Iraq shortlists 11 firms for Grand Faw port operation, decision in January 2025

DAEWOO ENGINEERING & CONSTRUCTION

12/11/2024 11:42

By Mohammed Attia and Ahmed Rasheed
       BASRA, Iraq, Nov 12 (Reuters) - Iraq has shortlisted 11
shipping companies to compete for the Grand Faw port operation
contract, with a decision on the winners expected in January
2025, Iraq's director general of the General Company for Ports
told Reuters on Tuesday.
    The shortlisted companies include China Merchants Port Group
Co., Taiwanese container shipping line Evergreen, French
shipping group CMA CGM, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC),
India’s Adani, Philippines-headquartered International Container
Terminal Services (ICTSI), China's Cosco, and United Arab
Emirates-based ABM Global Shipping LLC. 
    Iraq plans to select a winning company in January 2025, with
operations set to begin in 2026, said Farhan al-Fartousi.
    South Korea's Daewoo Engineering & Construction  047040.KS 
completed the construction of five docks, which were handed over
to Iraqi port authorities on Thursday during an inauguration
attended by Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.
    Faw port is expected to operate in maximum capacity to
receive 3.5 million containers in 2028, he added.
    The Grand Faw port is part of several projects aimed at
creating a shorter transportation corridor between the Middle
East and Europe, bypassing the Suez Canal. 
    Iraq launched a $17 billion project in 2023 to link the 
major commodities port on its southern coast by rail and roads
to the border with Turkey, aiming to transform the country's
economy after decades of war and crisis.
    "The Grand Faw port will be a pivotal hub for transforming
global transport trade towards Europe via Turkey," said
Fartousi. 
    The Development Road seeks to connect the Grand Faw Port in
Iraq's oil-rich south to Turkey, turning the country into a
transit hub by shortening travel time between Asia and Europe,
in a bid to rival the Suez Canal.

 (Writing by Ahmed Rasheed; editing by David Evans)
 ((ahmed.rasheed@thomsonreuters.com; +964-7901-947-131; Reuters
Messaging: ahmed.rasheed.thomsonreuters.com@thomsonreuters.net))