OMAN's Port of Sohar is being marketed by Singapore container carrier APL as a safe harbour beyond the risky Strait of Hormuz now beset by sabre rattling warships quarrelling over Iran sanctions that threatens to world shipping.

APL is stressing Sohar's location outside the Strait of Hormuz, as well as its deepwater capabilities, to enhance connectivity between Oman and the rest of the world, reports the Oman Daily Observer of Muscat.

APL recently marked the launch of its Pakistan Middle East Express (PMX) service and subcontinent's Red Sea Express (SRX) loop, providing direct links to Sohar's Oman International Container Terminal (OICT).

The 3,398-TEU APL Brisbane has made its maiden call at OICT as part of the newly unveiled PMX service that connects Sohar with Fujairah and Jebel Ali in the UAE with Karachi in Pakistan.

The vessel will operate a regular weekly service on this key route. And today, APL is set to add Sohar to its successful SRX service, which connects the industrial hub with Mundra and Nhava Sheva in India, as well as Djibouti and Jeddah on the Red Sea. The deployment of a quartet of 3,502-TEU vessels on this sector underlines the popularity and importance of this service, said the report.

Recently APL's Pacific South-1 (PS1) service has come on line as well in recent weeks, the result of an upgrade of its earlier China Middle East Express (CMX) from a 4,000-TEU vessel to a ship of 5,500 TEU, and its integration into a pendulum service that now links up Middle East and China strings with the transpacific loop. Underscoring the significance of the PS1 service, a fleet of 10 containerships are deployed on this weekly operation.

Sohar and Oman are growing in importance at a time of heightening international tensions over shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Additionally, APL's decision to ramp up operations from Sohar is also viewed as an acknowledgement of the promising industrial and economic potential of the North and South Batinah regions and their vast hinterland.

OICT, as a joint venture of Hong Kong's Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) and Government of Sultanate of Oman. The HPH network covers 315 berths in 52 ports, spanning 26 countries worldwide.

APL is a subsidiary of Singapore's Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) and operates a feeder network in the Middle East, with connections to its global network. APL, NOL's container shipping arm, serves 133 cities and ports around the world. In Oman, APL is represented by Muttrah Shipping & Trading Agencies LLC with offices in Muscat and Sohar.