Bahrain General Organisation of Sea Ports (GOP) said it has succesfully turned the Mina Salman Port into a dedicated  import and export building materials terminal with its first shipment of construction materials last month.

The GOP move is in line with its commitment to redeveloping the Kingdom’s former container and general cargo terminal.

Mina Salman Port witnessed its first shipment of building materials - 9,836 metric tonnes of coke fuel exported to Mina Saqer (UAE). This comes as part of GOP's strategic plan  and in response to growing demand for building materials in Bahrain, said a top official.

Hassan Ali Al Majed, director general of GOP, said: 'With the redevelopment of Mina Salman Port into a dedicated building material terminal, it is now ready to begin receiving, handling, and storing building materials.'

'We took advantage of this readiness and arranged for the first shipment to leave the port in early January, monitoring it closely to ensure the operations were safe and environmentally friendly,' he stated.

This accomplishment, he said, highlights the strategic value of the BMT, and its importance with regards to meeting the Government of Bahrain’s directives and national vision, as well as GOP’s mission to develop and support the Kingdom’s maritime and logistics industries.

According to him, the dedicated terminal in Mina Salman Port will be utilised to manage the export, import and distribution of construction materials from/to the global market.

'Further plans to redevelop the port will provide it with the facilities necessary to handle and store building materials,' Al Majed said.

He said GOP expected to see rising demand for building materials gradually plateau as the current availability gap is filled.

With mega construction projects on the rise in the Kingdom, the cost of building materials has increased due to the shortage of local supply and production capacity.

Currently Bahrain imports its building materials from local neighbouring countries in small vessels or barges.

With the development of the bulk building materials terminal, a larger ‘organic’ market for construction materials is expected to grow and provide the majority of the necessary supply for Bahrain’s construction industry, said Al Majed.

'Looking forward, we are working to conclude the auction process for selecting a port operator who will manage the operations and the continued redevelopment of the terminal,' he stated.

'This is a key strategic project for both the logistics and the construction industry in Bahrain, providing modern, efficient and competitive services in line with the best international standards,' he added.-TradeArabia News Service