Opening date of new cargo services building at Muscat airport announced

The cargo building at the new Muscat airport will start receiving consignments from 2pm on March 19, the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications (MoTC) said on Wednesday. MoTC said that deliveries, however, have to be collected from the present cargo building until March 29.

The ministry added that operationalising the new cargo building is part of the process to start commercial operations at the new Muscat International Airport from March 20.

MoTC is working with Oman Air and all stakeholders to ensure that the transition is a smooth process.

Dr Mohamed bin Nasser al Zaabi, CEO of the Public Authority for Civil Aviation said that civil works at the new cargo building are over. “Some technical tests are being conducted by the assigned team to ensure readiness of the new Muscat International Airport project.”

Covering an area of 32,000sq m, the new cargo terminal has a capacity to handle 350,000 tonnes of cargo a year. The terminal can handle all kinds of cargo, ranging from general products to special cargo such as perishable goods, animals and hazardous materials.

It is fitted with the fully automated Material Handling System, which allows seamless handling of cargo containers and pallets. The system uses Elevating Transfer Vehicle technology to move and store cargo in a systematic manner.

As a significant portion of the import and export cargo comprises fruits and vegetables, frozen meat and pharmaceutical products, the fully air-conditioned terminal, together with its cold storage facility, will ensure that the cold chain integrity is maintained throughout the entire handling process. This is especially important during the summers.

A new Live Animal Facility, spanning an area of 2,500sq m will house all animal cargo. The facility comes with the necessary tools and equipment to handle all types of animals.

Standalone Dangerous Goods and Radioactive Material storage facilities are also available for consignees/shippers. These facilities provide storage of these shipments under a safe and isolated environment, away from the rest of the cargo.

There are available vaults and cages to store high value cargo and the terminal has a comprehensive security coverage on a 24x7 basis. The new cargo terminal will be operated by Oman Air SATS Cargo.