Abu Dhabi Ports Group's nine-month revenue rises 22% in 2021

Abu Dhabi Ports Group, the operator of industrial cities and free zones in the emirate, reported a 22 per cent increase in revenue during the first nine months of the year on the back of volume growth, business diversification and new partnerships.

The company earned revenue of Dh2.791 billion ($760 million), compared with Dh2.295bn for the period ending September 30, 2020.

The port operator's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) rose 7 per cent to Dh1.161bn, compared with Dh1.081bn last year, on the back of growth across various business clusters.

“We reported solid results for the nine months ended September 30, 2021, due to continuing growth in our core businesses and incremental returns from new investments,” Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamsi, Abu Dhabi Ports’ chief executive, said in a statement on Saturday.

“We are well-positioned for sustained growth as the world economy recovers from the impact of the global pandemic and as we take an active role in helping to resolve global supply chain issues.”

Activity across ports and commercial hubs has picked up as global trade rebounds from the Covid-19 pandemic-induced slump last year. The volume of world merchandise trade, which fell 5.3 per cent in 2020, is now expected to grow 10.8 per cent in 2021, according to World Trade Organisation estimates.

General cargo volumes grew 68.18 per cent during the first nine months of the year to reach 37 million metric tonnes.

Container throughput, which is measured in 20-foot equivalent units, reached 2.47 million TEUs in the first nine months of the year, up from 2.42 million TEUs during the same period in 2020. The growth came despite the ongoing supply constraints faced in the global shipping and container market, the company said.

Abu Dhabi Ports also leased around 2.7 million square metres of land during the first nine months of the year.

“We are beginning to realise returns from our new investments, joint ventures and partnerships across feedering, offshore and transhipment services as well as from our expansion of logistics services,” Martin Aarup, chief financial officer at Abu Dhabi Ports, said.

“Our invested capital increased to Dh23bn in the first nine months of 2021, up from Dh19.9bn in the same period in 2020, in line with our ongoing expansion programme,” he added.

The company said operational highlights from the period included the signing of a concession agreement with France's CMA CGM Group in July 2021 to establish a new terminal in Khalifa Port.

Abu Dhabi Ports said it also signed a Heads of Terms agreement with Aqaba Development Corporation to build and operate a new cruise terminal at the Port of Aqaba, Jordan, the first of its kind in the country and the group's first cruise facility outside the UAE.

The ports operator signed a preliminary agreement with the General Company for Ports of Iraq (GCPI) to explore potential opportunities in the transportation and maritime sectors.

Part of one of the region’s largest holding companies, ADQ, Abu Dhabi Ports owns and manages 11 ports and terminals in the UAE and Guinea, including Khalifa Port, Zayed Port, Musaffah Port, Fujairah Terminals, Community Ports, Kamsar Port and Abu Dhabi Cruise Terminal.

It operates more than 550 square kilometres of industrial zones within Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (Kizad) and ZonesCorp, the largest integrated trade, logistics and industrial business grouping in the Middle East.