One of them is in Iraq...American "BlackRock" acquires ports in the Middle East
US asset management firm BlackRock and Italian shipping company MSC have acquired 43 ports owned by Hong Kong-based multinational CK Hucheng Holdings in a deal that will give the US asset manager control of 12 ports in the Middle East, located on strategic coasts stretching from the UAE and Oman to Iraq and Egypt.
In March 2025, a consortium of BlackRock and MSC reached a $22.8 billion deal to acquire 43 ports owned by CK Huzhen, a Hong Kong-listed company owned by one of Asia's richest men, 96-year-old billionaire Li Ka-shing.
The deal made headlines because it would give BlackRock and MSC control of two ports at each end of the Panama Canal, the strategic waterway that US President Donald Trump has threatened to seize to limit China's influence in the Western Hemisphere.
But the agreement's impact extends beyond Panama to the Middle East, where Arab countries, particularly the Gulf states, are seeking to diversify their economies away from oil. The shipping and ports sectors represent another source of economic diversification for these countries.
Which ports will BlackRock and MSC acquire in the Middle East?
Under the deal reached between the US-based BlackRock and Italy's MSC Group, the two companies are set to acquire 12 ports in the Middle East, distributed as follows:
Egypt (5): Alexandria - Dekheila - Abu Qir - Ain Sokhna - and the new B100 berth at Alexandria Port
Emirates (4): Ras Al Khaimah - Ajman - Khasab - UAQ
Sultanate of Oman (1): Sohar
Iraq (1): Basra
Saudi Arabia (1): Jazan
No comments:
Post a Comment