Consultancy contract for terminal design work okayed
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, Dec 3: The Karachi Port Trust board had approved a consultancy contract for deep draught container terminal design work in its meeting held on November 30, 2005.
This was disclosed by KPT Chairman Vice-admiral Ahmad Hayat at the inaugural ceremony of Oil Pier-II on Saturday. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz unveiled the plague to mark the opening of the facility.
The KPT chief said groundbreaking of the country’s first deep draught container terminal might take place around May or June next year. He said at 18 metres draught with 120 berths, each of 350 metres length and 600 metres wide channel, the terminal would be one of the leading container terminals in the world.
Coupled with the cargo village, the work on which will start in tandem since the two complement each other, they will launch Pakistan on the international map of progressive and modern cargo handling facilities, he added.
Giving a briefing on the OP-II, the KPT chairman said it was originally constructed in 1966 as a modern facility to handle vessels up to 35,000dwt with an annual liquid cargo handling capacity of three million tons. However, regional developments, modernization in the shipping industry and deteriorating condition of the pier structure necessitated its reconstruction with an increased capacity of eight million tons per annum, with the capability of handling tankers up to 90,000dwt.
He says further that oil piers at the Karachi Port cater for both POL and non-POL products that include crude oil, HSD, jet petroleum, molasses, edible oil, non-edible oil and chemicals.
Mr Hayat said with the completion of OP-II, the total liquid cargo handling capacity of the Karachi Port had increased to 24 million tons annually.
