Cargo expansion for Bahrain International Airport

A PLANNED expansion of cargo facilities at Bahrain International Airport (BIA) is at preliminary stages as part of a wider airport improvement programme, reports cargo manager Robert Mills.

“Cargo is being recognised as a key driver at BIA and it is without doubt an area which will see facility investment and on-going service improvements,” he says.

Multimodal services and cool-chain services are just two areas which will be of particular focus over the coming months.

Cargo business has been fairly static in recent months through the hub airport. Overall cargo volumes last year were approximately 353,000 tonnes, up one per cent on the previous year. “2013 year-to-date remains flat. However transhipments are still growing,” he reveals.

BIA already offers airlines and forwarders a strong airside infrastructure and a smooth operating capability which is not always found at larger regional airports.

Services for import/export and transhipments are personal and flexible through BIA – and with Saudi Arabia only 45 minutes away, it remains a pivotal location in the Gulf. 

What freighter services currently call at Bahrain? 

“We are continuously reinventing the cargo offering at Bahrain Airport in order to attract additional business through airlines and other integrators,” Mills adds.

“One of our key differentiators and success stories at BIA is the fact that Bahrain enjoys a strategic location in the region, acting as a gateway to the northern gulf. In addition, the Kingdom has the shortest travel time between its seaport, airport, and the logistics processing zone of anywhere in the Gulf, enabling companies to serve other markets in the Middle East with great ease and efficiency.”