The port terminals division of the Swiss Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), Terminal Investment Ltd Sàrl (TIL) is the only bidder that has presented an offer for the concession to develop and operate a new container terminal project (CT4) in the Port of Valencia in Spain.

MSC, which is the largest client of the Port Authority of Valencia already has a terminal on its docks, although of a private nature (it can only operate its own ships or its consortiums). This terminal is the smallest of the three current ones.

The EUR1.2 billion (US$1.34 billion) port project would require the concessionaire to contribute up to EUR800 million (US$899 million) depending on the operating area opted for, with a maximum of almost two kilometers of dock berth and up to 1.4 million square meters. The remaining contribution will be provided by the port authority. The length of the concession depends on the offer by the company, it is set to 35 years with the option to extend it to 50 years.

MSC is yet to disclose to the public the details of the proposal but if the company opts to maximize the operating area, the new port will be designed to accommodate up to 5M twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU). 

The port authority (APV) will be responsible for the deepening of the draft within the terminal to 20m and in the fairway to 22.5m. It will also be responsible for infill work, involving the creation of a new dike and the demolition of an existing counter-dike, the latter built in 2012 at a cost of EUR200 million (US$225 million). APV will also provide all the necessary road and rail connections.

The new terminal project is expected to commence the partial or semi-automated operation by 2024. 

With the new terminal, the Port of Valencia aims to place its traffic near the major ports of Europe, located in the North Atlantic: Rotterdam, Antwerp and Hamburg.