AD Ports takes majority stake in Georgia’s dry port
AD Ports Group has sealed a deal to acquire majority ownership in the Tbilisi Dry Port in Georgia. The agreement with Inveco, who owns the project with Wilhelmsen, will see the Abu Dhabi-based ports and logistics giant take a 60% stake in the logistics hub located in the capital city of Georgia that is set to become operational later this year.
Tbilisi Dry Port is situated along the strategically important Middle Corridor that links manufacturing hubs in Western Asia to consumer markets in Eastern Europe. The project offers direct westward railway links to Turkey and to the Georgian ports of Poti and Batumi, which further connect to European Black Sea ports in Bulgaria and Romania, while its eastern connectivity links with different ports located along the Caspian Sea via a railway corridor to Azerbaijan.
Noatum Logistics, part of the AD Ports Group, will operate and manage the facilities, which will include a container freight station, warehouses and a car storage park, which will be completed in three phases. By the end of the initial phase, the handling capacity is expected to reach 96,500 teu, with 10,000 sq m of warehouse and a car storage yard. The final phase should deliver a handling capacity of 286,000 teu, 100,000 sqm of warehouse and a significantly expanded car storage yard, AD Ports said, adding that an additional 88,000 sqm of land has already been secured to cater for possible further volume growth.
With the potential to reach 1.9m teu by 2040, the Middle Corridor is regarded as the shortest trade route between Asia and Europe, covering approximately 7,000 km and requiring a journey of 10 to 15 days. The existing Northern Corridor covers about 10,000 km overland, requiring 15 to 20 days, while the Southern Ocean Route spans approximately 20,000 km, requiring a sea voyage of 45 to 60 days.
“By investing in, and operating, new strategic infrastructure and logistics hubs along the Caspian Sea – Black Sea Corridor, AD Ports Group is delivering on our strategy to strengthen global supply chains,” said managing director and CEO of AD Ports Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, adding: “As a country situated at the centre of the Caucasus and located along the Black Sea, Georgia is a key destination linking us with our growing maritime and logistics assets in Central Asia and Turkey, thereby enabling us to serve our customers with cost-effective, streamlined cargo flows and capture significant future trade volumes.”
In October last year, the UAE and Georgia signed an agreement to increase the bilateral non-oil trade between the two nations to $1.5bn in five years.
“AD Ports Group’s investment in the Tbilisi Dry Port delivers on this objective, which is set to deepen trade and investment ties, develop global trade lanes, and generate market access opportunities for UAE and Georgian businesses alike,” said Ahmed bin Ali Al Sayegh, UAE minister of state.
