ABU DHABI: Abu Dhabi Ports, the master developer, operator and manager of the ports and Khalifa Industrial Zone, has reported a 77 percent jump in net profit in the first half of 2016. The company said it 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. Since January, Abu Dhabi Ports said it has also seen a 20 percent revenue growth compared to H1 2015 figures.
At the Khalifa Port Container Terminal (KPCT), which is operated by Abu Dhabi Terminals, container volumes increased by 11 percent in the first half of the year, the company said in a statement. Bolstered by rapid growth in polymer exports and transhipment activity across the Gulf, 699,776 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) were handled in the first six months of 2016, up from 629,941 TEUs in the same period of 2015.
The amount of new land leased in Khalifa Industrial Zone is over 1.5 million square metres, 50 percent up on this time last year, the company added. Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, CEO 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.” Over the past six months, Abu Dhabi Ports has also successfully completed the first cruise season from the new cruise terminal with 184,815 passengers representing an increase of 49 percent on this time last year.
