Asyad Group, Oman’s national logistics chain, has opened the Khazaen Dry Port, one of Oman Investment Authority’s (OIA) logistic investments in partnership with the private sector, at Khazaen Economic City in Barka.
Sheikh Issa Hamad Al Azri, Governor of South Al Batinah, was the chief guest at the inauguration ceremony, which was attended by Engineer Khamis Mohammed Al Shamakhi, Transport Undersecretary at the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, and representatives of government departments and private sector firms.
The dry port in Khazaen will help the sultanate diversify its economy and strengthen its position as a global logistics hub. The port is anticipated to strengthen the Gulf region’s supply chain system, and it is part of Oman’s National Logistics Strategy, which aims to integrate logistics solutions provided by various entities.
Eng. Al Shamakhi said the operations at Khazaen Dry Port, besides revolutionizing the logistic schema, will bring more incentives to the business sector, resulting in a favorable increase in Oman’s Ease of Doing Business Index.
According to reports, the Directorate General of Customs provided Khazaen Dry Port with customs service personnel well-versed in Bayan System. This will help accelerate the clearance of cargo, facilitate commercial and economic practice, increase the flow of commodities, and reduce time and effort, a practical embodiment of the National Logistic Strategy 2040.
The size of Khazaen Dry Port is 100,000 square meters. In order to keep up with the predicted growth in activities, the port’s logistics area will be expanded by another 150,000 square meters over the following five years.
The dry port has a capacity of 70,000 containers per year and a large waiting area for general containers in a queue for storage, loading, and unloading operations, as well as twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), refrigerated containers, and handling equipment, boasts a wide range of high-tech facilities.
On the sidelines of the ceremony, Khazaen Dry Port signed two agreements to promote customs and re-export to local and GCC markets, one with Naqel Express of Saudi Arabia and the other with a firm specializing in land and sea logistics.
Khazaen is situated at a suitable location that is, 30 minutes from Muscat International Airport and 2 hours from the Port of Sohar. The facility, which is located in the Wilayat of Barka, comprises outlets for vegetables and fruit, as well as products and services of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), in addition to multipurpose residential units.
