Bahrain Airport Company, the operator and managing body of Bahrain International Airport (BIA), announced the laying of the foundation stone for the Express Cargo Village, located north of the airport’s runway.
This is in line with the Kingdom’s strategy for the logistics industry as laid out in its Economic Recovery Plan, which implements the vision of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
It follows an announcement by the Cabinet, led by the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa. In attendance were His Excellency the Minister of Transportation & Telecommunications and Bahrain Airport Company (BAC) Chairman, Eng. Kamal bin Ahmed Mohammed, Cebarco Bahrain Chairman Dr. Khalid Abdulrahim and Shaikh Ahmed bin Mohamed AlKhalifa, Bahrain’s Head of Customs in addition to several officials from Bahrain Airport Company.
HE the Minister said that the Express Cargo Village will promote the growth of the logistics industry, enhancing its regional competitiveness and ability to attract investment. Logistics is one of the high-priority sectors outlined in Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030.
He added that one of the Economic Recovery Plan’s main objectives is to accelerate the adoption of a strategy for logistics, and that the Express Cargo Village will increase BIA’s cargo capacity in line with the highest standards as it will deploy advanced technologies to improve efficiency and meet growth targets for air freight and e-commerce.
HE the Minister said that the logistics strategy aims to further develop the sector and enhance its efficiency by accelerating the process of linking operations at BIA with those of Khalifa bin Salman Port, and streamlining land transportation procedures, to make the Kingdom a preferred destination for cargo and e-commerce.
He congratulated Cebarco Bahrain on being appointed as the main contractor of the Express Cargo Village. The tender includes the construction of warehouses, aircraft aprons, and outlets, along with associated finishing. He highlighted Cebarco Bahrain’s strong capabilities, wishing its team the best in carrying out the project.
Stretching over an area of 25,000 sqm, the Express Cargo Village at BIA is an advanced logistics hub, which includes buildings dedicated to serving each cargo operator in line with the highest international standards. It ensures that all operations are carried out quickly and smoothly in a single location, enabling the airport to handle larger quantities of cargo efficiently, better meet the requirements of cargo customers, and create new job opportunities.
BAC earlier signed a 10-year agreement with global logistics giant, FedEx Express, allocating 9,000 sqm to it for the operation of a 5,000 sqm warehouse and a 4,000 sqm open area, which will be handed over in the third quarter of 2023.
In November 2018, BAC signed an agreement with French engineering consultants Egis to supervise the design and construction of the Express Cargo Village, which consists of warehouses, aprons, and infrastructure capable of handling the expected growth in air freight and e-commerce.
