Arab News, Sun, Mar 24, 2024 | Ramadan 14, 1445
Saudi Arabia boosts its maritime connectivity with India
Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Arabia’s King Abdulaziz Port has strengthened connections to India’s
nautical hubs thanks to increased cooperation between two Gulf maritime bodies.
The Saudi Ports Authority announced that Safeen
Co., a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Ports Group, has added the Dammam facility to
its new UAE-India-Gulf service — a maritime trade route connecting India and the
wider Arabian region.
The passage serves as a vital artery for the
transportation of goods and commodities between these key economic centers. It
supports trade flows, facilitates supply chains, and contributes significantly
to the economic growth and development of the areas it connects.
In a statement, the Saudi authority, also known as
Mawani, said the new shipping service links the Kingdom with six regional and
international seaports. These include the Indian ports of Mundra, Kandla, and
Nhava Sheva, along with Iraq’s Umm Qasr Port, Qatar’s Hamad Port, and the UAE’s
Abu Dhabi Port, with a shipping capacity of 3,700 standard containers.
It was also noted that this initiative promises to
boost the movement of exports and imports to and from the Saudi harbor, aligning
with its vision for reliable and efficient operations and a firm commitment to
safety and sustainability.
Mawani added that this comes as part of its
efforts aimed at improving the connectivity index of the maritime navigation
network with global shipping lines, enhancing the competitiveness of ports, and
increasing its connectivity with ports east and westward.
It further noted that the move aligns with the
objectives of the National Strategy for Transportation and Logistics Services
aiming to position the Kingdom as a global logistics hub connecting the three
continents of Asia, Africa and Europe.
The port authority noted that the King Abdulaziz
Port in Dammam witnessed the addition of 12 maritime shipping services during
the year 2023, confirming its ability to provide world-class maritime services
to regional and international customers, as an integrated trade gateway
connecting the Kingdom to the world, through 43 berths with a total capacity of
105 million tons.
On March 13, Mawani announced that the ports it
oversees have recorded a growth in the statistics of imported containers by
16.88 percent, reaching 266,672 TEUs, compared to 193,937 TEUs in 2023.
It added that these ports also witnessed a 1.44
percent increase in cargo throughput tonnage during February 2024, handling
23,381,835 tons compared to 23,049,373 tons in February 2023.
This increase, it further said, reflects the
significant efforts made to develop the infrastructure of the ports and provide
the highest quality of logistical services.