Syria on Thursday signed a 30-year deal with French shipping and logistics group CMA CGM that includes building a new berth at Latakia port and investing another 230 million euros ($260 million) over the course of the partnership, a company official said.
Latakia port is Syria's main maritime gateway. CMA CGM began managing Latakia's container terminal in 2009, under now-ousted Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. The contract was most recently renewed in October 2024, also under Assad, for 30 more years.
After rebels toppled Assad in December, the new authorities began talks on an amended deal. It was signed on Thursday by officials from the company and from Syria's port authority.
"CMA CGM has signed today the concession of the port of Latakia for a 30-year contract. We are committed to modernizing and expanding the terminal to meet growing demand and strengthen supply chains in the region," Joe Dakkak, general manager at CMA CGM LEVANT, told Reuters.
Dakkak told local broadcaster Syria TV that the agreement included a 230-million-euro investment, as well as a project to build a new, deeper berth at Latakia in order to increase activity at the port.
A person familiar with the deal said CMA CGM would invest 30 million euros in the first year and the rest in the following four years. The person said the berth would be 1.5 kilometres (0.9 miles) long and 17 meters deep, with advanced infrastructure.
CMA CGM is controlled by Franco-Lebanese billionaire Rodolphe Saade and other members of his family, which has roots in Syria.
A Syrian source familiar with the negotiations had earlier told Reuters that Syrian authorities had hoped to negotiate a larger share of the revenues than the previous contract as well as a shorter timeframe for the terminal lease.
($1 = 0.8845 euros)
(Reuters)
