UAE-based port operator Abu Dhabi Ports has established a new feeder services company, Safeen Feeders, as part of its strategy to facilitate growing trade demands within the Gulf region.
As informed, Safeen Feeders will introduce a new feeder service linking Abu Dhabi to ports serving the UAE, the broader Gulf region and Indian subcontinent.
The service will be launched in partnership with Bengal Tiger Line (BTL), a Singapore-based feeder service operator, through a vessel sharing agreement.
According to Abu Dhabi Ports, the service will allow for timely and efficient exchange of container cargo between mainliner vessels and the vessels within the rotation calling at nine regional ports located across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Pakistan, and Western India.
“The launch of Safeen Feeders significantly strengthens our ability to enhance the competitiveness of our growing base of global customers, and helps our region meet international demands as a trade and logistics hub connecting east and west,” Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi , Group CEO of Abu Dhabi Ports, commented.
“By partnering with Bengal Tiger Line, we are not only growing our Abu Dhabi Ports family and creating mutually positive solutions, but we are also significantly broadening our product and service offering to our valued clients and enhancing our contribution to Abu Dhabi’s non-oil economy.”
“We are excited to be partnering with Abu Dhabi Ports in developing feeder solutions for the region and look forward to jointly promoting Safeen Feeders’ services in conjunction with our own BTL brand,” Bill Smart , Chief Executive of Bengal Tiger Line, said.
Safeen Feeders’ pendulum service, called the UAE-Indian Sub-Continent Gulf Service (UIG), will be delivered by three 2,700 TEU vessels via the following 21-day rotation calling: Khalifa Port; Jebel Ali Port; Karachi; (Kandla); Mundra; Nhava Sheva; Khalifa Port; Jebel Ali Port; Bahrain; Dammam; Jubail; and, Khalifa Port.
The service will commence during week 27, with the first departure from Mundra expected to take place on June 30, 2020.
In the medium term, Abu Dhabi Ports and Bengal Tiger Line expect to expand the service to ports in the broader Gulf region. Over the long-term, the new company will explore further service opportunities at container terminals in the Red Sea and East Africa regions.