The governments of Oman and the Netherlands have underlined the strategic importance they attach to the jointly-owned Sohar Industrial Port Company (SIPC) by appointing Andre Toet, formerly Chief Operating Officer of the Port of Rotterdam, as CEO. Here he
What is your background in the maritime and port industry?
I started my career as deck officer with Nedlloyd Lines. Subsequently I worked ashore in Sudan, Thailand, Hong Kong and the Netherlands in senior management positions with Nedlloyd, P&O Nedlloyd, Maersk. In 2007 I moved to the port industry, being COO of Port of Rotterdam and starting now as CEO of SIPC.
What do you see as the ma- jor challenges in your new job?
Follow the footsteps of my predecessor, Jan Meijer; looking at what has been achieved in the last years in both the port and the Free Zone. Further expand the port and Free Zone in order to generate more economic growth for Oman, and particularly for the greater Sohar area and Batinah region.
I want the port to become a major job creation vehicle.
Also I want good relationships with the inhabitants living close to the port, and always call this the licence to operate. I want, of course, to develop good relations with the tenants and customers both existing and new. I want to make sure that SIPC stays and further becomes a professional organisation, whereby there are continuing development possibilities for the Omanis.
Sohar is being developed as a hub port outside the inner waters of the Gulf. How do you think it can best exploit its strategic position?
Explain to the “world” where Sohar is. I did find on my foreign trips that we have to make Sohar/oman better known in the world. I do notice when we get them out here, all are flabbergasted by the developments, which have taken place. I further believe that Sohar is perfectly situated for becoming the entrance gate for the UAE and Saudi
As done already, I will focus on three main areas — trade (Oman and other GCC countries), steel (downstream) and logistics (warehousing, distribution in close relationship with the container and general cargo terminals).
The port is a joint venture between the Government of Oman and the Port of Rotterdam. How does this affect the way the port goes about its business?
First of all it has been a very successful JV both for Oman and Rotterdam. Rotterdam can provide the knowhow and skills and we can use the brand name of Rotterdam in our efforts to excel growth. Moreover, the mistakes made