Container terminal operator DP World and Malaysia’s Sabah Ports have entered a partnership to manage the Sapangar Bay Container Port and significantly increase its handling capacity.
The Sapangar Bay port is one of the main regional trade hubs for the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East growth area of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
The partnership will see DP World support efforts currently underway to increase the port’s container handling capacity from 500,000 teu to 1.25m teu by 2025. Investments will also be made to optimise terminal workflows, accelerate digitalisation for greater operational efficiency, and increase the port’s connectivity.
This is an addition to the long-term collaboration between DP World and Sabah Ports which, in 2019, signed an agreement to jointly develop solutions to enhance Sapangar Bay’s competitiveness and drive cargo creation in Sabah’s hinterlands. In the long run, the vision of the collaboration is to improve landside and seaside connectivity.
“In partnership with Sabah Ports, we will apply industry-leading practices to elevate the port into a hub for [the markets in the growth area], supported by an ever-growing network of inland container depots, industrial parks, logistics parks and free zones across Sabah,” said Ahmed bin Sulayem, group chairman and CEO of DP World.
“The synergy with DP World can potentially address the challenges of high logistics cost faced in Sabah, through the establishment of a strong shipping network and expansion of cargo base. The venture is expected to not only impact Sabah’s shipping and logistics industry. It will also lead to economic growth because of market confidence, thus attracting economic investments and infrastructural upgrades in transport, logistics, and along the supply chain,” added Ng Kiat Min, managing director of Sabah Ports.
