The importance of developing the country’s ports from transportation operations to grain storage

Mr. Najafi stated: In the north of the country, Amirabad, Nowshahr and Anzali Ports are the main grain ports, and other ports such as Fereydunkenar and Caspian Ports are second in terms of cargo volume. On the other hand, Amirabad port is known as the grain hub of the north of the country and the destination of many ships imported from Russia is also this port.

He continued: In the south of the country, the three ports of Imam Khomeini, Shahid Rajaei and Chabahar are active in the field of grain trade, and the port of Imam Khomeini is the main grain hub in the south of the country. Imam Khomeini Port can be one of the main and influential ports for Panamax ships that enter the country from southern destinations. Shahid Rajaei port is considered the oldest port in the south of the country, and most of the operations of this port are based on container operations. Government Trading Corporation of Iran (GTC) and some private companies use Shahid Rajaei port for imports when they need more capacity for unloading.

The CEO of Petkus Iran, pointing out that according to the research conducted by the University of Michigan in 2016, in a port development model, four factors are influential in this model, he said: One of these factors is the government and its policies, which are better to continuously review and change the management and supervisory policies of ports. The second factor is the location and dimensions of ports and their physical development. Today, our land in ports is very limited and we are facing problems to create storage facilities in ports. Also, due to the lack of land, investors who want to invest in storage facilities in the ports of our country have also faced problems. Therefore, with the growth of the country’s grain trade, it is better to think about the development of the land and its appropriate location. The next factor is the specialization of ports in terms of containers or bulk. A port that carries out bulk operations today, if it wants to carry out container operations at some point, it must leave that model. Hence, zoning and policies should be based on the specialization of container or bulk cargo.