Over SAR 640 Million Invested in Saudi Ports Amidst Hormuz Crisis

More than SAR 640 million has been invested in Saudi ports over the past three months to strengthen readiness and increase capacity amidst disruptions linked to the Strait of Hormuz crisis.

The investment was announced by Sulaiman Almazroua, President of the Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani), during the inauguration of what is described as the world's largest truck marshalling logistics zone at Jeddah Islamic Port.

Almazroua said the Minister of Transport and Logistic Services directed authorities to prepare the Kingdom's western coast to receive supply chains from the outset of the Strait of Hormuz crisis, ensuring goods could continue to reach Saudi Arabia and neighbouring Gulf countries. He added that the wider transport and logistics ecosystem worked in coordination to implement the plan, with the Saudi Ports Authority focusing on four strategic priorities.

One of the key priorities was strengthening maritime connectivity by increasing shipping services to ports along the western coast to offset any potential disruption affecting eastern ports.

According to Almazroua, the authority attracted more than 27 additional shipping services to western Saudi ports during the crisis, increasing monthly handling capacity by more than 200,000 containers. The additional capacity has been used to meet demand on the Kingdom's western coast, compensate for potential shortfalls in the east and support trade serving Gulf markets.