Hanjin Group Opens Navoi Cargo Terminal in Uzbekistan

Korean Air held a ceremony to celebrate the opening of Navoi Cargo Terminal on August 12.

With 1.46 million square feet of space and 100,000 tons of yearly capacity, the new cargo terminal features state-of-the-art facilities.

The Navoi Cargo Terminal is part of Hanjin Group’s ‘Navoi Project’ to grow Navoi as a logistics hub of Central Asia.

Korean Air will expand its cargo network by adding new routes from Navoi this year.

SEOUL, Korea (August 12, 2010) – Hanjin Group, the global comprehensive logistics group comprising air, sea and land transport, is speeding up the project to create a Central Asian logistics hub with the new cargo terminal at Navoi International Airport in Uzbekistan.

On Thursday August 12, senior management of Korean Air, a core subsidiary of Hanjin Group, and Uzbekistan officials gathered at Navoi International Airport to celebrate the opening of the Navoi Cargo Terminal. Among the hundred guests present at the ceremony are Mr. Chang Hoon Chi, President and COO of Korean Air, Mr. Dae Wan Jun, Korean Ambassador to Uzbekistan and Mr. Valeriy Tyan, Director General of Uzbekistan Airways and Head of the Uzbekistan Aviation Administration.

Since January 2009, Hanjin Group has been managing Navoi International Airport hand in hand with the Uzbekistan government to develop Navoi as the logistics hub of Central Asia and to facilitate Korean companies’ entry into the market. Hanjin’s ‘Navoi Project’ includes modernizing airport facilities, expanding global air cargo network and constructing the advanced logistics complex.

“The new Navoi Cargo Terminal has been designed based on the Korean Air’s state-of-the-art cargo terminals at Incheon International Airport which leads the global cargo industry by setting very high standard. The Navoi Cargo Terminal is set to become the center of the modern day “Silk Road” with its advanced airport infrastructure,” Mr. Chang Hoon Chi, President and COO of Korean Air said.

“Korean Air will spare no effort in supporting the growth of Navoi into Central Asia’s best logistics hub, expanding global network and practicing aggressive marketing strategies as Korean Air participates in the airport management,” he added.

With construction underway since December 2008, the newly unveiled Navoi Cargo Terminal has been developed as part of the project to modernize airport infrastructure for Uzbekistan. The new terminal, with total floor space of 160,382 square feet on a 1.46 million square feet site, is designed to handle 100,000 tons of cargo a year and features state-of-the-art facilities such as refrigerated warehouses and quarantine stations. The Navoi Cargo Terminal’s capacity will be upgraded to process up to 500,000 tons of cargo a year as global cargo demand increases.

The Navoi Cargo Terminal has been successfully completed thanks to the consistent support and technological know-how of Korean Air, which is the number one commercial air cargo carrier in every aspect from construction, operation and ground handling. Uzbekistan officials, including Mr. Rustam Azimov, First Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, has visited Korean Air’s cutting-edge cargo terminals at Incheon International Airport a number of times. Impressed very much by the success of Incheon, Mr. Azimov had ordered to design and build the Navoi Cargo Terminal jointly with Korean Air.

By opening the new fuel storage tank which can store sufficient fuel for 27 B747-400 jumbo freighters, all core infrastructure for Navoi International Airport to become a logistics hub will be set up in stages.

As part of efforts to develop Navoi, Korean Air has been operating its cargo flights from Incheon to Milan and Brussels via Navoi Airport seven times a week since 2008. Also, direct cargo flights from Navoi to Deli, Mumbai, Bangkok and Frankfurt have been flying nine times a week since last year. With the new Navoi Cargo Terminal now available, Korean Air will add its cargo routes from Navoi to Istanbul, Dubai, Almaty(Kazakhstan) and Dacca(Bangladesh) this year.

Hanjin Group has been conducting a variety of projects to create Navoi as a logistics hub of Central Asia. Hanjin Transportation Co., Ltd. has co-established ‘Eurasia Logistics Service’ with one of the local ground transport companies and has been strengthening the ground network of Central Asia. Eurasia Logistic Service will cooperate with Korean Air’s cargo terminal and air cargo network, and establish a land transport network in Central Asia.

Also, Hanjin Group is currently constructing a residential complex in Uzbekistan for foreign investing companies to be located in the Free Industrial-Economic Zone, enhancing convenience of workers by providing accommodation and other facilities. As a first step, a 71,042 square-foot hotel with various facilities for business and leisure is planned to open this September.