UAE to Build Two New Ports on East Coast

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will develop two new ports in the eastern emirate of Fujairah to bolster maritime trade, the official Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported on Wednesday. Under a 50-year concession agreement signed between the Fujairah Port Authority and DP World, the two new facilities are the Port of Al Rugaylat and the Port of Dibba Al Fujairah. WAM reported that the Port of Al Rugaylat will have an annual handling capacity of up to 2.5 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units), plus 1.7 million tonnes of general cargo, while the Port of Dibba Al Fujairah will add an annual general cargo capacity of up to 3.6 million tonnes. The projects will be implemented in phases. The move comes amid heightened regional tensions and security concerns regarding the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping lane. Fujairah is the only emirate situated on the UAE’s east coast, offering direct access to the Indian Ocean without the need to transit the strait.