TEHRAN: A consignment of pipes shipped from Oman’s Sohar Port and Freezone (Sohar) was discharged at the Iranian port of Bandar Lingheh yesterday, further strengthening maritime trade ties between the two countries, a report said.
At the same time, a shipment of gypsum bound for Sohar Port was loaded in the first commercial maritime exchange recorded between the two countries at Bandar Lingheh, added the Oman Daily Observer report.
Mahmud Sabiree, director general of ports and shipping affairs at Bandar Lingheh, said that the maiden trade exchange was the culmination of consultations between the two countries.
Around 1,300 metric tonnes of pipes shipped in from Sohar Port were discharged during the maiden call. On the return leg, the vessel is set to load around 20,000 metric tonnes of gypsum for discharge at Sohar Port, it said.
Sabiree said that a team of officials from the sultanate, headed by a senior economic affairs official, were on hand to witness the call.
On the sidelines, both sides had also discussed avenues for boosting bilateral relations. The Omani side underlined the potential for exports of Iranian mineral commodities to Oman for processing and value addition.
Bandar Lingheh is located around 240 km west of Bandar Abbas, the centre of Hormuzgan province. In this regard, the meeting also pointed to Bandar Lingheh’s relative proximity to ports in Dubai and Sharjah port in the UAE.
