In the week of the 18th of February 2020, an MTBS team represented by Patrick Uyttendaele, Wim De Rycke, Dirk van Niekerk and Xander Uyttenbroek travelled to Egypt to elaborate on the expected impact and benefits related to the 10th of Ramadan Dry Port and Logistics Centre (DP/LC) development project – MTBS’ most recent dry port project in Egypt.
During this visit, MTBS together with the project Promotor – the General Authority of Land and Dry Ports (GALDP) – successfully delivered two presentations to key stakeholders of the project, namely the Federation of Egyptian Industries and the 10th of Ramadan Investors Association. Both presentations focused on the dry port and logistics centre concept and economic effect in general and elaborated on a number of dry port projects that are currently ongoing or planned in Egypt. The main project discussed concerned the development of the 10th of Ramadan DP/LC and its positive effect on the region.
The 10th of Ramadan Dry Port and Logistics Centre Project
The 10th of Ramadan DP/LC focuses on improving the landside logistics of containerized transport between Egypt’s main container ports – the Greater Port of Alexandria, Damietta, Port Said and Sokhna – and the Egyptian importers and exporters. A key characteristic of the DP/LC will be its intermodal connectivity (both rail and road) from the project site to each of the main seaports.
The 10th of Ramadan DP/LC will improve the ease of doing business for its customers by offering more flexibility for shippers in terms of 24/7 operations, one-time customs clearance by being a final destination (Bill of Lading) at dry port. In addition, by offering daily train services to each of the seaports, the dry port provides regular and reliable services for its customers.
In terms of cost savings, the dry port will be able to offer economies of scale by shifting container transport from the road to the rail between the seaport and the dry port. In addition, compared to the seaports, the dry port will offer cheaper storage of containers and will facilitate the logistics and storage of empty containers in the hinterland (thereby considerably reducing the need for empty truck trips to/from the seaports).
By integrating the dry port and logistics centre concepts, the 10th of Ramadan DP/LC is able to offer bonded storage and value-added services for both import and export containers at the CFS (Container Freight Station) warehouses. This is a new and unique value proposition offered in Egypt.