DP World Vows to Defend Rights in Doraleh Container Terminal

The entrance gate of Doraleh Multi-Purpose Port in Djibouti.
(AFP file)
The entrance gate of Doraleh Multi-Purpose Port in Djibouti. (AFP file)
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DP World Vows to Defend Rights in Doraleh Container Terminal

The entrance gate of Doraleh Multi-Purpose Port in Djibouti.
(AFP file)
The entrance gate of Doraleh Multi-Purpose Port in Djibouti. (AFP file)

Global ports operator DP World said Tuesday that it would continue to pursue all legal means to defend its rights in a raging dispute with the government of Djibouti, given that it is a shareholder and concessionaire in Doraleh Container Terminal (DCT).

DP World described Djibouti's decision on Sunday to nationalize the port as "a blatant disregard for the rule of law and respect for commercial contracts."

This step is the latest in the campaign launched by Djibouti government since five years in order to deprive DCT of the agreement signed in 2006, DP World said in a statement published Tuesday – the agreement granted DP World the right to manage the terminal in which it has a stake in.

On August 31, the High Court of England & Wales issued an injunction restraining Djibouti's Port de Djibouti (PDSA), as a shareholder in DCT, from treating its joint venture shareholders' agreement with DP World as terminated. The UK court has further prohibited PDSA from removing directors of the DCT joint venture company.

The concession agreement between DP World and Djibouti, signed in 2006, is governed by English law and through the London Court of International Arbitration, the port operator said.

“Investors across the world must think twice about investing in Djibouti and reassess any agreements they may have with a government that has no respect for legal agreements and changes them at will without agreement or consent,” a DP World spokesperson said.

The terminal was run by DP World since 2006, however, in late February Djibouti canceled the contract.



Ukraine Receives First 3 Bln Euro Tranche of G7 Loan from EU

An explosion of a drone after it hit an apartment building is seen in the sky during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine January 10, 2025. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich
An explosion of a drone after it hit an apartment building is seen in the sky during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine January 10, 2025. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich
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Ukraine Receives First 3 Bln Euro Tranche of G7 Loan from EU

An explosion of a drone after it hit an apartment building is seen in the sky during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine January 10, 2025. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich
An explosion of a drone after it hit an apartment building is seen in the sky during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine January 10, 2025. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich

Ukraine received its first 3 billion euro ($3.09 billion) tranche of the European Union's portion of the Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) loan agreed for Ukraine by the G7 group of countries, its prime minister Denys Shmyhal said on Friday.

It was the first tranche of EU loan secured by profits from frozen Russian assets, Shmyhal wrote on the Telegram app.

G7 leaders in October agreed to provide some $50 billion in loans to Ukraine via multiple channels.
"Today, we deliver €3 billion to Ukraine, the 1st payment of the EU part of the G7 loan. Giving Ukraine the financial power to continue fighting for its freedom – and prevail," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on social media platform X.

In other economic news, Ukraine's steel output rose by 21.6% in 2024 to 7.58 million metric tons, its producers union said late on Thursday, though fighting that is closing in on the country's only coking coal mine threatens to slash volumes this year.

Steel production has already suffered since Russia's invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, which has led to the destruction of leading steel plants.

Ukraine, formerly a major steel producer and exporter, reported a 70.7% drop in output in 2022 to 6.3 million tons. It fell to 6 million tons in 2023.

The steelmakers' union said in October the potential closure of the Pokrovsk mine, Ukraine's only coking coal mine, could cause steel production to slump to 2-3 million metric tons in 2025.
Advancing Russian forces are less than 2 km (1.24 miles) from the mine, Ukrainian military analyst DeepState said on Friday.
The mine's owner, steelmaker Metinvest BV, said last month it had already halted some operations at the mine and two industry sources said it was operating at 50% capacity.
Producers have said they hope to find coking coal from elsewhere in Ukraine should the mine be seized by Russian troops, but imports would inevitably be needed which would raise costs.