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Remarkable growth by ports sector in Oman

Remarkable growth by ports sector in Oman

Times of Oman17 hours ago
Times News Service
Muscat: The Ports sector in the Sultanate of Oman has recorded an outstanding performance during the first half of 2025.
This outstanding performance is driven by the increase in ships movement and handling of containers and goods coupled with vital steps taken by the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology as part of the efforts for boosting the basic structure of ports.
Mahana bin Moosa bin Baqer, Director General of Ports at the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, said that the handling of containers saw a remarkable increase where the ports of Salalah, Sohar and Duqm received over 2.427 million containers during the first half of 2025 compared to over 2. 173 million containers during the first half 2024, a rise of 11.7 percent.
This increase in the containers handling reflects the efficiency of the logistics operations and the ability of the ports in meeting the increasing demand, he added.
The number of ships received by the Omani ports and piers outside the ports amounted to 5,686 during the first half of 2025 compared to 5,930 ships during the same period in 2024, an increase of 11.1 %, thanks to the contribution of the ports of Sultan Qaboos, Shinas and Salalah.
He said that the goods handled through the Omani ports during the first half of 2025 amounted to over 70.114 million tonnes compared to over 66.620 million tonnes during the same period of 2024, he added.
He said that the ports received 50,248 vehicles along with import of 2.694 million heads of livestock, which reflects the diversification of economic activities served by the ports. With ONA inputs
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Remarkable growth by ports sector in Oman
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Times of Oman

time17 hours ago

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Remarkable growth by ports sector in Oman

Times News Service Muscat: The Ports sector in the Sultanate of Oman has recorded an outstanding performance during the first half of 2025. This outstanding performance is driven by the increase in ships movement and handling of containers and goods coupled with vital steps taken by the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology as part of the efforts for boosting the basic structure of ports. Mahana bin Moosa bin Baqer, Director General of Ports at the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, said that the handling of containers saw a remarkable increase where the ports of Salalah, Sohar and Duqm received over 2.427 million containers during the first half of 2025 compared to over 2. 173 million containers during the first half 2024, a rise of 11.7 percent. This increase in the containers handling reflects the efficiency of the logistics operations and the ability of the ports in meeting the increasing demand, he added. The number of ships received by the Omani ports and piers outside the ports amounted to 5,686 during the first half of 2025 compared to 5,930 ships during the same period in 2024, an increase of 11.1 %, thanks to the contribution of the ports of Sultan Qaboos, Shinas and Salalah. He said that the goods handled through the Omani ports during the first half of 2025 amounted to over 70.114 million tonnes compared to over 66.620 million tonnes during the same period of 2024, he added. He said that the ports received 50,248 vehicles along with import of 2.694 million heads of livestock, which reflects the diversification of economic activities served by the ports. With ONA inputs

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