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Operations are now in full swing at the Basra Gateway Terminal (BGT), a wholly owned subsidiary of International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) in the Port of Umm Qasr in Iraq.
According to Phillip Marsham, BGT chief executive officer, “We are attracting plenty of interest from container lines and have enjoyed a good pace of cargo build-up since we opened the doors after full takeover in November 2014. Ship-to-shore container crane performance is now peaking at over 30 moves per hour and considerable attention is being focused on training staff, improving terminal security and creating a strong health and safety environment.”
In addition to cargo handling equipment and IT systems deployment, BGT’s investment plans include a general upgrade of the existing facilities at Berth 20 and construction of an entirely new container/multipurpose facility, with the first phase consisting of a 250m long berth and 20 hectares of backup land. Piling for the new quay is now underway, with ICTSI being the first private company in the port to undertake new berth development. Upon completion, the new facility will have a 600m berth and 55 hectare backup area.
BGT also possesses comprehensive general, ro-ro and project cargo handling capacity. “General cargo is healthy and we are keen to support our clients’ needs in specialised project cargo opportunities. We are already talking to a number of companies in this respect,” says Marsham.
Southern Iraq is home to some of the largest oilfields in the world. This fact, as well as other trade factors, gives BGT strong project cargo potential and the company says it is investing to meet this particular requirement.
BGT is a subsidiary of ICTSI, an international operator of common-user container terminals serving the global container shipping industry. ICTSI is the largest port operator in the Philippines and has a portfolio of 29 container terminal operations in 21 countries across six continents.
