QATAR's new Hamad port, which is the largest in the Middle East with annual capacity of 7.5 million TEU, has been officially opened in Umm Al Houl area.
The port has general cargo terminal with a capacity of 1.7 million tonnes annually, a terminal for cereals with a capacity of one million tonnes.
There is also a ro-ro terminal to receive vehicles with a capacity of 500,000 vehicles, a terminal for livestock, a terminal for coast guard vessels and a terminal for marine support and backup, reports Qatar's Peninsula newspaper.
Moreover, the latest technologies for port operation have been applied, including a Port Control Tower with a height of 110 metres.
There is also a customs inspection area for rapid cargo clearance that handles 5,600 containers a day, a ship inspection platform and multiple maritime facilities.
As part of Qatar's major steps toward increasing its non-petroleum exports and building manufacturing industries, a free zone has been established adjacent to Hamad Port.
The port has recorded significant milestones, regionally and internationally, in quite a short period of time. It has played a key role in breaking the blockade by receiving 48,873 containers, 80,275 tonnes of general cargo, 4,922 vehicles and machinery, 74,148 heads of livestock and some 7,897 tonnes of building materials last July.
The first direct service between Hamad port and Sohar port in Oman was inaugurated on June 11 and directly linked to Salalah port on June 23, with the arrival of the containership Paul Abrao to the port.
