Libya has launched a $2.7 billion project to expand and develop the Misurata Port in Western Libya in partnership with an international consortium comprising European and Qatari companies, according to a statement by the Misurata Free Zone Authority (MFZ).

The consortium is led by Terminal Investment Limited (TIL), a

a port operator subsidiary of the Swiss-Italian shipping giant Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) and includes Qatari infrastructure investor Maha Capital Partners (MCP).

Libya’s first public-private partnership (PPP) project in the non-oil sector will raise the port’s handling capacity to four million containers per year, transforming it into a major logistics gateway in the Mediterranean and a regional transshipment hub.

Established in 2000 as Libya's first and largest free zone, MFZ oversees a 2,576-hectare economic area, with plans to reach 20,000 hectares, and manages the Misurata port, which handles around 60–65 percent of all of Libya's container trade.

The development programme, according to an MFZ statement, includes:

·Expansion of container-handling capacity to accommodate larger vessels and support complex logistics chains.

·Integration with MFZ's industrial ecosystem, boosting opportunities for SMEs, manufacturing, and value-added services.

·Deployment of state-of-the-art terminal equipment and digital systems.

·Enhanced safety, performance, and environmental standards, aligning operations with world-class benchmarks.

·Long-term job creation.

The expanded port is expected to generate around $600 million in annual operating revenues, create about 8,400 direct jobs and support nearly 60,000 indirect jobs, according to a post by the Libyan Prime Minister’s office.

Investment scope includes:

·Ship-to-Shore (STS) gantry cranes - 5

·Mobile Harbor Cranes (MHC) - 10

·Rubber-Tired Gantry (RTG) cranes - 8

·Reach Stackers - 32

·Other equipment (trucks and forklifts) - 8

Phase 1 plans include increasing the port’s container handling capacity to 1.5 million TEUs, grow throughput by 7 percent, develop and manage berths A10 to A19 with a total length of 2,000 metres, and install 6 Rubber-Tired Gantry Cranes (RTG) and 3 Ship to Shore (STS) cranes.

This phase also includes development of 56 acres of container yards, construction of a refrigerated container warehouse with a total area of 2,096 square metres (sqm), and an additional facility with an area of 7,500 sqm and implementation of an advanced Terminal Operating System (TOS).

Phase 2 includes increasing container handling capacity by additional 2.5 million TEUs, construction of a 2,500 metre breakwater, a new 1,200 metre berth and a new 60-acre container yard, and deepening the port’s depth to 17 metres.

(Writing by Majda Muhsen; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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