Egyptian seaports... a bet to confront the repercussions of the 'Hormuz' disturbances

The Egyptian government is betting on trade movement through its seaports to counter the effects of the disturbances in the Strait of Hormuz in recent months.

Transport Minister Kamel El-Wazir stressed the importance of expanding the implementation of new projects in Egyptian and foreign ports to enhance their role in maritime transport. During the extraordinary general assembly meeting of the 'Egyptian Seaports Company' on Thursday, he emphasized 'making every effort to continue providing the highest and best global standards in maritime transport performance.'

Economic experts pointed out that 'the Egyptian government relies on investment in seaports to increase maritime commercial transport rates, benefiting from its geographical location and the Suez Canal.' They also noted that 'maritime transport is one of the country's sources of foreign currency.'

On more than one occasion, Egyptian officials have spoken about their country being affected by regional disturbances and the impact on navigation in the region's waterways, particularly in the Strait of Hormuz.

According to official estimates, Egypt lost more than $10 billion in Suez Canal revenues.

The operational movement of Egyptian seaports recorded the reception of 221 ships in the first half of this year, with a total handling volume exceeding 500,000 containers, according to the Chairman of the 'Egyptian Seaports Company,' Major General Abdel Qader Darwish. During the company's general assembly meeting, he said that 'the growth rate reached 22 percent compared to the same period last year,' according to a statement from the Egyptian Ministry of Transport.

Egypt focuses on port development amid escalating regional disturbances (Egyptian Ministry of Transport)

The Egyptian Transport Minister considered the 'Tahya Misr' multipurpose terminal 'one of the most important maritime transport projects that have been operated in the recent period' and stressed 'the terminal continuing to provide the highest global performance.'

The government inaugurated the 'Tahya Misr' terminal at the Alexandria Seaport on the Mediterranean coast in June 2023, and it includes handling yards covering half a million square meters.

The government has made numerous investments in the ports and maritime transport sectors in recent years to enhance their economic role in partnership with foreign and local private sectors, according to Waleed Gaballah, a member of the 'Egyptian Society for Economics and Legislation.' He said that 'the Egyptian government relies on investing its geographical location on the Mediterranean and Red Seas, and the Suez Canal artery, to become a regional logistics center for container handling.'

Gaballah, in statements to Asharq Al-Awsat, believes that Egyptian ports 'have achieved a leap in maritime transport movement in recent years, and have contributed to their transformation into transit corridors for ships, not just storage areas for containers,' pointing out that 'the Egyptian government has strengthened the role of ports by linking them to internal land routes, which supported the connection between Red Sea and Mediterranean ports.'

The maritime transport sector constitutes one of the sources of foreign currency for the Egyptian government, according to economic expert Mustafa Badra. He said that 'the map of seaports is one of the basics of investment movement and expansion in the industrial sector in recent times,' noting that 'trade movement through Egyptian ports has contributed to increasing export activity abroad.'

According to Badra's belief in statements to Asharq Al-Awsat, 'infrastructure investments in Egyptian ports have made them one of the solutions and alternatives to compensate for the navigation crisis through the Strait of Hormuz during the Iranian war.' He said that 'Gulf countries have opened corridors with Egypt's Red Sea ports and from there to Europe, as one of the bets that have been activated in the region to mitigate the supply chain crisis in recent months.'

Transport Minister Kamel El-Wazir on a visit to one of the Egyptian ports (Egyptian Ministry of Transport)

Egyptian ports have witnessed activity recently, against the backdrop of the supply chain crisis caused by the war on Iran, after the increase in maritime connectivity lines with regional countries, including the launch of the 'NEOM-Safaga' multimodal logistics corridor between the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and Europe. The government also strengthened connectivity between GCC countries and Europe via the 'Ro-Ro' shipping line linking Damietta Port and the Italian Port of Trieste.

Egypt has a map of seaports on the Red and Mediterranean Seas, and aims to develop them to improve their role in intra-regional and international trade. The Egyptian Ministry of Transport said that 'the process of developing all Egyptian ports aims to transform Egypt into a regional center for transport, logistics, and transit trade, and to increase the capacity of these ports to attract investments and accommodate the growing growth in trade movement.'