AD Ports inks a slew of agreements to bolster Pakistan logistics, maritime sectors

AD Ports Group inked an MoU with the Pakistan Board of Investment to explore the establishment of an industrial zone near Karachi Port and Qasim Port, according to a statement released on Thursday. The group acquired logistics businesses in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Georgia over the course of the past year, all of which will strategically benefit from Pakistan serving as a middle corridor linking Asia and Europe.

The firm also inked three separate agreements in digitalization, maritime services, and freight forwarding to expand its footprint in Pakistan’s logistics sector:

• Digitalization: AD Ports Group’s Maqta Technologies and Pakistan’s PSW will partner — in collaboration with Pakistan’s Customs Services — to strengthen Pakistan’s Sing Window systems, modernize border services, and analyze cross-border systems.
• Maritime services: AD Ports and Pakistani industrial development conglomerate Bahria Foundation will pair up to bolster the productivity of dredging, marine services, and vessel pooling at Karachi Port.
• Freight forwarding: AD Ports’ freight forwarding subsidiary Noatum Logistics and its JV with Pakistan’s Kaheel Terminals, dubbed Karachi Gateway Terminal Multipurpose (KGTL), will partner to offer logistics solutions across air, ocean, and inland transport — including warehousing and distribution — to advance Pakistan’s existing inland trade corridors into Central Asia.

AD Ports ? Pakistan: AD Ports Group inked a 25-year concession agreement last year to develop and operate berths 11 to 17 at the Eastern Wharf of Karachi Port. This agreement builds on a 50-year concession agreement inked by AD Ports in 2023, in which the firm acquired the rights to develop, operate and manage the Eastern Wharf's container terminal berths 6 to 10.