“How are we going to react when the Mubarak port is completed and we have to wait for years until we have an alternative?” transport company owner Ali Muhsin asked. “I think that my job will be greatly affected, as we won’t see large vessels docking at the port and we’ll have to look for work elsewhere.”
Aside from diverting trade from Basra, the Kuwaiti project presents some practical challenges.
“The location of the port will block Iraqi sea lanes and increase the risk of large vessels colliding,” Iraqi transport minister Hadi al-Amiri said.
Kadhim al-Hamami, who captains a cargo ship sailing from Basra, said the Kuwait port would act as a breakwater, silting up the seabed and gradual cutting Iraqi territory off from deeper waters.
“Iraqi ports will only be able to receive small vessels that can sail in under ten metres of water, whereas most of the vessels involved in major trade need more than 30 or 40 metres,” he said.
As shippers opt to use the Kuwaiti port with its modern facilities and ease of docking, the Iraqi authorities fear they will have an unemployment catastrophe on their hands. Basra’s five ports directly employ around 12,000 workers, according to Ammar al-Safi, spokesman for the state port authority.
Safi said his agency had no contingency plans in place, and predicted that the Kuwaiti project could lead to the loss of thousands of jobs in Basra.
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