A new cargo terminal is being built at the Jeddah Islamic Port to increase its capacity to accommodate two million containers from the present 1.5 million, said Minister of Transport Dr. Jubarrah Al-Soraisri here Sunday. He was addressing a press conference after a closed door meeting with businessmen arranged by the Saudi Ports Authority and the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI). “We have passed the crisis and ships are moving smoothly,” he said, referring to an earlier congestion at the port. Businessmen had complained to the Ministry after ships had to wait lengthy pertiods to enter the wharf. Several ships reportedly left the port after days of waiting for permission to enter the wharf, thus incurring heavy losses. A container ship reportedly has to pay $80,000 for each day waiting to enter the wharf. Al-Soraisri said the crisis arose because of the 30 percent increase in traffic at the port. The increase in traffic is attributed to the huge development projects underway in Jeddah and Makkah. To reduce the wait time, authorities have cut from 16 to six the number of procedures for ships to enter the wharfs. Authorities are planning to build a fourth terminal and a rail link between the Jeddah Islamic Port and Riyadh. – SG __
