The first phase of Iraq’s Al-Faw Grand Port is scheduled for completion by the end of 2025, according to Iraqi Minister of Transport, Razzaq Al-Saadawi.
Al-Faw Grand Port, set to become the largest seaport in the Middle East, spans 54 square kilometers and is located in an open-sea area. The first phase includes five fully completed piers, a 62-kilometer road connecting the port to Umm Qasr city, a 2,400-meter submerged tunnel, a ship canal, and a container yard, as reported by the Iraqi News Agency.
During a field tour last November, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani inaugurated the first five container berths and reviewed progress on key projects, including the container yard and the underwater tunnel. The tunnel, being constructed under the Khor Al-Zubair Channel, is a critical part of the Iraq Development Road, linking Al-Faw Grand Port to Umm Qasr Port and the broader transport network.
The Al-Faw Grand Port is located at the mouth of the Shatt Al-Arab, on the Khor Abdallah Channel. The five container shipping berths, built by Daewoo E&C of South Korea, can accommodate ships up to 23,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU).
Once completed, the port will feature 100 berths and have the capacity to handle 7.5 million TEU annually. By 2038, it is expected to surpass Dubai’s Jebel Ali port, which has 67 berths, becoming the largest container port in the Middle East. The first phase is expected to handle 4 million TEU annually and be completed by 2028.
The $7 billion logistics project aims to connect Basra to Turkey via a new overland route, positioning it as a major competitor to Egypt’s Suez Canal and solidifying Basra as a gateway to Europe. The ambitious project also includes rail and road networks, along with gas and oil pipelines, with the underwater tunnel being a key component.