Doha: The ports of Qatar registered a whopping 86% growth in cargo handling in December 2022, when compared to December 2021 on year-on-year basis.
“Mwani Qatar ports (Hamad Port, Doha Port, Ruwais Port) handled over 140,000 tonnes of cargo in December 2022, registering a YoY growth of 86%. Livestock increased by 98% and vessels by 5%, compared to December 2021,” the Mwani Qatar tweeted yesterday.
The ports of Qatar handled 128,688 containers, 140,601 tonnes of general cargo, 45,985 tonnes of building materials, 6,263 vehicles and 38,867 heads of livestock in December 2022 while 267 ships docked at Qatari ports.
Separately, according to QTerminlas, terminal operating company of Hamad Port, 148 vessels called at Hamad Port last month. Hamad Port handled 127,770 containers, 55,125 tonnes of bulk cargo, 74,517 tonnes of general cargo, 6,224 vehicles and 1,317 heads of livestock in December 2022.
In year 2022, Hamad Port handled 1,408,804 containers, 520,324 tonnes of bulk cargo, 983,033 tonnes of general cargo, 78,588 vehicles and 45,808 heads of livestock, while 1,569 vessels called at Hamad Port the last year.
The ports of Qatar also performed a great job during Qatar 2022 as the ports ensured steady supply chains. Hamad Port handled 123,206 containers, 94,128 tonnes of general cargo, 6,684 vehicles and 10,000 heads of livestock from November 18 to December 18, 2022, according to figures shared by Mwani Qatar on its Twitter account recently.
The port welcomed 146 vessels during the said period.
According to earlier data, Hamad Port had also spent a busy year in 2021 as its handling of containers had witnessed an increase of over 9% compared to 2020.
In 2021, Hamad Port handled 1,543,591 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) containers; 267,284 freight tonnes of bulk cargo; 1,303,514 freight tonnes of general cargo; 72,223 vehicles and 45,594 heads of livestock. The port also registered an increase in vessels’ arrival as 1,750 vessels called on Hamad Port in 2021, compared to 1,600 in 2020.
Hamad Port has a uniquely-designed port control tower at a height of 110 metres, a customs inspection area for rapid cargo clearance, a ship inspection platform and multiple maritime facilities, in addition to other utilities such as storage units, mosques, rest areas, medical clinics and the offices required for port operations.
Hamad Port will have the capacity to handle 7.5 million TEUs at its three terminals on completion of the development stages. Hamad Port container terminals were designed to facilitate the expansion of container handling capacity and to meet the growth of cargo traffic.
With a capacity of 7 million freight tonnes per year, Hamad Port General Cargo Terminal serves the increasing demand of domestic economy and supports trade exchange between Qatar and the world.
The General Cargo Terminal is designed to handle dry and cold storage cargo and has capacity to handle 7 million tonnes of general cargo such as machinery, steel, dry bulk, building materials, fertilisers, and petrochemicals products.