New Doha port to start functioning from 2014

Phase one of Qatar's new deep-water port in Doha, at a site that will allow expansion to keep up with fast economic growth, will be operational by November 2014, officials at the New Doha Port Project said.

The port serving Qatar's fast-growing capital would replace an existing facility in the centre of town, where growth is constrained by location, James Bell, technical executive manager at the New Doha Port Project, said.

"Most major cities don't have their port in the centre of the city," Bell said on the sidelines of an event organised by London-based MEED.

"There is a need for a completely new port. The goal is to create a world-class deep-water port," he said.

Qatar is the world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and new gas projects due online this year would help boost economic growth to around 16 percent.

Such fast growth has strained the country's infrastructure. The new port to the south of Doha is part of measures to alleviate congestion on the capital's streets.

All activities at the old port will be transferred over a period of six months once the first phase of the new port is completed in 2014, Bell said.

The port would have a commercial area to accommodate bulk grain, livestock, vehicles and supply to the offshore oil and gas industry, and a non-commercial area for the Qatari navy, coast guard, visiting navies and royal yachts, Bell said.

FIRST CONTRACT IN JULY

The first of 21 contracts to build the port would be awarded in July after bidding in March, Bell said. The first package of contracts was for deals to excavate, build walls and prepare ground.

The second was for two to three years' worth of dredging, Bell said. Bidders would be given more details about the site characteristics and design next week, he added.

Capacity in the first phase would accomodate 2 million 20-foot equivalent units (teus), in addition to 2 million tonnes of general cargo, Bell said.

The second to fifth phases of the new port would involve adding a new container terminal in each phase that would take capacity to above 12 million teus, he said.

Further phases would come online after 2030, with timing dependent on demand, Toufiq Oueida, project executive director at the project, said on the sidelines of the meeting.

Qatar has three ports: Doha, Ras Laffan and Mesaieed. Ras Laffan and Mesaieed are owned and operated by state oil giant Qatar Petroleum almost exclusively for the energy industry.

The new port south of Doha would be funded entirely by Qatar's government and function as catalyst for growth for a planned economic zone, Bell said. Designers were including provisions for a planned Gulf Cooperation Council rail line to link to the port, he added.

The rail link would be for commercial use only, but the planned residential area within the economic zone was likely to eventually generate the need for a passenger line, Bell said.

The existing Doha port has a container and general cargo terminal. (Editing by Simon Webb and Anthony Barker)