His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, unveiled the expansion of the Port of Khalifa, a major development project with a total investment of 1.08 billion dollars. The expansion project includes the development of the south terminal of the port, Halifa Port Logistics and Abu Dhabi Terminal, with a total investment of 1.08 billion US dollars. The area of Halifa Port has increased from 2.43 square kilometers to 8.63 square kilometers, while the wharf wall has been significantly extended from 2.3 kilometers to 12.5 kilometers.

It now provides 21 berths and provides a series of customized services for key strategic industries, making it one of the world's elite deep-water ports, with an estimated value of 5.55 billion dollars. This plan will make a significant contribution to the goal of AD Port Group, that is, to increase the handling capacity of Halifa Port to 15 million TEUs per year and 25 million tons of ordinary cargo by 2030.

H.E. Falah Mohammed Al Ahbabi, Chairman of AD Port Group, and Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, Managing Director and CEO of AD Port Group, introduced to His Highness the major milestones of Halifa Port since its opening ten years ago, and reviewed the future plans of major ports in the region. A statement said that he also visited new and expanded facilities and logistics to serve import and export business.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed, member of the Executive Committee and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Office, His Excellency Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Tahnun Al Nahyan, Special Adviser to the Presidential Court, and His Excellency Dr. Sudan bin Ahmed Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, H.E. Mohammed Ali Sholafa, Chairman of the Ministry of Economic Development of Abu Dhabi, and some senior officials.

The official launch of the expansion plan by the President of the United Arab Emirates marks another important milestone in the year when AD Port Group was listed in the Abu Dhabi securities market, opened a new trade corridor, completed a series of major acquisitions, rapidly transformed its business and service portfolio, and established a strong relationship with existing and emerging trading partners of the United Arab Emirates.

The Port of Khalifa was officially inaugurated by the late Sheikh Khalifa on December 12, 2012. It was developed from a reclamation land four kilometers away. Now it is a major hub, providing services for more than 25 container shipping companies and directly connecting to more than 70 international destinations. In September, AD Port Group installed the first 90 ton block for the wharf wall of Khalifa Port, a new CMA wharf, which is an important milestone in the construction of the wharf. The port ranks among the top five in the global container port performance index developed by the World Bank and S&P Global Market Intelligence. At present, it has three of the world's four largest shipping operators, CSP COSCO, MSC and CMA CGM.

H.E. Falah Mohammed Al Ahbabi, Chairman of AD Ports Group, added that we are honored to welcome His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, to unveil the expansion of Khalifa Port, which is an important national project to support our wise leadership and position Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates at the forefront of global trade. Today, Halifa Port is one of the most advanced deep-water ports in the world. By continuing to expand our international operations, we commemorate those leaders who put us on the path of progress. Through our expertise and global attention, we continue to reach new heights and achieve outstanding results.

AD Port Group has become an important driving force of economic growth, contributing 41.6 billion US dollars to the GDP of the United Arab Emirates, accounting for 13% of the non oil GDP of the United Arab Emirates, and creating about 373500 jobs. It continues to attract foreign direct investment through the economic cities and industrial zones managed by KEZAD Group, and provides a wide range of digital services to achieve trade and transport.

Some major achievements in 2022 include a series of transformative acquisitions, including the acquisition of 70% of the shares of Egypt's Transmar and TCI, providing a market leading platform for the company's operations in the entire Red Sea and other regions; Holding 80% of the shares of Global Feeder Shipping will help it become one of the world's leading short distance shipping and regional shipping companies in the long term strategy; And the acquisition of Noatum, which will enable the company to establish a strong international logistics brand and take root in the region. The company also acquired several companies and announced a series of joint ventures to expand its maritime service portfolio and its global business, such as SAFEEN Invictus, Divertech, Alligator Shipping, ASCL and SAFEEN Survey and Subsea Services.

In addition, AD Ports Group has significantly increased its fleet to more than 175 ships, and expanded the scope of trade routes across most regions of the world, providing the highest level of connectivity between the Arabian Gulf, the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, East Africa and Central Asia. The result was record financial results - revenue of $399.1 million and net profit of $90.9 million in the third quarter of 2022 - and a significant improvement in the global image of the company and Abu Dhabi as major drivers of trade, industry and logistics.

Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, Managing Director and Group CEO of AD Ports Group, concluded: "We thank His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, for honoring us by launching the expansion of Khalifa Port. Our achievements throughout history have been made under the support and guidance of the leadership of the United Arab Emirates. Today, we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the founding of Khalifa Port and the 50th anniversary of Zayed Port in 2022, which is a year of organizational transformation because we have expanded our international influence and strengthened our Portfolio. We have developed from a local champion to a listed group with growing global influence. We will continue to expand and invest in the future and demonstrate our outstanding capabilities in the international market.Editor/Xing Wentao