Sime Darby plans $442m expansion at Shandong port
Malaysia's Sime Darby is planning to invest some MYR1.4bn ($441.6m) in the next three years to expand its port operations in Weifang in Shandong province to take advantage of growing demand for transportation and shipping there, Seatrade Asia online reports.
The investment will help Weifang Sime Darby Port boost capacity from about 18 million tonnes a year to over 50 million tonnes by 2017. Sime Darby may also add another MYR350m to expand the port further, depending on the economic factors.
The feeder port, located in the key Bohai Sea economic region, is just 139 miles to the major north China container port of Tianjin. It now has 12 berths operating, while three new 20,000-tonne berths are under construction and will be ready by 2013.
There are also plans to add another eight berths for containerised as well as liquid and general cargo. By year-end, the port is expected to handle some 400,000 teu.
