International Maritime Associates, Inc.     |   home

Consulting Services Performed
in the Port Sector


IMA provides a full range of strategic planning and advisory services in the port sector.  Our clients have included port authorities, terminal operators and international lending institutions.  We have been assisting the World Bank on port related issues for more than 20 years.  The following illustrate the range of our activity in this sector.

reviewed port and maritime sector development plans of the Government of India
evaluated options to restructure cargo handling services in the Port of Valletta (Malta) to facilitate trade, create value adding activities and generate economic development
structured the consortium and assisted in consummating the successful bid to manage the new container terminal in the Port of Beirut
assessed operations in Port Sudan and recommended a program of capital expenditures to improve the port sector as part of an overall World Bank credit to the Government of Sudan
recommended a strategy and plan of action for attracting new industry and developing a diversified commercial traffic base in the Port of Assab, prepared for the Government of Eritrea
provided assistance to the Government of Bahrain in designing a strategy and plan of action to transition from public to private sector operation in the port sector
evaluated the feasibility of building a new container and bulk handling port in southern Brazil
assisted the Saudi Ports Authority in assessing strategic options for improving the port sector in the Kingdom and recommended a plan of action
proposed a plan of action for eliminating impediments to trade growth in Egypt imposed by port and transport sector inefficiencies
assisted the Government of Malta in designing and implementing a plan to sell the large government-owned container transshipment terminal in Marsaxlokk -- the container terminal was sold to CMA-CGM
assisted the Government of Djibouti in evaluating a proposed transaction to transfer port operations to an international port operator under a long term concession -- the port was subsequently concessioned to DPI
reviewed port sector operations in Egypt, assessed options for operation and organization improvements, identified issues related to transitioning to private sector operation and recommended a plan of action
assessed options for restructuring the port sector in the Republic of Lebanon, including reorganizing the port commission in the port of Beirut, privatizing services in the port and eliminating barriers to efficient operation
assisted in revising legislation and regulations governing operations of the port of Karachi to improve productivity and eliminate impediments to international transport
conducted a feasibility study for developing a mega-hub for container transshipment in the Port of Aden (Yemen) to service the Arabian Sea/Red Sea/EC Africa region -- the Aden Container Terminal is now in operation
developed a framework for a port user EDI network to improve the performance and customer responsiveness of ports in Saudi Arabia
assessed port operations in Haiti and analyzed options for privatizing port services in Port-au-Prince
assisted in preparing a World Bank loan evaluation for funding modernization of operations in the Port of Colombo (Sri Lanka)
assessed requirements for developing two new ports in southern Thailand

IMA assisted the World Bank in preparing the Port Reform Toolkit, a reference document accessible on the World Bank website that provides a strategic framework for evaluating options to improve the productivity of port services.  Our contribution was the Competitive Scan Analysis in module 2 of the toolkit.  This analysis provides a framework for understanding the forces that shape the competitive landscape and the changing enviroment in the ocean shipping and port sector.