zoomImage Courtesy: ADT

Khalifa Port Container Terminal, managed and operated by Abu Dhabi Terminals (ADT), is ready for the next phase of expansion, according to its operator.

Abu Dhabi’s main container port has reached 78% of its handling capacity and in the next two years Abu Dhabi Terminals plans to enhance its operational readiness through infrastructural development to meet the expected growth of the local and regional industry.

As informed, new equipment is scheduled to be added in 2016 and 2017 to keep up with demand for services.

To that effect, three additional Ship-to-Shore (STS) gantry cranes and 10 Automated Rail Mounted Gantry (ARMG) cranes will be added to increase the terminal’s annual capacity and satisfy the future demand and volume growth potential.

The terminal’s operator projects that the annual throughput at Abu Dhabi’s container port would grow to 2.5 million TEUs at the completion of this phase of expansion. The facility has future expansion capabilities to grow its annual throughput capacity to 5 million TEU.

2015 has proven to be another good year for Abu Dhabi Terminals; it’s forecast that a total of 1.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) containers have been handled at Khalifa Port Container Terminal in 2015, up from 1.14 million in 2014.

“Khalifa Port Container Terminal is now firmly on the world map as a key logistics hub which has been achieved through becoming an industry partner for our customers, as well as demonstrating that Khalifa Port offers a cost-effective, fast and reliable alternative to regional ports. We have also significantly developed our network, going from an initial five to a current 50 international destinations,” Martijn van de Linde, Abu Dhabi Terminals’ Chief Executive Officer said.

According to ADT, in three years of operation, traffic through Khalifa Port Container Terminal has grown at the fastest pace of any container terminal in the Middle East, experiencing double-digit yearly growth and doubling the volume of containers handled.