The new, ultra-modern Khalifa Port in Abu Dhabi began commercial operations in September 2012. The container traffic was transferred to the new port two months ahead of schedule.
Konecranes was the main supplier of automated container handling equipment including 30 Konecranes automated stacking cranes (ASCs), a Terminal Operating System (TOS) and automation sub-systems. Khalifa Port is a central pillar of the Emirate’s hugely ambitious long-range plan for economic growth and diversification. It is Abu Dhabi’s largest infrastructure investment in
recent years.
Khalifa Port is part of Abu Dhabi’s Kizad Industrial Zone which, in the next few years, will rise from the desert to employ some 100,000 people. The Emirate is attracting companies to invest there with bold plans for clustering different industries into common zones with supply and export routes provided by the new Khalifa Port. The overriding ambition is to transform Abu Dhabi into the logistics center of the Middle East, with Khalifa Port acting as the gateway to the entire region. To date, some 50 businesses have committed to relocating to the Kizad Industrial Zone including Emirates Aluminium, the owner of the world’s largest complex of aluminum smelters.
A flying start
Khalifa Port is owned by Abu Dhabi Ports Company (ADPC), a wholly owned entity of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. The port operator is Abu Dhabi Terminals (ADT). When the first phase of Khalifa Port construction is complete, the container terminal will be able to handle 2.5 million TEUs, the equivalent of 2.5 million 20-foot containers, every year. “We have got off to a flying start,” says Technical Project Manager Angelo de Jong from ADT.
“Ship traffic has increased dramatically in the space of a few months.” With its 16-meter draft, 4-kilometer quay wall and Konecranes automated container handling technology, the port can easily accommodate the world’s largest container ships.”
Khalifa Port will be built in five phases
A railway link will open in 2016. By 2018, the port’s capacity will reach 5 million TEUs, rising to 15 million TEUs by 2030. The capacity will be needed. Abu Dhabi’s GDP is growing at an annual rate of 6–7 percent, fueled by strongly growing trade with the Gulf states. Thanks in no small part to its excellent delivery performance so far, Konecranes has been awarded another contract for 12 more automated stacking cranes. Deliveries will take place in the fourth quarter of 2013 and the first quarter of 2014.
The Middle East has been an important market for Konecranes for a number of years. Khalifa Port is one of the most advanced container ports in the world today in terms of both technology and operating methodology. The Konecranes automated stacking cranes are field-proven, high-productivity machines with a lifting capacity of 40 tons. They can stack one-over-five containers high, nine container rows wide, and feature Konecranes’ patented Active Load Control (ALC) technology. The delivery also included a Terminal Operating System (TOS) for realtime planning and control of the terminal.
