Maldives Ports Limited (MPL) has announced it was considering to relocate Male’ Commercial Harbor to Thilafushi, as per the original plan, instead of Gulhifalhu.
The commercial harbor’s relocation into the industrial island, or away from Male’ City have been initiatives of the previous two governments, which however did not materialize into any tangible progress.
In 2013, the government at the time made the decision to relocate the harbor to Thilafushi, the main industrial island in the region. The succeeding government however, altered the plan and decided to shift the harbor to Gulhifalhu for which reclamation of 192 hectares of land commenced.
The new administration, led by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, has prioritized relocation of the harbor, which it had included in the roadmap for the first 100-day objectives.
Mohamed Wajeeh Ibrahim, the new CEO of MPL said that the development of an international port is the most crucial project in terms of the company’s expansion. Wajeeh added discussions were underway within the government to commence the field work.
Wajeeh further pointed out that several of the harbor’s operations are already established in Thilafushi, and highlighted the ideal nature of shifting the commercial harbor to the island.