The Jebel Ali port has ranked among the top 10 list of the world’s largest ports, according to the latest container ports’ rankings from Lloyd’s List, Containerisation International and The Journal of Commerce.

It has been ranked ninth in the world and is the only port outside of the Far East, with seven other ports in China and the other two in Singapore and Pusan, South Korea.

DP World chairman Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem credits it to Dubai’s visionary leadership in creating the infrastructure and the business environment to drive continuous growth.

“Jebel Ali has consistently maintained its Top Ten ranking since 1997 thanks to Dubai and the UAE’s position as the centre for trade in the region, which our port has supported and driven with constant investment in infrastructure to stay ahead of demand,” said Sulayem.

“We remain committed to investing in the infrastructure and capabilities of our facility and our people at Jebel Ali to continue to grow and contribute to the further expansion and development of Dubai and the UAE, in cooperation with our customers, partners and our employees.”

Mohammed Sharaf, group chief executive officer, DP World, said: “The distinguished performance by our UAE region team has helped us maintain our leadership ranking and has made Jebel Ali stand out among its peers. Its excellent performance has allowed Jebel Ali to also maintain the Best Seaport – Middle East title for the 20th year in a row.

“It is raising the bar again with the forthcoming opening of the new Container Terminal 3 which will be the world’s largest semi-automated facility featuring state-of-the-art remotely controlled cranes.”

Last year, Jebel Ali added one million TEU capacity to its Container Terminal 2, and Container Terminal 3 (T3) currently under construction will add an additional four million TEU capacity, taking total capacity at Jebel Ali to 19 million TEU next year, said a statement.

T3 is set to be the world’s most advanced maritime terminal, featuring 19 of the largest, most advanced and semi-automated ship to shore (STS) quay cranes and 50 fully automated rail mounted gantry (ARMG) yard cranes, which will be remotely operated from the comfort and safety of a control room, it added. - TradeArabia News Service