Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) has signed a QR1.6 billion ($439.46 million) financing deal with AlJaber Engineering (JEC) to fund the strategic food security facilities and warehouses project at Hamad Port, Qatar.

The agreement was signed at QIB’s headquarters by Bassel Gamal, QIB Group CEO, and Osama Hadid, JEC chief executive officer, said a Gulf Times report.

The New Port Project (NPP) Steering Committee had in July awarded the contract to design and construct the project to JEC at a cost of QR1.6 billion ($439.46 million).

The project will be developed on an area of approximately 53 hectares (about 530,000 sq m). It consists of specialised facilities for the processing, manufacturing and refining of rice, raw sugar and edible oils. These products will be available for local, regional and global use, said a JEC statement.

The project also includes bulk storage silos with their associated infrastructure and conveyance equipment, in addition to the fundamental structures fully equipped for operations of handling, processing, packaging, reloading and transport.

The project will also be a specialised facility for the recycling of waste products arising from the processing of basic commodities to create regulatory-compliant animal feed and food stocks.

Those facilities will operate as a fully functional standalone terminal, while 500 m of the wharf of the port will be dedicated for the berthing and discharging of the ships of this new project.

Gamal said: “QIB provides Shariah-compliant banking solutions, which are customised to fully address the sophisticated and evolving needs of our corporate customers. As an active contributor to the country’s economy growth, we are proud to finance JEC’s food security facilities project, which is of strategic importance to the country, and all the people who live and work in it.”

Hadid said: "As the main contractor of the project, AlJaber Engineering will be responsible for the design and construction of the complete facility. We will cooperate with a number of specialised international companies for the design and supply of the required equipment."