The rapid growth of maritime trade, increasing port competitiveness, and the strategic role of container terminals in the global supply chain have made the implementation of modern performance evaluation systems one of the most critical managerial requirements in the maritime transportation industry. In this context, the lack of a comprehensive, localized, and multi-criteria decision-making framework for evaluating the commercial performance of Iranian container terminals has emerged as a significant research and managerial gap. Accordingly, the present study aims to develop an integrated BSC–FAHP–ORESTE model for evaluating and ranking the commercial performance of container terminals in Iran.

In terms of purpose, this study is applied research, while methodologically it follows a descriptive-survey approach. In the first stage, performance evaluation dimensions and indicators were identified and localized using the Balanced Scorecard (BSC) approach based on the characteristics of the port industry and expert opinions from specialists in container terminal management and operations. Subsequently, the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) was employed to determine the relative importance and weights of the dimensions and indicators. In the next stage, the commercial performance of container terminals at Shahid Rajaee, Imam Khomeini, Bushehr, Khorramshahr, and Shahid Bahonar ports was evaluated and ranked using the ORESTE multi-criteria decision-making method. The statistical population consisted of 50 managers, experts, and specialists in the field of container terminal operations, and the required data were collected through specialized questionnaires.

The findings revealed that among the Balanced Scorecard dimensions, the financial dimension, with a weight of 0.292, had the highest importance in evaluating the commercial performance of container terminals. Furthermore, the criterion “profit increase,” with a weight of 0.306, was identified as the most significant evaluation indicator. The final ranking results based on the ORESTE method indicated that Shahid Rajaee container terminal achieved the highest commercial performance ranking with the lowest aggregated index value, followed respectively by Imam Khomeini, Bushehr, Khorramshahr, and Shahid Bahonar ports.

The results demonstrate that the proposed integrated model, by combining the strategic dimensions of the Balanced Scorecard with the analytical capabilities of FAHP and ORESTE methods, provides a highly effective framework for comprehensive commercial performance evaluation of container terminals. Moreover, the proposed model can serve as a strategic decision-support tool for improving managerial processes, optimizing resource allocation, enhancing port competitiveness, and developing performance-based policies in the maritime transportation industry.