Khalifa Port to witness AED 4 billion expansion to boost handling capacity

• Investment worth AED 2.2 billion will be made to develop South Quay and Khalifa Port Logistics
• AED 1.6 billion to be allocated for the expansion at Abu Dhabi Terminals
• Both projects expected to create over 2,800 direct and indirect jobs

Abu Dhabi Ports has announced expansion plans worth AED 4 billion at its flagship Khalifa Port, seven years after it first opened.

Aimed at boosting handling capacity, the two new projects will create more than 2,800 direct and indirect jobs and contribute more than AED 3.2 billion to Abu Dhabi’s gross domestic product by 2025.

An investment worth AED 2.2 billion will be made to develop South Quay and Khalifa Port Logistics whilst AED 1.6 billion will be allocated for the expansion at Abu Dhabi Terminals.

The South Quay development comprises a 3 km quay-wall with 18.5 metres alongside draft for general cargo, ro-ro and bulk usage. It will also include eight berths and 1.3 million sq m of the terminal yard. The Khalifa Logistics expansion will encompass a 3.1 km quay wall with an 8-metre draft, 15 berths and land plots.

Phase 1 of the South Quay expansion will be completed by Q4 2020, whilst phase 2 and the Khalifa Logistics expansion will be completed in Q1 2021.

Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, Group CEO of Abu Dhabi Ports, said: “As global trade volumes increase over time, the world’s leading port operators must think decades ahead in their planning and execution. Through strategic collaboration with partners and top industry players… Khalifa Port is developing sustainably and has become one of the fastest-growing ports in the world.”

Speaking about the handling capacity, Jakob Larsen, Chief Commercial Officer of Abu Dhabi Terminals, said: “Annually our handling capacity is 2.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU). We will grow our capacity to five million TEU by the end of 2020, which is happening through an investment of AED 1.6 billion that has already been put in place.”

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