Going multimodal
Three visions are slowly but surely becoming a new reality in the emirate of Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates). The railways, formerly a bit of a wallflower in the country, are now becoming an essential element of economic and social development.
Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed Al Nahyan, the chairman of the transport department of the emirate’s executive authority, recently inspected progress on the construction of Abu Dhabi’s maritime traffic control centre in the port of Khalifa. He simultaneously witnessed the signing of an agreement between Abu Dhabi Ports and Etihad Rail, the development and operating company of the UAE’s national railway. The agreement allows for the connection of the port of Khalifa to Etihad Rail’s growing network. Abu Dhabi Ports is the operator of the emirate’s public and commercial maritime gateways, of the Fujairah terminal and of the Khalifa industrial development zone.
Annual capacity for 2.4 million boxes
Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed Al Nahyan assumes that the measure will have a “positive influence on many national economic and social fields. More than half of all of the goods transported to and from the Gulf states already pass through the ports of the UAE today; thus connecting the hub to the railways will significantly increase its capacity and strengthen the position of Emirati ports as a leading global logistics and trade hub.”
The planned annual capacity of around 2.4 million boxes will make the Khalifa Rail Terminal the largest in the UAE, the sheikh added. He underlined the economic efficiency of future rail logistics processes by pointing out that a train will carry the load of 300 lorries.
Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, a minister of state in the United Arab Emirates who is also the chairman of Abu Dhabi Ports, linked the process to three of the nation’s specific governmental goals. The United Arab Emirates vision of supporting economic and social development after the oil age; the country’s ‘Vision 2021’; and Abu Dhabi’s ‘Economic Vision 2030’. More local, regional and international traffic and foreign investment is expected to increase the annual capacity of the port of Khalifa to 9.1 million teu over the next five years.
