The newly established Fujairah Terminals, under the management of Abu Dhabi Ports, welcomed its first container feeder vessel, the Dubai Alliance. This is the first ship to arrive at the terminal, which is wholly owned by Abu Dhabi Ports, the master developer, operator and manager of commercial and community ports within the emirate of Abu Dhabi, Fujairah Port and Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD), following the signing of a concession agreement with the Port of Fujairah in June this year.

Following the signing of the 35-year concession agreement with the Fujairah Port, that granted Abu Dhabi Ports exclusive rights to develop port infrastructure and undertake operations for containers, general cargo, RoRo and cruise ships, Fujairah Terminals was established and took over management of the terminals from Fujairah Port Authority from August 1.

On the occasion, Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi,CEO of Abu Dhabi Ports, commented: "We are marking the beginning of a new era for both Abu Dhabi Ports and the Port of Fujairah under the new management of Fujairah Terminals. The investment in port infrastructure will go a long way to strengthening development and operation of ports and terminals across the UAE and its contribution to the growth of a diversified, knowledge-based economy highlighting Fujairah’s strategic role in the UAE’s maritime and trade growth, bringing about a marked increase in vessel calls, such as the Dubai Alliance and many more to come."

Dubai Alliance is a vessel under Star Feeders LLC, a specialist short-sea common carrier container feeder service that operates a feeder network between UAE ports. The ship called at Fujairah Terminals to deliver a container for local industries and to receive containers for onward shipments.

Upa Jayalth, General Manager for Operations at Star Feeder LLC and Nirmil Perara, General Manager for Sales and Marketing at Star Feeders LLC, met with Fujairah Terminals General Manager, Naser AlBusaeedi, to express their support and commitment to working with the newly established Fujairah Terminals.

On the occasion AlBusaeedi said: "Through the planned infrastructure investment and sharing of best practices by Abu Dhabi Ports, we are confident we are embarking on a new journey that will bring about a positive outlook for the port and the emirate of Fujairah as a whole. Using our experience and best practices gained from managing and running major ports like Zayed and Khalifa Ports, we intend to bring these valuable learnings to Fujairah Terminals and use existing commercial and business synergies to increase our value offering to our customers and simultaneously boost efficient trade".

Under the agreement with the Port of Fujairah, Abu Dhabi Ports is granted the exclusivity to enhance existing infrastructure in addition to managing all Container, General Cargo, RoRo and Cruise Ships in the Port. In addition, the company will retain the exclusive management of Container Business throughout the emirate of Fujairah for Container business.

Further terms of the agreement include enhancing the Ports ability to cater to larger vessels through the deepening of berths and building almost 300,000 sqm yard of storage space, as well as a 1km quay. Abu Dhabi Ports will also invest in new and advanced technological equipment to increase operational efficiencies and services.

Fujairah Terminals is expected to play a complementary role in maritime shipping activities at Khalifa Port and Zayed Port.

Source: Wam