DP World is planning to set up a logistics facility in Ethiopia to transport goods from a port it is developing in neighbouring Somaliland.
The Nasdaq-listed company’s logistics complex in the east African country would transport goods to various landlocked states on the continent, said Sultan bin Sulayem, chairman of DP World, according to UAE news agency Wam.
The company, one of the world’s top five largest port operators, signed an agreement with the Somaliland government in 2016 to invest $442 million (Dh1.62 billion) in the Port of Berbera on Africa’s east coast and manage it in a 30-year concession. In March, Ethiopia became a 19 per cent shareholder in the Port of Berbera, with DP World controlling 51 per cent stake in the project and Somaliland holding the remaining 30 per cent.
DP World’s planned facility in Ethiopia would strengthen its position in Africa, Mr bin Sulayem said.
“Business groups in Dubai can always benefit from DP World’s presence in different countries including Rwanda and Egypt where re-exporting opportunities are abundant,” he remarked during an open dialogue with trade and business groups in Dubai.
The company is expected to post a 17 per cent growth in second-quarter profit compared to the same period a year ago, Egyptian investment bank EFG Hermes said in a report on regional equities last week.
DP World’s terminals in Europe, Middle East and Africa, which also includes the home port of Jebel Ali in Dubai, recorded growth in the first quarter of 2018, up 9.8 per cent the same quarter last year.
