RIYADH: The Saudi Ports Authority, known as Mawani, has partnered with the international shipping and logistics company CMA CGM Group to build an integrated logistics platform at the Jeddah Islamic Port at a cost of $130 million. "This project which includes a $130 million investment over the span of 20 years to strengthen the CMA CGM Group’s presence in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the whole region," CMA said in a.joint statement. The 130,000-square-meters facility aims to develop an efficient sector-wide logistics mechanism and boost the Kingdom’s profile as a global logistics hub connecting three continents. It will create over 150 direct and hundreds of indirect jobs in the logistics sector, said the statement issued on Monday. “It adds further momentum to our aspirations in building a booming and sustainable maritime sector, achieving the socioeconomic ambitions listed out in Vision 2030 and offering world-class logistics services that can stimulate economic growth and enable strategic integration with the transportation ecosystem,” Mawani President Omar bin Talal Hariri said. As the Kingdom’s top import and export destination, Jeddah Islamic Port receives 75 percent of Saudi Arabia’s total inbound maritime trade and transhipments, with an annual capacity of 130 million tons.