Manila: Syria's Prime Minister Mohammad Naji Ottari has officially inaugurated the Tartous International Container Terminal (TICT), which was taken over by Philippines-based International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) last October.
The official opening "signals a new era in terminal operations in the region," said Budhadev Majumdar, TICT general manager. "We look forward to the coming months as we have been preparing the terminal for brisk business. We have significantly improved our backroom support with port user friendly procedures as well as rolled out a terminal operating system covering Vessel, Yard, CFS and billing activities."
TICT is a Syrian subsidiary of ICTSI, which has earmarked USD37 million of capital expenditure over the period of the TICT Agreement, which include terminal development in infrastructure and superstructure, IT systems and human resources development. Prior to takeover, TICT acquired two new mobile harbor cranes, the first specialized container handling cranes in Syria, and other cargo handling equipment for cargo consolidation operations.
The terminal is viewed as a gateway to Damascus, only 260 kms away, as well as to neighboring Iraq, a natural hinterland of Tartous, has also recently started opening up to global trade.
ICTSI, in its 20th year of operation, is a leading developer of international ports and terminals with a global port network spanning 11 countries in four continents. [08/07/08]
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