DP World signs $760M Port of Caucedo expansion deal

DP World has signed a $760 million Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of the Dominican Republic to expand the Port of Caucedo and its Free Trade Zone.

The MoU, signed with the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and MSMES (MICM), initiates negotiations that is set to raise Caucedo’s container handling capacity from 2.5 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) to approximately 3.1 million TEUs, while unlocking 225 hectares of development-ready land for the Free Trade Zone. 

The new $760 million investment will be split evenly:

• $380 million for the port, including the expansion of the quay and breakwater to accommodate next-generation vessels and general cargo operations, new ship-to-shore cranes, yard equipment, advanced surveillance systems and security infrastructure, and upgrades to gates, roads and automation systems,
• $380 million for the Free Trade Zone, including a new road network, utilities, a commercial and marketing center to attract global tenants, and pre-built storage units.

DP World, which has operated in the Dominican Republic for over 25 years, currently manages both the marine terminal at the Port of Caucedo, and the adjacent 86-hectare Free Trade Zone Park.

Since 2003, the company has invested more than $700 million in its development, boosting capacity from 900,000 TEUs in 2003 to 2.5 million TEUs today through steady investment and modernization.