Iran Launches Direct Containerized Shipping Line to SE Asia
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An Iranian official announced the launch of regular containerized shipping services from the country’s southern port of Imam Khomeini to Southeast Asian countries.
Director General of the Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran in the southwestern province of Khuzestan told IRNA on Saturday that a direct containerized shipping line has been launched from Imam Khomeini Port to the Southeast Asian countries in line with efforts to achieve the objectives of foreign trade policies adopted by the administration of President Ebrahim Raisi.
Behrouz Aghaei said the direct shipping line has been set up with the focus on the ports of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), India and China.
He went on to say that the dispatch of containerized vessel of the fifth generation with 5,000 TEU (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Unit) capacity to China is aimed at increasing the accessibility of Imam Khomeini Port to the world maritime transport network and also the international markets.
Reducing the time and cost of transporting imports and exports has been cited as the most important purpose behind launching the direct shipping line, he said, adding that this move will increase competitiveness among the exporters and help them get the lion’s share of products at the regional markets.
Aghaei also pointed to the attractiveness of transit and transshipment markets of the region as the other objective behind launching the direct containerized shipping line.
The new shipping line will pave the ground for the optimal use of the current containerized terminal of Imam Khomeini Port with the annual capacity of more than 600,000 containers, he concluded.