Yew Ming Leng, Assistant Vice President for Central Asia and the Caucasus (PSA International), spoke about PSA International and its achievements in the development of transport corridors, especially in China, and how they strive to bring this experience to Kazakhstan, with a special focus attention to the Middle corridor.
PSA International, owned by the Singapore government under Singapore sovereign wealth fund Thomastik Holdings, handled 94.8 million TEU worldwide last year. This means that out of every 10 containers in the world, one is handled by a PSA-managed terminal. Yew Ming Leng also noted:
“In terms of capital, we are ranked first in the world”
Beyond terminal operations, PSA has evolved into more than just a terminal operator. In 2022, they acquired BDP, a leading logistics provider specializing in oil, gas and petrochemicals. This transformation demonstrates the company’s commitment to diversifying its services beyond terminal operations.
PSA is both a port operator and cargo solutions provider with an extensive global presence spanning 166 offices and 66 terminals in 44 countries. Kazakhstan is the 44th country of presence, and they are represented in five developed regions: Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia, Middle East, South Asia, Europe and America.
In China, the company operates in six ports, including Dalian, Tianjin, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Qingzhou and Lianyungang, handling approximately 19 million TEU annually. It is also the second largest shareholder of China United International Rail Containers (CUIRC), which operates 13 dry ports across China and sends 63% of China Railway Express volume to Europe and Central Asia.
One of the most successful initiatives is the Chongqing Connectivity Initiative, aligned with China’s Belt and Road Initiative. By connecting Chongqing, a landlocked region, to the world through intermodal transport through Qingzhou and Singapore, they provide access to Singapore, the world’s largest transshipment hub. PSA’s efforts contributed to significant growth in rail traffic between 2019 and 2022, promoting trade and economic development along transport corridors between Singapore and China.
Qingzhou is home to the CUIRC Dry Port, which expands the capacity of our marine terminals and contributes to the growth of TEU traffic from 3.8 million to 5.5 million. This success underlines the importance of the corridor within the Belt and Road Initiative. Leveraging our strengths in marine terminals, logistics (underpinned by the acquisition of BDP) and the development of cross-border transport corridors, we are embarking on the final phase of our strategy: the Middle Corridor.
PSA International, with a global presence excluding Central Asia, aims to connect its trade investments in Northeast Asia (handling 25 million TEU) and Europe/Mediterranean (handling 80 million TEU) through Central Asia, especially Kazakhstan. The establishment of KPMC last May marks a significant collaboration between Kazakhstan Railways and PSA International, with the assistance of both governments. The tasks of KPMC include:
- organizing solutions for the transportation of goods, mainly from China, along the Middle Corridor;
- exploring investment opportunities in assets in ports, terminals, dry ports, railway terminals and warehouses.
In addition, the company is considering investments in the port of Aktau and other nodes of the Middle Corridor for long-term development in Central Asia.