Velana International Airport (VIA) has seen a 300 percent increase in sea to air cargo transshipments in the past few months, the airport operator, Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) has said.
MACL in collaboration with Maldives Port Limited (MPL) launched Sea to Air Cargo Transshipment services in March last year, aimed at providing accessible freight transport via land, sea, and air.
This hybrid model is designed to meet the needs of businesses operating in the region and streamline transportation processes in a sustainable manner.
Speaking to PSM News’ ‘Raajje Miadhu’ programme to mark MACL’s 59th anniversary, the State-owned firm’s Head of Aerodrome Management Department and Cargo Department, Senior General Manager Mahmoodha Shareef said cargo service previously had been quite limited due to space constraints.
However, the relocation of import and export services to the new terminal has led to the increase of capacity threefold, she said.
According to Mahmoodha, cargo services have expanded significantly with the introduction of the sea to air cargo service last year, with an increase of 300 percent in less than a year.
"We are quite lucky. We are in a very unique position in this area. We benefit greatly from the challenges faced by our neighbouring countries. We bring in cargo by sea from ports like Bangladesh and Colombo. We have the capacity and we operate our services on EUR standards which allows us to ship directly to Europe. This is not an advantage shared by most of our neighbours,” she explained.
Mahmoodha reaffirmed the company’s commitment to provide customers with comprehensive services that meet international standards. The cargo terminal, which opened last year, has been developed to provide a wide array of services, she said, adding that MACL expects transshipment services to grow further in the future.
Currently a dozen major airlines have partnered with MACL to provide sea to air cargo services.