SUEZ Canal Container Terminal is one of the few Mediterranean box hubs to increase throughput in the first quarter of 2009, registering a 14% increase to 576,000 teu in the January-March period.

Creditable though that percentage may be in a global slowdown, it is less than the 33% increase recorded by the Egyptian transhipment hub when it handled 2.4m teu last year, up from 1.8m teu in 2007.

Given that sustained growth rate, it is no surprise that SCCT managing director Jens Floe confirms that phase two of planned expansion — doubling terminal capacity to 5.1m teu — has sub-contractors on site and will open by the summer of next year, with the last berth operational by 2012.

Cement and steel prices, pre-global correction, had ballooned phase two construction costs to $700m, forcing SCCT stakeholders — including APM Terminals and Cosco — to increase their share capital at the end of last year.

Those cap-ex costs have now been reined back and are closer to the original $500m estimate, thanks to a renegotiation of contracts. Said Mr Floe: “The global economic situation has impacted the market, but we still see the long term investment value here.

“Our core business will remain transhipment traffic. The focus for the rest of 2009 will be on the existing business, and we expect the throughput to be slightly higher than in 2008.”

When the new capacity comes on stream, SCCT will “look to gain market share from competing transhipment hubs in the eastern Mediterranean range”, said Mr Floe, adding that SCCT will begin “aggressive marketing, targeting a wider range of customers”.

Maersk is the main customer at present, along with Yang Ming, Cosco, K-Line, CMA CGM and Hanjin.

SCCT, which began terminal operations in October 2004, sits right on the East-West route for containerships, while the Egyptian home market is growing and provides a solid local cargo source.

Mr Floe says that SCCT can take advantage of the convoy system through the Suez Canal, allowing eastbound containerships to optimise berthing and thus save time.

“We estimate the saving per vessel going back to Asia to be around eight hours,” he said. “If you take the average costs for capacity in an average market, not the unusual market as at present, then that amounts to $30,000 per day or a saving of $10,000 per transit. Our location is ideal in order to optimise a transit through the Suez Canal. We operate at 35 [container] moves per hour, which is significantly better than our east Mediterranean competitors.”