Interview: Maersk talks with Egypt government on Suez Canal expansion

The Suez Canal Container Terminal (SCCT) needs public infrastructure enhancements to expand, but the government is not enthusiastic about it now, the commercial chief executive (CCE) of the terminal told a group of Egyptian journalists in Copenhagen.

Maersk, the major shareholder in the SCCT, is asking the Egyptian government to fulfil its prior commitment to finance and execute any required deepening of the path leading from the northern main entrance of the Suez Canal to the terminal, Lars Koch-Soelyst, the CCE of SCCT, told Ahram Online. He is also worried about possible negative impacts from the ongoing expansion of the Suez Canal.

The company, which is celebrating 10 years in Egypt, says the enhanced infrastructure is indispensible in order to maximise utilisation of the terminal’s current capacity, but also to expand its capacity to receive larger container vessels.