ABU DHABI: Abu Dhabi Ports, the master developer, operator and manager of the ports and the Khalifa Industrial Zone in the UAE emirate, recorded double digit growth in the first half of 2016 with positive results in all areas of its operation.
The company has experienced continuous growth as the UAE’s maritime trade hub with major growth across general and bulk cargo, container volumes and Roll-on/Roll-off (RoRo) traffic, it said. Since Jan 2016, Abu Dhabi Ports witnessed an impressive 77 per cent jump in net profit and 20 per cent revenue growth while the EBITDA margin exceeded 40 per cent, reflecting a 15 per cent increase compared to H1 2015 figures, it said.
At the Khalifa Port Container Terminal (KPCT), which is operated by Abu Dhabi Terminals, container volumes increased 11 per cent in the first half of the year. Bolstered by rapid growth in polymer exports and transhipment activity across the Gulf, 699,776 TEUs were handled in the first six months of 2016, up from 629,941 TEUs in the same period of 2015.
Building on the infrastructure of Abu Dhabi to keep abreast with its economic growth, Abu Dhabi Ports successfully completed the implementation of the Terminal Operating System (TOS) in Zayed and Musaffah Ports. TOS is a database providing bookings, detailed tracking for containers and Gate Transaction tracking. Increasing the attractiveness of the ports to both sea- and land-based users, TOS acts as an integrated business platform with physical and technological infrastructure and processes.
The RoRo offering saw new levels of productivity with a record average of 206 cars handled per hour in April 2016 alone, an important boost for the automotive industry in the UAE and the region, demonstrating the growth of Abu Dhabi as a logistics hub for this industry. During the first half of 2016, Abu Dhabi Ports enjoyed an increase in RoRo volumes of 4 per cent compared with the same period in 2015, with 58,000 vehicles passing through the ports so far in 2016.
The amount of new land leased in Khalifa Industrial Zone is over 1.5 million sq m, 50 per cent up on this time last year. Industries in Khalifa Industrial Zone continued to expand with 82 standard Musataha agreements (SMAs), at an investment amount of over Dh 40 billion ($10.89 billion) to date.
The area has now leased 14.5 million sq m of land, 1.9 million sq m of which is leased in the trade and logistics zone. There has also been a 17 per cent year-on-year increase in the number of investors from 2011, with a value exceeding Dh22 billion. Ten facilities in logistics, warehousing, food, printing and packaging, aluminium, workshops, repairs and mixed use are already operational, while 13 more will be operational by December 31, 2016.
Since the beginning of 2016, the container business has seen the addition of new liner calls, providing added regional connections, primarily to the Indian Subcontinent, to support the transshipment business for the KPCT. Moreover, Admiral Group started its feeder services in the Gulf area along with TDS, furthering the momentum. Despite a bleak outlook for world trade, the January to June 2016 volumes grew by 11 per cent over the same period in 2015. Bay Lines has also started serving KPCT area, positioning Abu Dhabi as a key enabling link to Indian subcontinental trade, and a major contributor to world trade.
Capt. Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, chief executive officer of Abu Dhabi Ports, said: “These results demonstrate the crucial role that Abu Dhabi Ports plays as a UAE’s regional and increasingly global maritime trade hub, especially for those seeking to access the $7.8 trillion Middle East, Africa and South Asian region. We continue to invest and upgrade our offerings and facilities to support fast, inter-connected and efficient supply chains while also reaffirming Abu Dhabi’s position as a centre of excellence in maritime trade. “The positive role played by Abu Dhabi Ports’ suppliers, partners and employees is at the heart of this growth, in line with the wise vision of the UAE leadership, the Abu Dhabi Plan and Economic Vision 2030,” he said.
Over the past six months, Abu Dhabi Ports has also successfully completed the first cruise season from the new state-of-the-art Cruise Terminal and signed multiple retail agreements with various goods and services providers to achieve a 100 per cent retail occupancy. The 184,815 cruise passengers recorded at the terminal represents an increase of 49 per cent on this time last year, resulting in a 16 per cent year-on-year growth from the 2015 season.
