The Chinese shipping giant COSCO and Argentinian logistics company PTP Group will invest more than 116 million euros for the upgrade and operation of the Moll d’Andalusia multipurpose terminal. The joint venture formed by two companies won the concession for the terminal, valid for 50 years from the Tarragona Port Authority.
“The joint venture will begin operations at the end of 2026”, the port authority said. Then, over the next two years, there will be construction work to increase the capacity of Moll d’Andalusia to 680,000 TEUs by 2028. The initial agreement stipulates that, by 2031, the company will have to handle at least 360,000 TEUs, and at least 200,000 of those need to be containers.
Rail terminal ‘absorbed’
In addition to the Moll d’Andalusia multipurpose facility, the deal also includes the Boella railway terminal. “The COSCO – PTP alliance will transform Port Tarragona into a leading intermodal hub in the Mediterranean, both for deep-sea traffic from the Far East and Latin America, and for feeder traffic originating from/destined for other countries in the Mediterranean basin”, the port added.
The facility resulting from combining the Moll d’Andalusia and Boella terminals will be integrated into the wider logistics network in Tarragona. For example, it will be connected to the Guadalajara Marchamalo Terminal, always part of the port of Tarragona. “This network of intermodal terminals is the foundation of the proposed operating model, which gives a significant role to the Ebro-Henares corridor and maritime-rail integration,” the port authority concluded.
The joint venture
The joint venture is formed by Rapport Investments Ltd (the result of the merger of COSCO Shipping Ports Ltd and COSCO Bulk) and the Spanish subsidiary of PTP Group, PTP Ibérica. The plan is to turn Tarragona into the new company’s “leading intermodal gateway in the Mediterranean”.
