Adm. Ossama Rabiee, Chairman and Managing Director of the Suez Canal Authority, received today H.E. Michele Quaroni, Ambassador of Italy to Cairo, to discuss ways of cooperation in fields of common interest. The meeting was held at the SCA's headquarters, Al-Irshad building, at the city of Ismailia.
At the outset of the meeting, Adm. Rabiee stressed the SCA's keenness on bolstering its role in supporting global supply chains and serving the global trade between the East and the West through promoting relations with clients and partners in success within the global maritime community.
H.E. highlighted the SCA's continuous efforts to keep abreast of the rapid changes in the maritime transport industry, and handle the current challenges in the Red Sea region with flexibility and in an optimum manner. That is achieved through ceaseless and active communication with all the parties evolved in the global maritime community, in addition to meeting the requirements of clients and realize common interests.
H.E., the Chairman, added that the SCA has issued incentives and reductions of 15% on the transit tolls of container ships of 130 thousand tons or more in net tonnage (loaded or in ballast) for 90 days. This comes in response to requests from the SCA's clientele of container ships owners and operators, and to encourage major shipping lines to return to transiting through the Suez Canal once more; especially in light of the conducive security conditions in the Red Sea region seen in realive stability and calm.
H.E. also highlighted that the SCA is adopting an ambitious strategy to develop and modernize its system of maritime and logistical services provided to its clients, and is exerting considerable effort to be open to entering into partnerships with major international companies in various maritime fields, expressing his anticipation of exploring new horizons of bilateral cooperation with Italian companies in the maritime field.
On his part, H.E. Michele Quaroni, Ambassador of Italy to Cairo, underlined the numerous shared bonds between both countries, especially the long-standing cultural heritage, and pointed out his country's endeavours to further promote the bilateral relations between both countries; namely in the economic and maritime fields.
H.E. also spoke of his special interest in following-up the developments in the situation in the Red Sea region in light of its strategic importance for global trade, hoping the stability in the region's security persists and traffic through the Canal returns back to normal.
Quaroni praised the efforts exerted by the Egyptian state to restore stability in the Red Sea region, and its continuous calls for the prevalence of peaceful solutions to eradicate the root causes of this conflict and restore peace in the region.
H.E. expressed his interest in enforcing joint cooperation with the Suez Canal Authority in fields relevant to building marine units as well as the maintenance and repair of vessels in the SCA's shipyards, shedding the light on the Italian side's attraction towards maritime tourism and encouraging Italian yachts to transit through the Suez Canal as well as berthing at the SCA-affiliated marinas instead of navigating around the Cape of Good Hope.
The visit included a tour of the Suez Canal Museum and the Suez Canal Yacht Marina at Ismailia.
