Sharjah-based port operator Gulftainer plans to bid for the management of Kuwait’s Shuwaikh Port container terminal when the facility is offered for privatisation, news reports say.

The Kuwaiti government is considering privatisation of Shuwaikh Port and a decision is likely to be made by the end of 2007.
Gulftainer said it would “throw its hat in the ring when the decision to proceed along these lines is made.” Its potential rivals may include Dubai’s DP World, Hong Kong’s Hutchison Port Holding and Singapore’s PSA, the reports said.
The company, which manages Sharjah Container Terminal and Khorfakkan Container Terminal, is already assisting the Kuwait Ports Authority (KPA) in managing Kuwaiti ports.
Eight managers and 10 crane operators from Gulftainer are working at Shuwaikh.
Gulftainer said its team was providing “strategic advice to the KPA on port operations, development and investment issues.”
Gulftainer was in the news recently following its announcement of a key agreement it signed with the Comoros Islands for a 15-year contract to operate, manage and upgrade the ports of Moroni and Mutsamudu.
The company will manage Moroni Port with the aim of expanding its capabilities. It will increase the cargo storage area, construct warehousing facilities and introducing the latest, state-of-the-art, cargo-handling equipment. Management of Mutsamudu port will be taken up in 2007.
 Gulftainer has also reached agreement with the Pak Shaheen Group based in Karachi to set up a joint venture company focusing on inland logistics and transportation in Pakistan.
“The intention is to invest in new equipment and systems with the aim of revamping and enhancing inland transportation within Pakistan to and from Karachi to enable customers to enjoy reliable and time-sensitive transport options, which up to now have been lacking,” said a Gulftainer statement.
Gulftainer has had 30 years’ experience of trucking and logistics activity, operating a large fleet of vehicles, ICDs and CFSs providing seamless interfaces between sea and land transportation.
Pakistan is experiencing higher import and export volumes through Karachi’s terminals. The major part of these throughputs move to or from the inland areas of the country and the new joint venture aims to provide improved transport alternatives on which inland customers in Pakistan can rely.