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Special Report 35
attract world leading companies like Air Liquide, Alcan, Dow
Chemicals, Hutchison Port Holdings, Larsen & Toubro, LG, MAN
Ferrostaal, Methanol Holding International, Odfjell, Oiltanking,
Shadeed Iron & Steel, Steinweg and Suez. In addition to this I
want to stress the positive role of the Omani Government. The
Government of the Sultanate has shown itself very, very
supportive.
What were the challenges in putting up the port?
The challenge was to make it happen. It is inevitable for a project
of this scale to meet skepticism in the first stages. We have left that
all behind; people actually see that the skyline of Sohar is rapidly
changing. The result is that Sohar is now becoming a magnet for
new investors. So the vision of the Government and the Port of
Rotterdam was right.
What other challenges do you foresee?
You have to keep in mind that heavy industry is new to Oman. Oil
installations were the closest thing so far. At the same time we
want to be a world class industrial port. That is why a strict Health
Safety and Environment regime has been imposed. It is very
important that all the industries comply with these rules. We as a
Port Authority and the Government have to make sure that the
system works. That is the first challenge.
The second challenge is to establish a good relation with the
neighboring villages. People in Oman are not used to heavy
industry. So these people have a lot of questions. We cannot
simply tell them that the port offers job opportunities, we have to
explain a lot more. That is exactly what we are working on.
How do you see GCC Customs Union influencing the business
in the port?
The free movement of goods among the GCC States is
tremendously important. The GCC Customs Union started on the
1st of January 2003. That was right in time for Sohar. Especially if
you know that we expect to be a supplier to the UAE. Hopefully
the authorities will manage to accelerate the border procedures
that still exist. But I am confident that it will be possible to
transport a container in less than 3 hours to Dubai in the
near future.
Kindly describe how you see the role of Port of Sohar in the
future of Oman.
The Port of Sohar was intended to boost the economy of the
Northern part of Oman – and that is just what it does. If almost all
of the industries within the 2,000 ha industrial port are
operational, according to schedule in 2009, the direct employment
will be around 8,000 jobs. Indirectly the industries will employ
another 30,000 people. These figures are based on confirmed
projects. If we include new arrivals and downstream industries,
which are much more labour intense, we are talking about a
multiple in the coming 20 years. This will change the region and
ultimately the country in many ways. Leisure activities
will come up, hotels, restaurants… So the influence of Sohar will
be considerable.
Supply Chain & Logistics Group | www.sclgme.org