Iran's 21 Commercial Ports Handle 105 Million Tons of Commodities

EghtesadOnline: More than 105 million tons of commodities were loaded and unloaded at Iran’s 21 commercial ports during the first nine months of the current Iranian year (March 21-Dec. 21) to register a 1.1% rise compared with the corresponding period of last year.

News ID: ۷۴۹۳۳۲

01 January 2020

Latest figures published on the Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran’s website show non-oil goods accounted for 71.81 million tons of the total throughput, showing a 0.76% year-on-year growth.

The remaining 33.83 million tons pertained to oil products, indicating a 1.77% increase YOY.

Container loading and unloading declined by 41.61% to stand at 998,820 TEUs, Financial Tribune reported.

More than 53.56 million tons of commodities were exported from the ports and close to 23.28 million tons were imported during the eight months (ending Nov. 21), showing an 11.35% and 10.29% growth respectively compared with the similar period of last year.

A total of 3.09 million tons of goods were transited through these ports during the same period to register a 43.26% YOY decline.

The 21 ports under study include Iran’s southern ports of Abadan, Imam Khomeini, Bushehr, Khorramshahr, Genaveh, Bandar Lengeh, Chavibdeh, Arvandkenar, Charak and Dayyer located on the shores of Persian Gulf, Shahid Rajaee, Shahid Bahonar, Qeshm and Tiab at the mouth of the Strait of Hormuz, Jask and Chabahar on the coasts of the Sea of Oman and the northern ports of Fereydounkenar, Noshahr, Astara, Amirabad and Anzali along the coastline of Caspian Sea.

More than 53.05 million tons of commodities were loaded and unloaded in Hormozgan Province’s Shahid Rajaee Port, registering a 3.59% growth year-on-year.

Shahid Rajaee was the busiest port during the period. Non-oil goods accounted for 33.36 million tons and oil products for over 19.69 million tons of the total, showing a 0.59% and 8.92% growth respectively YOY.

Located 23 kilometers west of the port city of Bandar Abbas, the capital of Hormozgan Province, Shahid Rajaee Port is Iran’s biggest container port.

Over half of Iran’s commercial trading is carried out at Shahid Rajaee. The port complex also accounts for over 85% of all container throughput in the country.

According to Mohammad Reza Rezaei-Kouchi, the head of Majlis Development Commission, Shahid Rajaee Port has a 6% share in the region’s total container throughput per annum, ILNA reported.

Imam Khomeini Port in the southern Khuzestan Province was the second busiest port during the nine months under review, as it handled over 33.37 million tons of commodities. The figure shows a 12.12% increase YOY.

Non-oil goods accounted for more than 22.13 million tons and oil products for over 11.24 million tons of the total throughput at Imam Khomeini Port, registering a 17.57% and 2.74% growth respectively YOY.

The third busiest was Qeshm Port, also in southern Iran. More than 5.14 million tons of goods were loaded and unloaded there, indicating a 26.21% increase compared with the similar period of last year.

Non-oil goods accounted for 5.04 million tons and oil products for around 101,905 tons of the total throughput in Qeshm Port, showing a 26.15% and  18.43% growth respectively YOY.

A total of 10.12 million passengers were transported to and from the aforementioned ports, registering an 18.31% decline compared with last year’s similar period.

Essential Goods Clearance via Green Channel Sets Record

Customs clearance of imported essential goods via the "green channel" reached an all-time high in the month ending Dec. 21, says Mehrdad Jamal Arvanaqi, the deputy head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration.

In the same month, 51% of all declaration forms for essential goods were approved for clearance through the green channel with the least legal formalities compared with the previous months' 10%, the official was quoted as saying by IRNA.

A total of 25,943 tons of rice were cleared from customs in the month ending Oct. 22. In the following month, a total of 26,533 tons were imported while last month, a total of 103,288 tons of rice were cleared by customs, indicating a sixfold rise month-on-month.

The customs clearance of meat decreased from 17,976 tons in the month ending Oct. 22 to 10,721 tons in the month ending Nov. 21, but climbed to 18,046 tons last month.

Soybean oilcake’s customs clearance stood at 73,197 tons in the month ending Oct. 22 compared with 58,405 tons in the month ending Nov. 21. Last month, a total of 172,714 tons of soybean oilcake were cleared by customs.

A total of 613,749 tons of corn were cleared in the month ending Nov. 21 compared with 717,599 tons last month.

About 50,280 tons of fertilizers were released from customs in the month ending Oct. 22 compared with 17,585 tons in the following month and 57,739 tons in the month ending Dec. 21.

A total of 54,000 tons of publication paper were cleared by customs in the month ending Oct. 22 compared with 52,547 tons in the month ending Nov. 21 and 89,980 tons in the following month.

A total of 7,370 tons of pulses were cleared by customs in the month ending Oct. 22 compared with 9,598 tons in the month ending Dec. 21.

The customs clearance of oilseeds stood at 36,482 tons in the month ending Oct. 22, 28,942 tons in the month ending Nov. 21 and 67,465 tons in the following month.