The first step has been taken into making King Abdullah Economic City’s (KAEC) seaport one of the top 10 in the world by having global marine terminals operator DP World involved in its development and operations.

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between Emaar, The Economic City (Emaar.EC), the Tadawul-listed company developing KAEC, and DP World which puts the project on its way.
One of the six key components of the 168 million sq m KAEC, the port is aimed to be the largest on the Red Sea and one of the top 10 in the world with a capacity to handle 20 million teu. A multipurpose cargo terminal is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2010 while a 1.6 million teu container terminal will be commissioned by mid-2011 after which the capacity of the port will be increased in several phases. In addition to creating 15,000 direct and indirect jobs, the port is expected to contribute an average SR10 billion ($2.6 billion) to the kingdom’s GDP annually, on completion of all phases.
Amr Al-Dabbagh, Governor, Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (Sagia), commented: “Sagia is committed to the kingdom’s vision to make the Saudi economy one of the top 10 competitive economies in the world by the turn of this decade.
“Towards that end, we encourage major local, regional and international companies to invest in the infrastructure and augment investment in high-growth strategic sectors, most importantly the transport sector, and thus enhance the competitiveness of these sectors, which contribute to overall economic development.”
Al-Dabbagh stressed that the KAEC port was the first port in the kingdom to be completely financed by the private sector.
“Seaports play a key role in shaping a country’s growth, and the agreement between Emaar.EC and DP World is an important step in developing KAEC within the desired timeframe. We believe that the seaport at KAEC will catalyse regional and international investment to KAEC, and make a substantial contribution to the GDP, in addition to creating direct and indirect job opportunities for Saudi youth,” the official added.
Mohamed Ali Alabbar, chairman, Emaar.EC, said the port’s strategic location on the Red Sea would create a regional logistics hub that would further stimulate the Saudi economy through new jobs and investment opportunities. 
“The port is stationed on one of the largest and busiest shipping routes in the world, and will offer an integrated transportation system to deliver cargo seamlessly to various destinations – within the region and internationally,” Alabbar said.
Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, chairman, Dubai World and DP World, welcomed DP World’s opportunity to bring its global expertise in developing and operating ports to the pioneering Saudi development.
“Our ports are a vital link in the global supply chain, enhancing efficiency and the growth of economies in the communities in which we operate. We look forward to working with Emaar.E.C and Sagia in the coming months to explore the next steps in creating a KAEC sea port of the highest international standards and connected to markets around the world.”
Extending over 14 sq km, the KAEC port will be equipped to receive new-generation mega-vessels with a nominal capacity of around 10,000 teu and more. It will utilise global positioning technologies, advanced information management systems and automated processes.
 Fahd Al-Rasheed, CEO, Emaar.EC, said the port would provide a qualitative and quantitative leap to the marine transportation and logistic services sector of Saudi Arabia, boosting the kingdom’s global competitive advantage.
“Logistics is one of the fastest growing sectors, and creating a world-class port is an important part of building a robust economic environment. After intensive studies and negotiations, we chose DP World, which is one of the fastest-growing and well-established port operators with a breadth of international port development and management expertise. Our partnership with DP World reiterates our commitment to work with the best and offer world-class standards to our clients.”
DP World is currently the fourth largest port operator in the world and has a portfolio of 43 terminals and 13 new developments across 28 countries. It has established expertise in designing, building and operating ports in developed and developing countries. A team of over 30,000 professionals serves the customers of DP World, which also provides logistics, infrastructure development and consultancy services.
The KAEC port will contribute to the total transportation and port network of Saudi Arabia and seek to capitalise on the untapped opportunities by leveraging on its strategic location on the Red Sea, which is one of the most important sea routes between East and West. The port will be integrated with the Industrial Zone and logistics hub to provide a seamless logistics operation within KAEC that will further promote regional trade.
KAEC has six zones, namely the port, Industrial Zone, Central Business District (including financial district), Educational Zone, Resort District and Residential Communities. Work is progressing on schedule on the first phase of the project including the port, Industrial Zone, Resort District and Residential Communities.
Al-Rasheed and Mohammed Al-Muallem senior vice president and managing director, DP World UAE region, signed the MoU.  Present at the signing ceremony were the Saudi Minister of Transport Dr Jubarah Al-Suraisiri, Al-Dabbagh, Alabbar and Bin Sulayem.