16 May 2024 (Lloyd's List) - IT IS 20 years since DP World began its investment in Constanta, Romania. The port was one of the first outside of the United Arab Emirates the group developed and two decades on is still being improved.

Its newest developments include ro-ro and project cargo terminals opened this week, with a further intermodal facility planned for 2025. 

DP World chief executive Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem said Constanta’s nearshoring potential was a major reason for the logistics company’s continued investment in the port.

In a speech celebrating the opening of the new terminals, he highlighted the rise in nearshoring by manufacturers, pointing to the Ever Given blockage as an example of how fragile lengthy supply chains can be.

Romania, he said, was perfectly positioned to bring DP World customers to the Black Sea region and export to central and even northern Europe through Consanta.

Romanian transport minister Sorin Grindeanu said thanks to a new intermodal facility in Aiud (central Romania) and an additional rail terminal planned to open at the port in 2025, Constanta would be connected by rail to the Baltic Sea.

“For the first time in modern history, Constanta is located between two major trade flows: the traditional sea corridors starting from Asia, and the Middle Corridor starting from China,” he said.

DP World Europe chief executive Rashid Abdulla said: “Romania will be a key gateway to eastern central Europe and it will be a major hub within the Black Sea.”

He later told Lloyd’s List that “from a European point of view, we think southeast Europe and Romania can play a fundamental role”, because of its accessible workforce and transport connections.

DP World is already looking towards the automotive industry to provide traffic for its new terminals. Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Renault-owned Dacia all have factories in Romania, while the automotive industry is growing in nearby Türkiye, Hungary and Poland too.

But it’s not just car imports that Constanta is being earmarked for. There are also hopes that the port will play a crucial role in the rebuilding of Ukraine when the war there ends. 

Around 45% of trade that once used Ukrainian Black Sea ports now flows through Constantza, DP World representatives said, and the port’s connection to the River Danube via the Danube-Black Sea Canal was cited by bin Sulayem as a vital lifeline for Ukrainian trade.

Abdulla said DP World and Constanta needed to be “geared up to contribute to the rebuild” once the conflict ended.