begin exports of aggregate on Dec 15
Sohar Industrial Port Company SAOC signed an agreement with TM International Logistics Limited (TMILL), a Tata Steel subsidiary, along with partners, Khimji Ramdas Shipping, to establish an operating company for the handling of dry bulk minerals, Oman Observer reports. According to Sohar Bulk Terminal, the operations will begin on December 15 and will mark the start of new opportunities for local aggregate producers and quarry holders.
“This agreement is considered as a very important progress in the development of Port of Sohar. It will create opportunities for local companies to start mining and exporting minerals from the Batinah region and through that create jobs for the local Omani workforce”, said Jan Meijer, the CEO of Sohar Iindustrial Port Company (SIPC).
Along the earlier constructed bulk jetty in Sohar, a dedicated terminal will be established that can accommodate vessels up to 16 meters of draft.
Although the terminal will initially cater for the large demand for a local aggregate export terminal, the facility is equipped to export and import a full range of bulk minerals as for example limestone and clinker.
Jan Meijer CEO, SIPC and Jamal Aziz, DCEO signed the agreement at the Sohar Port office with Pankaj Khimji, Director of Khimji Ramdas Shipping LLC, and Dibyendu Bose, Managing Director of TMILL.
According to officials at the Port Company, the consortium is currently working on the designs of the terminal, in order to assist the local aggregate quarry holders. They are preparing a temporary site from where operations can start by mid-December.
The design of the permanent facility upholds a 3.5 kilometre conveyor belt system to connect the storage yard with the terminal. The capacity of the permanent terminal will, due to the use of modern handling equipment, reach 10 million tons per annum at full production.
The Port is one of the largest port development projects in the world with investments exceeding $14 billion. It is a deep sea port with a draft of 18 metres.
The Port of Sohar is a 50/50 joint venture between the Government of Oman and the Port of Rotterdam and located 220 km northwest of the capital Muscat. This industrial port is a deep sea port and has grown tremendously in size and importance, in only eight years since inception in 2003.
TMILL is a specialised marine logistics company with four business verticals and its port and terminal division operates, among others, the bulk terminal at the Dhamra Port, a deepwater bulk port in India.
When operational, the Dry Bulk Jetty promises to fuel the growth of a booming aggregates and minerals industry in north Oman.
The North and South Batinah Governorates are believed to hold immense deposits of aggregates, industrial stones, and various building materials suitable for the region’s booming construction sector. Last month, a local quarry announced a contract for the supply of one million tonnes of gabbro aggregates to the Qatari market. Exports of raw minerals, such as mined chromite, copper ore, marble, and so on, are also expected to pick up as terminal operations get under way.
“This agreement is considered as a very important progress in the development of Port of Sohar. It will create opportunities for local companies to start mining and exporting minerals from the Batinah region and through that create jobs for the local Omani workforce”, said Jan Meijer, the CEO of Sohar Iindustrial Port Company (SIPC).
Along the earlier constructed bulk jetty in Sohar, a dedicated terminal will be established that can accommodate vessels up to 16 meters of draft.
Although the terminal will initially cater for the large demand for a local aggregate export terminal, the facility is equipped to export and import a full range of bulk minerals as for example limestone and clinker.
Jan Meijer CEO, SIPC and Jamal Aziz, DCEO signed the agreement at the Sohar Port office with Pankaj Khimji, Director of Khimji Ramdas Shipping LLC, and Dibyendu Bose, Managing Director of TMILL.
According to officials at the Port Company, the consortium is currently working on the designs of the terminal, in order to assist the local aggregate quarry holders. They are preparing a temporary site from where operations can start by mid-December.
The design of the permanent facility upholds a 3.5 kilometre conveyor belt system to connect the storage yard with the terminal. The capacity of the permanent terminal will, due to the use of modern handling equipment, reach 10 million tons per annum at full production.
The Port is one of the largest port development projects in the world with investments exceeding $14 billion. It is a deep sea port with a draft of 18 metres.
The Port of Sohar is a 50/50 joint venture between the Government of Oman and the Port of Rotterdam and located 220 km northwest of the capital Muscat. This industrial port is a deep sea port and has grown tremendously in size and importance, in only eight years since inception in 2003.
TMILL is a specialised marine logistics company with four business verticals and its port and terminal division operates, among others, the bulk terminal at the Dhamra Port, a deepwater bulk port in India.
When operational, the Dry Bulk Jetty promises to fuel the growth of a booming aggregates and minerals industry in north Oman.
The North and South Batinah Governorates are believed to hold immense deposits of aggregates, industrial stones, and various building materials suitable for the region’s booming construction sector. Last month, a local quarry announced a contract for the supply of one million tonnes of gabbro aggregates to the Qatari market. Exports of raw minerals, such as mined chromite, copper ore, marble, and so on, are also expected to pick up as terminal operations get under way.