UAE-based port operator Gulftainer has signed a 50-year concession deal with the state of Delaware to operate and develop the Port of Wilmington.
Under the agreement, which was signed by Gulftainer’s subsidiary GT USA, the company would invest will see an expected investment of up to USD 600 million in the port to upgrade and expand the terminal and to turn it into one of the largest facilities of its kind on the Eastern Seaboard.
The investment includes USD 400 million on a new 1.2 million TEU container facility at DuPont’s former Edgemoor site, which was acquired by the Diamond State Port Corporation in 2016. Plans for the port also include development of all cargo terminal capabilities at the facility and enhancement of its overall productivity.
The 50-year concession follows a year of negotiations and a thorough evaluation of Gulftainer’s capabilities globally, including in the United States. The Delaware concession agreement completes a preliminary agreement between Gulftainer and the state of Delaware, as well as the completion of a formal review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), granting Gulftainer exclusive rights to manage the port.
“This landmark agreement builds on Gulftainer’s 43-year track record of delivering excellence and dependability in ports and logistics operations around the world, and we are confident that this public-private partnership will propel the Port of Wilmington towards becoming the principal gateway of the Eastern Seaboard,” Badr Jafar , Chairman of Gulftainer’s Executive Board, said.