QTerminals, in a joint venture with Belgian Deme Concessions, will construct and operate a planned new deep-water container terminal in Świnoujście port on the Baltic coast in Poland, as part of its strategy to expand and strengthen its presence in the global maritime sector.
The new terminal, which is expected to become operational by 2028, will ultimately have an annual capacity of more than 2mn TEUs or twenty-foot equivalent units, said a top official of QTerminals, a joint venture between Mwani Qatar and Milaha.
“The initial capacity is 1mn TEU but with ability to build out to more than 2mn, depending on the demand and market conditions,” QTerminals group chief business development and integration officer Charles Meaby told Gulf Times on the sidelines of fourth Qatar-Poland New Tech forum organised by Qatar-Poland Business Council and Embassy of Poland in Qatar. Asked about the total cost of the project and QTerminals’ share, he declined to give specific details citing confidentiality reasons but added financial closure is yet to be achieved. However, he said QTerminals will be a minority partner in the consortium that is building the port but would hold the operating contract as it could leverage from its expertise and experience in the field.
The terminal — which (according to reports) would be able to simultaneously service two ships, one with a length of 400m and one of 200m — aims to cater to the western side of Poland and some parts of eastern Germany.
QTerminals had signed initial agreement with port authorities in Poland and they have at present made application for environmental clearance. The shipping canal would allow vessels with a draft of up to 15m to enter, thus helping the planned container terminal to handle ocean-going vessels.
The proposed terminal, which is located very close to liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal, will reduce the distance to the market and speed up the supply chains, Meaby said. Reports suggest that Polish container traffic volume is predicted to rise to 3.7mn TEUs by 2026, representing an average annual growth of 3% since 2021.
Asked about QTerminals’ future plans, the official said it is actively looking at all geographies, including Asia, and exploring all opportunities. “We are very selective in what we do,” he added. QTerminals recently completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Kramer Holding, a provider of integrated logistics and container services located in the Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands. QTerminals had in 2020 won concession to develop, manage and operate Olvia port, in which it planned to invest some $120mn in the port during the concession term of 35 years. QTerminals had acquired a strategic 99.99% equity stake in Turkey’s Port Akdeniz, Antalaya, for an enterprise value of $140mn.
