The Port of Gdansk's network of regular maritime connections was enriched by yet another link, this time of the Ro-Ro type, operated by Bahri, say the Port of Gdansk Authority.
Bahri, the national shipping company of Saudi Arabia, specialising in the transport of general cargo, fuels, chemicals, and dry bulk cargo for nearly 40 years now, offers transport services mainly in the area of South Asia, in particular the Arabian Peninsula, North America's east coast and Northern Europe. At the moment, apart from Gdansk, the company's ships also regularly call at European ports such as Hamburg, Antwerp, Bremerhaven, Rotterdam, and Bilbao.
The company's decision to include the Port of Gdansk in its network of regular shipping links is closely connected, among others, with the performance of a big, several-year contract for the delivery of tanks signed by one of Poland's leading manufacturers of railway cars and a Saudi railway operator.
The tanks are delivered from the south of Poland to the Port of Gdansk by rail and then rolled directly onto specialist roll trailers, on which they are loaded onto the ship. The transshipment operations are carried out by the Port Gdanski Eksploatacja (Port of Gdansk Cargo Logistics SA) company, and ship agency services are provided by Wilhelmsen Ships.
This is not the first contract of this type which is a result of the activities of Polish industry in the Arabian Peninsula, especially recently. Polish products enjoy particular interest from importers from Asia, where, apart from Polish food, the country's industry is also highly valued. According to Eurostat data, within the last decade, domestic export increased by 35%, when expressed in tonnes. Poland's foreign trade in this period recorded quite big increases in the case of overseas connections, including with countries such as China, India, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
For the Port of Gdansk, Polish producers' increased export activity, especially with overseas countries, results in the activation of long-distance ocean links in new directions, and for Gdansk's terminals - a real chance to obtain new cargo.
Bahri's decision to select Gdansk and provide regular calls at the port at least once a month on the Dammam - Jebel Ali - Djibouti - Jeddah - Bilbao - Hamburg - Gdansk - Antwerp - Tilbury route will undoubtedly contribute not only to the enrichment of Gdansk's network of shipping connections, but also - for the first time in Gdansk's port - to the creation of loading opportunities for cargo directed to or from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The new ocean line also provides a real chance of increasing the participation of the Ro-Ro type of transshipments in the port's cargo structure.