KING ABDULLAH PORT THROUGHPUT INCREASES BY 14% IN FIRST HALF OF 2017

Hameedadin: First half results confirm the success and achievements of King Abdullah Port

King Abdullah Economic City, August 2017

King Abdullah Port announced the increase of its throughput to 821,694 TEU in the first half of 2017, representing an increase of around 14% compared to the same time last year, where the throughput was 720,483 TEU. The port also announced an increase in the number of vessels received during the same period, reaching 398 vessels compared to 349 in the first half of 2016, also representing a 14% increase.

In its report on the merchandise exports and imports of the Kingdom, the General Authority for Statistics revealed that the imports of King Abdullah Port increased by 60.7% in May 2017, increasing the value of imports to SR1,277 million compared to SR795 million in May 2016.

“These numbers clearly indicate the success of King Abdullah Port as the latest infrastructure megaproject in the Middle East,” said Eng. Abdullah M. Hameedadin, Managing Director of the Ports Development Company, owner and developer of King Abdullah Port. He continued: “King Abdullah Port is built according to state-of-the-art specifications and is designed and executed to cope with the Kingdom’s commercial and economic growth in the coming decades. With its advanced equipment and impressive numbers, the port is able to effectively contribute to the Kingdom’s prosperity and revival, fulfilling its desired role in contributing to the realization of Vision 2030.”

Hameedadin continued, “We are cooperating with all relevant entities to support the port’s progress and finalize all its facilities. For example, we recently announced the completion of building and equipping the central operating room for monitoring and linking together the x-ray customs inspection systems in the port. In addition, we also covered all customs inspection areas with a wireless network utilizing the latest global technology.”

“The project was successfully delivered to the Saudi Customs at King Abdullah Port, making the port a pioneer in equipping the central operations center and activating the 24-hour container inspection initiative,” he concluded.

In its report on the world’s top 100 container ports published in the first quarter of 2017, Alphaliner, the world’s leading port data analysis company, announced that King Abdullah Port made its way to the list in 98^th place after increasing its annual throughput by around 8%, from 1.3 million TEU in 2015 to 1.4 million TEU in 2016.

King Abdullah Port is the first privately owned, developed and operated commercial port in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is characterized by its strategic location, integrated services, state-of-the-art technology and utilization of local and international experts in order to provide the best services. The port has been listed as one of the world’s largest maritime shipping destinations, with a development plan moving at a steady pace and a clear vision to become one of the top ports worldwide.

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About King Abdullah Port

Strategically located on the Red Sea coast on one of the world’s busiest maritime shipping lanes and with direct access to extensive transportation networks and urban centers, King Abdullah Port is the first fully privately owned, developed and operated commercial port in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

King Abdullah Port occupies a total area of 15 square kilometers and enjoys close proximity to King Abdullah Economic City’s Industrial Valley and the bonded zone. The port makes an increasingly important contribution to the Kingdom’s regional and global role in trade, logistics and shipping. Once fully built, King Abdullah Port will be able to handle 20 million containers (TEU), 1.5 million vehicles (CEU) and 15 million tons of clean bulk cargo every year.

With state-of-the-art processing facilities, the world’s deepest 18-meter water berths, expanding roll-on/roll-off operations, and a fully-integrated Port Community System, King Abdullah Port is capable of receiving today’s diverse mega cargo ships, fulfilling the growing needs of the young and fast-growing population of the Kingdom and the region.

King Abdullah Port is testament to the important role of the private sector in realizing Saudi Vision 2030 and is well on its way to meeting its goal of becoming one of the top ports worldwide.

Now that the Saudi Vision 2030 and the national transformation program have been starting the implementation process, the objectives of which include turning the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia into a regional and global hub for trade and industry and a strategic commercial corridor that connects three continents, with the aim being to bring about a vigorous national economy based on diversity and the full utilization of the Kingdom’s economic resources and commercial capabilities for the benefit of comprehensive development, the role of King Abdullah Port, the first port ever to be fully owned and developed by the private sector in the Kingdom and Middle East, as a major driver of these efforts, cannot be understated.

According to many economists and experts, the vital role King Abdullah Port expected to play is perfectly in line with the post-petroleum vision of HRH Prince Mohammad bin Salman, Deputy Crown Prince, Second Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense. This is especially true as the Kingdom upholds its status as a key player in the global economic arena as part of the G20, which includes 19 countries plus the European Union.

As an outlet for exports and a primary gateway to new markets, King Abdullah Port not only enhances the trade capabilities and boosts commercial exchange between the Kingdom and global markets, but also invigorates the freight transport industry, which will help the Kingdom regain its fair share of imports by bringing them back to Saudi shores, in lieu of having to use the ports of neighboring countries.

“There are plenty of aspects that set King Abdullah Port apart from others in the region, on top of which is its strategic location,” says Abdullah Hameedadin, Managing Director of the Ports Development Company. “Some 20% to 25% of the world’s non-petroleum trade passes through the Red Sea, which translates into about 730 million tonnes of freight on more than 11,000 vessels having passed through the Suez Canal in 2015.

“Given these astounding figures, King Abdullah Port’s strategic location in the Red Sea is bound to make it the premier gateway for goods into Saudi Arabia and the emerging markets of neighboring countries, and a hub for the transshipment industry in Middle Eastern ports and beyond.”

As to the port’s current and future role and how it fits in with the Saudi Vision 2030, Hameedadin adds that King Abdullah Port offers its services in a region that enjoys brisk growth in its population, with the resulting corresponding growth in the consumption of all kinds of products.

“King Abdullah Port also provides invaluable support to the export industry, thanks to its proximity to industrial and manufacturing facilities in King Abdullah Economic City’s Industrial Valley, and to Rabigh, which is home to such major corporations as its namesake Petro Rabigh, as well as to Yanbu, Jeddah, and Al Madinah, where many industries seek opportunities to establish global reach. For all these reasons and more, King Abdullah Port is an invaluable asset, not only for the Kingdom, but the entire region.”

Besides its prime location, another aspect that sets King Abdullah Port apart is the state-of-the-art technologies employed to operate it. As the smart gate system is set to be brought online in the fourth quarter of 2016, King Abdullah Port’s management system revolves around an e-platform that brings together all stakeholders based on their needs to execute or get information about various operations.

King Abdullah Port also utilizes a modern, advanced transport network, designed to carry out all loading, unloading and transportation of goods quickly and efficiently. The port’s proximity and access to the Kingdom’s road network facilitates the smooth, efficient and timesaving transportation of goods to where they need to go.

All of these advantages, in addition to modern facilities and long, 18-meter-deep berths, will contribute to King Abdullah Port’s role as a powerhouse of the Saudi economy and a driver of growth as a catalyst for business.

The cooperation between King Abdullah Port and all supporting government agencies, such as ministries, security agencies, and institutions, is wide and deep. Their support was indispensable in helping the port achieve multiple successes and record-breaking operational levels. The public-private collaboration is key to the success of efforts to achieve diversification of investments and the enablement of the national economy. The relationship between King Abdullah Port and those agencies is one of symbiosis that aims to achieve the greater good of public interest. The Economic Cities Authority is a vital strategic enabler of the port’s operations, thanks to its role in attracting business to this industrial and commercial center, made all the more robust with KAEC and the Industrial Valley working together as an integral system.

King Abdullah Port and the Saudi Ports Authority enjoy a great working relationship. Initiatives of cooperation between the two sides strengthen integration in the Saudi ports system, working together to meet the growing activity in both imports and exports, which in turn helps meet the needs of major projects across the Kingdom and bolster business and commerce.

King Abdullah Port has made great strides in a relatively short time. Operationally, Berth 4 was opened in May 2015, right on schedule, raising the port’s capacity to around three million TEU. Constructed and brought online in record time, it was equipped with modern cranes with a capacity of 65 t each, and a reach of 25 containers. Bringing Berth 4 online was vastly instrumental in boosting King Abdullah Port’s TEU throughput in 2015. Operating with three berths for the first four months of the year and four berths for the remainder, the port handled 1.3 million TEU while in 2016 it has witnessed an increase of nearly 8% taking the annual throughput up to 1.4 million TEU.

2015 witnessed the signing of an agreement with NYK Group, one of the largest shipping companies in the world, to operate automotive RORO activities. The company’s first berth is expected to open by 2017, with a second to follow a year later, for a combined capacity of 600,000 vehicles a year.

By the end of 2016 the full infrastructural work of berths 5 & 6 has been completed and which will lift the port capacity to 4 million TEU a year.

The infrastructure works for Berth 5 and Berth 6 at King Abdullah Port are finished. The two berths are part of the port’s strategic expansion plan, which aims to significantly uprate the port’s capacity, thus boosting its standing in the maritime industry, both regionally and internationally.

“With the two new berths, the port’s annual capacity will rise to four million TEU as of the beginning of the first quarter of 2017,” said Eng. Abdullah Hameedadin, Managing Director of the Ports Development Company, the owner and developer of King Abdullah Port.

“This will extend the port’s reach to the most important trade hubs in the region and the world, solidifying the roles of the private sector in general, and King Abdullah Port in particular, in achieving Vision 2030.”

Last year, King Abdullah Port’s annual throughput rose to 1.27 million TEU, making it the fastest growing port in the world according to a study recently conducted on over 120 container ports worldwide. This figure is expected to continue rising despite the challenges faced by the market and a slowing down of global economic growth. Moreover, the port’s annual capacity had risen by 25% to reach about four million.

The management of King Abdullah Port expects to finalize the first phase of bulk cargo terminals with a capacity of three million tons, in addition to the RORO (roll-on/roll-off) terminals with a capacity of 300,000 CEU by the beginning of 2017. This comes specifically after announcing the strategic move of signing an SAR 2.7 billion financial agreement with both SABB and ANB, which reflects the banking sector’s trust in King Abdullah Port.

Run by the Ports Development Company, King Abdullah Port is the Kingdom’s first port to be fully owned, developed and operated by the private sector. With its strategic location and state-of-the-art technologies, all managed by national and global experts who strive to offer the best possible services, King Abdullah Port has earned its place at the heart of the world’s major shipping lines, all within a solid plan that will bring to reality its vision of becoming one of the largest ports in the world.