Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) announced the official hand-over of the Port of Manta to Terminales Internacionales de Ecuador S.A. (TIDE) yesterday, marking the commencement of the 30-year port concession. The Port of Manta is a natural deep-water port on the Pacific Coast of South America in Manta, Ecuador.

Captain Paul Gallie, General Manager of TIDE and Commander Patricio Padilla, General Manager of the Manta Port Authority signed the act of the hand-over and reception of the port on 31 January 2007 at 18:30 p.m., which followed the signing of the concession agreement on 17 November 2006.

Speaking on the occasion, Paul Gallie stated, “The Port of Manta is strategically located on the West Coast of Latin America, within one hour’s distance from international shipping routes, making it the ideal first port of call in the region by global shipping lines. We plan to develop TIDE into a modern cargo-handling facility which provides world-class services to global carriers and attracts international trade activities to Ecuador.”

Commander Padilla commented, “The Port Authority of Manta is confident that TIDE will become a maritime hub in the region, facilitating trade between South American nations and the Asian continent.”

Upon completion of all phases, TIDE will have a total quay length of 1,700 metres, depths alongside of up to 16 meters and a total area of 63 hectares, capable of handling bulk, general cargo, vehicles import and exports and cruise traffic.

TIDE is a member of the Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) Group, a subsidiary of the multinational conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa Limited (HWL). HPH is the world’s leading port investor, developer and operator with interests in 22 countries throughout Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and the Americas. Today, HPH operates in a total of 44 ports together with a number of transportation related service companies.