by Lloyd's List
22 Aug 2025 (Lloyd's List) - SAUDI Arabia is furthering shipping links with China through a new container service and dry port joint venture.
The Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) has unveiled a new container service operated by Blue Ocean Shipping, which will link Jeddah with Qingdao, Ningbo and Guangzhou’s Nansha in China.
The service, operated with 2,300 teu vessels, is part of Mawani’s efforts to improve port performance and export flows, in line with the country’s drive to build a global logistics hub connecting three continents, according to a statement from Mawani.
Jeddah is the largest hub in the Red Sea and handles 65% of Saudi Arabia’s imports and transhipment volumes. In July 2025, container throughput grew 12% year on year, with transhipment volumes rising more than 35%.
Meanwhile, Cosco Shipping is expanding its presence in Saudi Arabia through a joint venture to build a new dry port in the country’s eastern region.
According to the agreement with Saudi Ports Services and Storage Company, the two parties will establish a joint venture to construct a container yard adjacent to PSS’s existing warehouse facilities. The yard will span about 100,000 sq m and handle 140,000 teu annually.
The project will connect to Saudi Arabia’s national rail network, allowing empty containers from Riyadh or Dammam to be transported to the dry port, loaded with cargo, and returned to Dammam for export.
The line is expected to be completed in the first half of next year, with the new service to start no later than the second quarter, according to an executive from PSS.
The new service follows a series of moves to enhance China-Saudi connectivity. In April, Cosco Shipping Lines (Saudi Arabia) was launched in Dammam, which is expected to coordinate terminal operations in Jeddah and future projects in Jubail Industrial City.
Together, these initiatives are expected to solidify Saudi’s role as a transcontinental logistics hub while strengthening commercial ties with China, its largest trading partner.
