Iran’s Chabahar Port to turn into a new hub for trade with Central Asia
Chabahar Port as a free economic zone has every opportunity to turn into a new hub for trade and industry in Iran and even the whole Central Asia region, Hossein Shahdadi, the deputy director of Sistan and Baluchestan Department of Ports and Maritime Organization of IRI, told on Saturday, the IRNA reports. According to him, giant ships can berth and unload safely at the port of Chabahar as now it has all the necessary modern equipment that supports its strategic importance in the region. India has been developing a part of the port under the project. Indian officials are now counting on a thaw in relations between Washington and Tehran under President Joe Biden to move forward. In January, India has supplied two mobile harbor cranes to conduct port operations. Four more will be delivered to Iran: two – this month, another two – in June. Behrouz Aghaei, Director-General of Sistan and Baluchestan Ports and Maritime Department General, said that transit of goods and import of basic commodities through Chabahar Port showed a 95 and 71 percent growth in the current year respectively. (started March 21, 2020). As one of the important ports of the country after Bandar Abbas, Chabahar Port has a special place in the North-South transport corridor, as it opens up new opportunities to develop economic and trade relations with neighboring countries. Chabahar port had handled 123 vessels and 1.8 million tones of bulk and general cargoes from February 2019 to January 2021.
