Beirut Port activity has grown sharply

Suggested measures to manage congestion

New measures for managing the port’s increasing import and export activity were discussed in a meeting between the Ministry of Public Works and Transportation (MoPWT), the Port of Beirut, the Syndicate of Public Truck Owners, and the International Chamber of Navigation (ICN).

Elie Zakhour, President of the ICN, said: “The possibility of increasing the Customs staff, bringing in more trucks to move stacked goods, and increasing the number of work hours at the port were among the measures discussed.”

Exports increased lately from 3,000 to 7,500 containers per month. “Events in Syria disrupted regular land routes so traders and farmers resorted to maritime transport instead.” For the same reason, incoming containers have also increased from 24,000 to 35,000 last month, according to Zakhour.

“Vessels used to enter the port directly or wait for a maximum of 24 hours. Today, ships are waiting up to four days to be able to go in,” said Zakhour. A meeting will be held at the MoPWT next week to decide on final measures to reduce congestion at the port.

The first phase of a project to expand one of the Port’s container terminals was recently completed. The terminal will be ready to operate by September, once container handling equipment is installed. The number of cranes will be increased to 36. “The port can currently contain one million containers per year. Starting September, it will be able to host 1.4 million containers,” said Zakhour. The port is now considering expansion on its southern end.