Tehran Times - Located in Iran�s southern province of Hormozgan, Shaid Rajaee is the country�s largest and best-equipped container port.

Enjoying the most modern container terminals and port equipment, Shahid Rajaee accounts for 85 percent of the total loading and unloading at the Iranian ports.

Given its significant role in the country�s import and export of products as well as transit and transshipment via Iran, development of Shahid Rajaee Port is among the most important development projects in the country.

And to expedite its development, benefitting from the potential and capabilities of private sector is seriously pursued.

Of the major projects implemented by the private sector to develop this port it could be referred to designing, building, transporting, installing and launching 15 gantry cranes which increased the number of these cranes to 60 at Shahid Rajae Port.

Last month, during a ceremony to put the mentioned cranes into operation, Mohammad Rastad, the head of Iran�s Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO), said that the two-year project has been fully carried out through domestic knowledge and technical experience.

Addressing the same ceremony, Director General of Ports and Maritime Department of Hormozgan Province Allah-Morad Afifipour said the project had been implemented in line with the policies of Resistance Economy to support domestic production and combat the sanctions.

And on Monday, the PMO�s director for port and economic affairs announced that the organization will sign an agreement with the private sector within the upcoming days for building a mechanized terminal for minerals at Shahid Rajaee Port.

Mohammad-Ali Hasanzadeh said that the terminal with the capacity of 50 million tons will be built in three phases.

It will be the largest port terminal for minerals in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman and given the country�s unique potential in the mineral sector the terminal will significantly promote the mining sector of Iran, he further highlighted.

Many mines of the country will be directly connected via railway to this terminal, the official said adding that its capacity will be used both for the exports and imports.

As previously announced by Afifipour, the annual loading and unloading capacity of Shahid Rajaee Port stands at 100 million tons, 25 percent of which belongs to minerals.

The port�s capacity is planned to rise 2.1 million TEUs to reach 8 million TEUs through implementing the first stage of the third phase of its development plan by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2020), the PMO�s director of engineering and infrastructure development said in mid-August.

Mohammadreza Allahyar said: �We have implementation of the third phase on agenda and it has already some good progress.�

Once the third phase is fully implemented, the vessels with the capacity of 18,400 TEU can berth at the port, he added.