Abu Dhabi Ports expects to tender the contracts for the infrastructure upgrade of Fujairah Port before the end of August.

The contract will also be awarded before the end of 2017, Mohamed Juma al-Shamisi, CEO of Abu Dhabi Ports, tells MEED.

Al-Shamisi said the Fujairah Port will strongly complement Abu Dhabi’s Khalifa Port due to its direct access to the Indian Ocean.

Abu Dhabi Ports recently signed a 35-year concession with the Port of Fujairah to develop and operate the port, which was previously managed by Dubai-based DP World.

Planned works on the terminal include deepening of berths to 16.5 metres to increase capacity and accommodate larger vessels as well as the development of a 1 kilometre quay. A 300,000 square metre yard of storage space will also be built.

The agreement grants Abu Dhabi Ports the right to develop the port’s infrastructure in addition to managing all container, general cargo, roll-on/roll-off (RORO) ships and cruise ships that call on the port.

According to Al-Shamisi, they expect to bring the container capacity of the Fujairah port to between 1 and 1.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) annually and increase the general cargo capacity to 700,000 to 800,000 tonnes annually.

He acknowledges strong competition in container handling across ports in the Gulf but notes that there is strong opportunity in terms if general cargo.

Future plans for Fujairah Port include the upgrade of its superstructures including the installation of gantry cranes and yard equipment, Al-Shamisi said.