Rail Middle East

January - March, 2012

ONTRACKPROJECTSAnewerAinlogisticsAndtrAnsportAtion

Eco-friEndlyconcEpt

mErail2013Bringing locomotiveprofessionalstogetherPagE 7

RailspeciAlreport tuEsday

february 5, 2013

RailMiddleEast

For a sustainablefuturePagE 12

RAIL MIDDLE EAST

3KT Special RepoRTFEBRUARY 5, 2013

RAILMIDDLE EAST

EDITORIAL

Executive EditorPatrickMichael

Supplements EditorSuchitra Steven Samuel

Sub-EditorSadiq Shaban

ReportersFarhanaChowdhurySuneeti Ahuja-Kohli

PRODUCTION

DesignersMohammadEjaz Khan

Sidharthan

ImagingVenugopal Prabhu

ADVERTISING

Director AdvertisingHaroonQureshi

Senior AdvertisingManager(Supplements)Philip Smith

DubaiHeaDOffice:P.O. Box 11243, Tel: +971 4 3383535

Fax: +971 4 3383345/46E-mail: [email protected]

abuDHabi:P.O. Box 3082, Tel: +971 2 6337666

Fax: +971 2 6351122, E-mail: [email protected]

APublication ofGalaDariPrintinG&

PublisHinGl.l.c.

ConTEnTS4 new era in transportation

6 Connecting the emirates

7 Exhibitors double at the show

8 Glimpses of Middle East Rail 2012

10 Chugging ahead

12 Etihad Rail’s wagons reach Mina Zayed

12 Etihad Rail, GSL ink deal

12 Recycled building wastes to be used in

Etihad Rail work

13 Dubai Metro has an ‘excellent’ score

13 Etihad Rail signs MoU with CWM

13 DHL partners with Etihad Rail

14 Etihad Rail inks pact with Sharaf Logistics

14 Dh220 bn of rail projects in the Gulf

14 Etihad Rail and Sharjah Cement sign

agreement

SPECIALREPORTFEBRUARY 5, 2013


4 KT Special RepoRTFEBRUARY 5, 2013

RAIL MIDDLE EAST

FarhanaChowdhury

The advent of trans-portation in theUAE,with the com-ing of the DubaiMetro, has in many

ways propelled the country tomove forward. Inauguratedon a memorable date, Sep-tember 9, 2009 (09/09/09),the metro connected variousparts of Dubai and has sinceferried thousandsof people totheir destinations.Now besides its two dedi-

cated routes — the Red lineand Green line — which con-nects Jebel Ali to Rashidiya,threenewmetro lines—Blue,Gold andPurple—alongwitha Jumeirah tramare set to rollon tracks by the year 2030.The current running Red andGreen lines will also see an

expansion to serve thedense-ly populated areas of the city.Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman

of the Board and ExecutiveDirector of the Roads andTransport Authority (RTA)recently announced that theinfrastructurewouldhave 197stations over an area of 421kilometres, andbe completedin three phases with the firstphase to begin in 2020.With the city’s population

expected to rise to about 4.1million in the next decade,the second phase will beready to accommodate trans-portation needs. By then,upon completion of the newroutes, an assessment of theproject has been plannedwhich will check passengerresponse and requirementsin order to further expandthe line.

To date, the metro hasshown excellent progress inoperation. According to AlTayer, the Dubai Metro has afault rate of one metro caragainst every 800,000 km,rounding up to one againstfour million kilometres. Acontrol centre is in charge ofmonitoring the trains’ move-ments such as entry into rail-way, stopping the train; envi-ronmental control, passengerinformation systems, as wellas power supply feed, amongothers.An anticipated upcoming

project is the Etihad Rail net-work that will connect theseven emirates of the UAEandopenupchannels for eco-nomic development. It willalso be linked with the GCCRailway Network, a line thatwill connect the country to

NeweraintraNsportatioNUpcoming railway projects set the Emirates in motion

Nowbesidesits two

dedicated routes— the Red line andGreen line—whichconnects Jebel Alito Rashidiya, threenewmetro lines—Blue, Gold andPurple — alongwitha Jumeirah tramareset to roll on tracksby the year 2030

RAIL MIDDLE EAST


RAILMIDDLEEAST

Saudi Arabia andOman.The Etihad Railway net-

work will be built from recy-cled materials sourced fromconstruction and demolitionwastes. Contractor ThiessServicesMiddleEast (TSME)is expected to supply about750,000 tonnes of recycledmaterial assist in the comple-tion of its first phase. In thelong run, this will save aboutfivemillion kilometres in thetruck transportation of recy-cled materials, which in turnreduces its financial and en-vironmental cost. Phase oneof the network is slated forcompletion in 2014.The project will be con-

structed from one of its up-coming schemes includessetting a national railway totransport waste. A MoU wassigned inNovember last yearbetween developer and op-erator of the country’s na-tional railwaynetworkEtihadRail and Centre of WasteManagement —AbuDhabi.Besides helping commut-

ers journey to their desiredlocations, Etihad Railwaynetwork is expected to caterto freight and cargo necessi-ties as well. The network re-cently joined hands with theSharjah Cement Factory, ajoint venture of Sharjah Ce-ment and Industrial Devel-

opment Company (SCIDC)to use the track to efficientlydeliver basic raw materialsand cement to customersacross the UAE. This is ex-pected to facilitate over fivemillion metric tonnes (MT)of cargo transported peryear.Dr Nasser Saif Al Man-

soori, CEO of Etihad Rail,said: “The agreement withSharjahCementFactory is ofgreat significance as itmarksEtihad Rail’s first customerfor StageThree of the strate-gic national rail project,which will contribute to theUAE’s economic growth.Weare delighted to provide thelocal factory with a sustain-able transport solution thatwill positively impact its cus-tomers and the UAE com-

munity, in line with UAE Vi-sion 2021.”Another is its venture

alongside third-party logis-tics providerGlobal ShippingandLogistics (GSL), which isa subsidiary of Al ShirawaiGroup of companies. Theagreement is expected tocreate a reliable, low-costand effective cold chain forcustomers that will notablybe beneficial for distributorswho transport perishablegoods to the GCCmarket.The upcoming projects

bring on an exciting new erain transportation in theMid-dle East. The ever-dynamicUAE isworking its way to ca-ter to its booming businessand population along with asustainable future.— [email protected]

etihadRail Federal Government coordinationcommitteemeets to discuss routes

Connecting theemirates

The Federal GovernmentCoordination Committeefor Etihad Rail, themasterdeveloper and operatorof the UAE’s nationalrailway network, recentlymet to discuss the routeof Stages Two and Threeof the rail network andthe process of land al-location to connect thecountry’s ports, industrialareas and urban com-munities. The committeealso discussed ways ofensuring coordinationand collaboration of thevarious federal and localgovernment entities toensure timely delivery ofthe project.

The committee’s firstmeeting was led by FalahAl Ahbabi, a member ofEtihad Rail’s Board ofDirectors and Chairmanof the company’s FederalGovernment Coordina-tion Committee. It analy-sed the project’s legaland official proceduresfor land allocation ineach emirate, referencingthe company’s previousexperience in develop-ment and progression.The committee exploredthe possibility of apply-ing the same, or a similarstrategy, in each emirateto ensure time-efficientexecution of the project,and discussed proce-dures for the issuance ofno objection certificatesby each emirate.

Comprising of repre-sentatives from 10 feder-al and local governmententities, committeemem-bers emphasised thepositive impacts of therail project on the UAEeconomy, highlightingthe impact on businessand industrial sectors.Members also discussedmeans to assure that therail project is and will bestrongly integrated intostrategic federal trans-portation plans.


RAILMIDDLEEAST

The seventh AnnualMiddle East Railgrows a record-breaking 100 per

cent with over 2,500 regis-tered to attend, includingthe regional rail developers,transport authorities andoperators.Regional industry leaders

Hamad Al Yousef, Civil andTrack Director, ProjectsSaudi Railway Company,Mohammad Montazeri,Deputy Managing Director,TehranUrban andSuburbanRailway Company, GraemeOverall, Business Develop-ment Director, Etihad Railjoin Saad Al Muhannadi,Chief ExecutiveOfficer,Qa-tar Rail in keynote sessionsat the conference.Exhibitors participating in

the show have more thandoubled since the 2012 showasMiddle East Rail partnersgrow to more than 90 com-panies, representing a sig-nificant proportion of theMiddle Eastern rail industryworth over $156 billion.In the next decade, it will

seeacomplete reformofmo-

bilitywithin theMiddleEast.Currently in the GCC thereare a handful of operationalrail lines, however, within 10years almost everymajor citywill host a state-of-the-artmetroandeachcountryana-tional rail network. Expan-sionon this scale, in this timespanhasneverbeenseenbe-fore; theGCCwill facemanychallenges when trying tomeet these ambitious tar-gets. The rich opportunitiesfor innovation and industryleading rail projects are at-tracting attention fromacross the globe.This industry growth is

reflected in the growth ofMiddle East Rail, which hasnow become a must-attendindustry gathering in theMiddle East. This year, theevent has moved to theWorld Trade Centre.Laura Parker, General

Manager, Middle East Railsaid, “This event has been atthe forefront of the regionalrail sector since 2006 andhas seen a tremendousgrowth in the industry. Weare proud to be associated

with such landmark changesin the Middle East, changesthat are sure to have a fa-vourable impact on theeconomy. We hope all par-ticipants, both regional andinternational, have a won-derful learning experienceat the showandbenefit fromall thebusinessdevelopmentopportunities on offer.”This year’s Middle East

Rail has 80 free seminarsplus a high-level conferencedesigned to explore thestrategy and innovationneeded to support themajorrail developments.

Topics being discussedinclude:

Creating revolutionary•rail networks in theMiddle EastHow can Middle East•operators increase rid-ershipInnovative ICT solu-•tions for GCC RailwayprojectsConducting trials on al-•ternative ways to fundrailway projectsCreating a multimodal•

ExhibitorsdoubleattheshowMiddle East Rail welcomes 2,500 registered attendees to theregion’s largest rail conference and exhibition

Weareproud to be

associatedwith suchlandmark changesin theMiddle East,changes that aresure to have afavourable impacton the economy.Wehope all participants,both regional andinternational, have awonderful learningexperience at theshowandbenefitfromall the businessdevelopmentopportunitieson offer

LauraParker


RAIL MIDDLE EAST


RAIL MIDDLE EAST

freight network to con-nect transport termi-nalsBuilding a state –of-the-•art freight network for the UAE

There are also three post conference briefing days taking place on February 7 to look in detail at Signalling and Train Control, Inter-modal and High Speed Rail.

The sponsors of Middle East Rail includes exclusive Title sponsor CSR Corpora-tion, Platinum sponsors Vossloh, RusExpo — Russian Railways, Huawei and Als-tom, and Gold sponsors Thales, Teltronic, Voestal-pine, Kapsch and General Electric. Other sponsors at Middle East Rail include Jin-dal Steel, Progress Rail, Maccaferri, Parsons Brinck-erhoff, Alcatel-Lucent, OTN Systems, Elektro Thermit, Al Fajer Aboud Railways, Consolidated Contractors International Company SAL and FOGTEC Brandschutz GmbH & Co. KG.

Middle East Rail gala din-ner is a prestigious rail net-working dinner of the year. For the first time in Middle East Rail history, the Middle East Rail gala dinner will be held in the iconic Emirates Towers, and hosted by Won-ho Chung, the critically ac-claimed stand-up comedian, singer, musician, interview-er and media personality whose popular comedy rou-tine see him highlighting the idiosyncrasies of both the Arab and Far Eastern ways of life.

This year’s Middle East

Rail has 80 free seminars plus a high-level conference designed to explore the strategy and innovation needed to support the major rail developments

An effective platform for the industry, Middle East Rail 2012 was ideally positioned for buyers, sellers and railway industry experts to learn, grow and explore business opportunities

Glimpses of Middle East Rail 2012


RAIL MIDDLE EAST


RAIL MIDDLE EAST

freight network to con-nect transport termi-nalsBuilding a state –of-the-•art freight network for the UAE

There are also three post conference briefing days taking place on February 7 to look in detail at Signalling and Train Control, Inter-modal and High Speed Rail.

The sponsors of Middle East Rail includes exclusive Title sponsor CSR Corpora-tion, Platinum sponsors Vossloh, RusExpo — Russian Railways, Huawei and Als-tom, and Gold sponsors Thales, Teltronic, Voestal-pine, Kapsch and General Electric. Other sponsors at Middle East Rail include Jin-dal Steel, Progress Rail, Maccaferri, Parsons Brinck-erhoff, Alcatel-Lucent, OTN Systems, Elektro Thermit, Al Fajer Aboud Railways, Consolidated Contractors International Company SAL and FOGTEC Brandschutz GmbH & Co. KG.

Middle East Rail gala din-ner is a prestigious rail net-working dinner of the year. For the first time in Middle East Rail history, the Middle East Rail gala dinner will be held in the iconic Emirates Towers, and hosted by Won-ho Chung, the critically ac-claimed stand-up comedian, singer, musician, interview-er and media personality whose popular comedy rou-tine see him highlighting the idiosyncrasies of both the Arab and Far Eastern ways of life.

This year’s Middle East

Rail has 80 free seminars plus a high-level conference designed to explore the strategy and innovation needed to support the major rail developments

An effective platform for the industry, Middle East Rail 2012 was ideally positioned for buyers, sellers and railway industry experts to learn, grow and explore business opportunities

Glimpses of Middle East Rail 2012


RAILMIDDLEEAST

As one of the region’slargest dedicatedrail events, MiddleEast Rail is a premi-

um conference and technol-ogy exhibition. Last year theevent brought togetherwho’swho of the rail sector to ad-dress the main challengesand opportunities towardsbuilding the Middle East’srail network.The sixth edition of Mid-

dleEastRailwasheldagainstthe backdrop of one of thefastest growing rail sectors inthe world. Delegates fromthe government, rail opera-tors, transport authoritiesandworld class solution pro-viders deliberated onways tomove ahead with plans formetro and freight lines, es-pecially in fast-growingeconomies like Qatar andthe UAE.Therewere several power-

ful and insightful presenta-tions by stakeholders fromaround the globe. Experts

from Mumbai Metro, Lon-don Underground and Co-penhagen Metro gave talkson international best prac-tice. Experts discussed theimportance of strategy anddevelopment within key ar-eas like the transport-tunnel-ling sector, which is instru-mental in the construction ofmetro lines.The 2012 exhibition was

officially opened by AbdullaSalemAlKatheeri, ExecutiveDirector, National TransportAuthority, UAEandDrNass-er Saif AlMansoori, DirectorGeneral, National TransportAuthority, UAE, accompa-nied by Saad Al Mohannadi,Chief Executive Officer, Qa-tarRailwaysCompany;GeoffBrianMee,DeputyChief Ex-ecutive Officer, Qatar Rail-ways Company; RainerBomba, State Secretary, Fed-eral Ministry of Transport,Building and Urban Devel-opment, Germany; BassamMansour, Expert Trains and

Railway Systems, NationalTransport Authority, UAE.The four-day event sawex-

perts presenting internation-al case studies highlightingways to transform the trans-portation infrastructure ofthe region. These presenta-tionsprovideddelegateswithan in-depth know-how intothe minds of those drivingthe Middle East rail industryforward. Pertinently, the ex-hibition had several high-profile conferences on HighSpeed Rail World, MiddleEast Rail and Signalling andTrainControlWorld, specifi-cally designed to give strate-gic content to senior profes-sionals in the rail sector.An effective platform for

the industryMiddleEastRail2012 was ideally positionedfor buyers, sellers and rail-way industry experts tolearn, growand explore busi-ness opportunities. Withmore than 1,000 attendeesfrom 36 countries, 30,000

tickets distributed, 62 speak-ers including rail operatorsacross the region and 38sponsors and exhibitingcompanies, the exhibitionwas a huge success.The event is expected to

continue to evolve in theyears to come, attractingmore international speakersand establishing more op-portunities for business gen-eration and networking.

Middle East Rail, one of the region’s top strategic conference andtechnology exhibition, has an excellent track record

Chuggingahead

The sixthedition of

Middle East Rail washeld against thebackdrop of one ofthe fastest growingrail sectors in theworld

5-7 February 2013Dubai World Trade Centre, Halls 3 & 4

3 days of FREE seminarsListen to rail experts discuss

the latest exciting technologies andhow they are being applied worldwide

Register at www.terrapinn.com/merail/kh1 use promo code kh1


RAILMIDDLEEAST

Recycled aggregatesfrom construction and de-molition wastes will be usedin the development of theEtihad Railway Network inAbu Dhabi. The venture willtake place under a strategicagreement between theCen-tre for Waste Management(CWM) and contractorThiess Services Middle East(TSME) to manage a recy-cling facility for constructionand demolition wastes.TSME will supply at least

750,000 tonnes of recycledaggregates to Al Jaber Groupfor the completion of therailway project’s first phase.The contract will save fivemillion kilometres in thetransportation of construc-tion materials by truck, re-ducing the project’s financialand environmental costs.“The use of recycled ag-

gregates brings importanttechnical, environmentaland economic benefits to ourcustomers and to Abu Dha-

bi,” said TSME GeneralManager TimHarwood.Production at the Al

Dhafra recycling facility, thefirst of its kind in the MiddleEast,was temporarily ceasedin 2011 due to insufficientsale orders. Renewed inter-est in using recycledmaterialto construct major infra-structure projects, includinghighways and ports, has ledthe CWM to anticipate therestart of production in thenear future.

The facility processes 98per cent of inflowing rawconstruction and demolitionwaste (by weight) into high-quality recycled aggregates,at a rate of up to 600 tonnesper hour.The first sections of the

Etihad Railway Network,where the recycled aggre-gates will be used, are beingconstructed between ShahandRuwais. Phase oneof the1,200km railway is slated forcompletion in 2014.

TheUAE’s rail has receivedthe first shipment of wagonsat the Abu Dhabi’s MinaZayed port and these will beused in StageOne of the Eti-had rail project. Dr NasserSaif Al Mansoori, CEO ofEtihad Rail, said the timelyarrival of the wagons is yetanother indicator of the rap-id progress being made onthe project.“Construction activity for

the first stage of the rail proj-ect, which is being devel-oped in partnership with theAbu Dhabi National OilCompany (Adnoc), is ontrack to see the first trains

run fromHabshan toRuwaiswithin a year using thesewagons. Etihad Rail’s wag-ons were carefullymanufac-tured and designed based onseveral studies and researchefforts conducted in collabo-ration with different suppli-ers, leading us to adopt someof the most advanced railtechnologies available in theworld.The rail projectwill change

the face of transportation inthe UAE, playing a signifi-cant role in building a sus-tainable economy by pro-moting growth in variousbusiness sectors, providing

jobs for the local workforce,and contributing to environ-mental preservation, sinceone fully loaded train pro-duces 70 to 80 per cent lessCO2 emissions than that ofthe trucks required to trans-port the same tonnage,” saidDr Al Mansoori.The Khalifa Port will be

linked to Etihad Rail’s net-work during Stage Two ofthe construction process.Linking Abu Dhabi’s portswith the EtihadRail networkwill create a multi-modaltransportation system thatwill contribute to AbuDhabiEconomic Vision 2030.

EtihadRail’swagonsreachMinaZayed

EtihadRail,GSLinkdeal

Etihad Rail has signed anMoUwith Dubai-basedGlobal Shipping & Logis-tics, or GSL, a subsidiaryof the Al Shirawi Groupof companies and a lead-ing third-party logisticsprovider.

The agreement will al-low GSL to use the EtihadRail network for a coldchain — a temperature-controlled supply chain.It is a strategic move forGSL, whose client baseincludes international andlocal brands of premiumrestaurant chains andfood items.

“Etihad Rail aims tooffer customised solu-tions to UAE businessesto foster growth withinthe UAE. We are proudto provide GSL, a leadingUAE-based third partylogistics provider, reachinto theMENA region andAsia with a sustainabletransportation solutionthat will positively impactits customers and the UAEcommunity,” said Dr AlMansoori, CEO of EtihadRail.

Recycled buildingwastes to be usedin Etihad Rail work

The rail project will change the face of transportation in the Uae


RAILMIDDLEEAST

TheDubaiMetrohas a faultrate of only one in every fourmillion kilometres.MattarAlTayer,Chairmanof theBoardandExecutiveDirector of theRoadsandTransportAuthor-ity (RTA), said that one faultis registered in oneMetro carevery 800,000 km. Such arate is considered excellentwhen measured by the stan-dardsofmodern trains’ faultsworldwide.Metro Depot at Jebel Ali is

spreadacross110,000squaremetres and acts as a standby

control centre for operatingthe Metro in case of any fail-ure in the Control Centre atAlRashidiya.Operation testsare carried out regularly forall the facilities of Jebel AliMetro Depot to measuretheir operational readiness.The depot has a capacity tohouse 40 trains and theworkshop carries out inter-nal cleaning of 20 trains andbody washing of eight trainsper day. The control centremonitors train movement,provides passenger informa-

tion systems, manages trainentry into railway, controlsthe operation and stoppingof trains, monitors the envi-ronmental control, andwatches the power supplyfeed for trains and stations.It also supervises the safety

systems such as firefighting,ventilation of tunnels andstations, and train air-condi-tioning. It also verifies thesafety of the doors, brakesand engines of each train in-dividually.

—Agencies

DubaiMetrohasan‘excellent’ score

EtihadRail signsMoUwithCWM

Etihad Rail, themasterdeveloper and operatorof the UAE’s nationalrailway network, hassigned anMoUwiththe Centre of WasteManagement (CWM),Abu Dhabi. Theagreement will allowCWM to use the EtihadRail as a vital componentin its future sustainablewaste transport system,integrating the networkinto its plans to convertwaste into energy andusing Etihad Rail’scustommade railconcepts to centralise itsservices and facilities.

TheMoUwas signedby Etihad Rail CEO DrNasser Saif Al Mansooriand CWMGeneralManager MohamedRashid Al Hameli. Itdemonstrates thecommitment of bothCWM and Etihad Railto implement the UAEgovernment’s visionto build a greener andmore sustainable future.

DhL, one of the world’sleading logistics companies,has signed an MoU with Eti-had Rail, which will help theDHL Express operator fur-ther reduce its environmen-tal impact as part of its globalGoGreen company policy.The pact with Etihad Rail

highlights DHL’s continuedcommitment towards meet-ing its environmental re-sponsibilities. When opera-tional, one Etihad Rail trainis expected to remove up to300 trucks from the UAE’sroads. DHL will also be ableto utilise and support thestate-of-the-art transporta-tion developments that theUAE has to offer.The MoU announcement

was attended by Frank-UweUngerer, Country ManagerforDHLExpress in theUAE,and Dr Hazem Mobarak,Acting Chief Executive Offi-cer at Etihad Rail.The pactwill allowDHL to

use the rail network as soonas Etihad Rail’s second stageis operational, helping DHLwith connections betweenJebel Ali in Dubai and Gh-weifat at the Saudi Arabianborder.Thenetworkwill sub-sequently assist with trans-portation across the rest ofthe emirates.Commenting on the new

agreement, Frank-Uwe Un-gerer, Country Manager forDHL Express in the UAE,said: “We are delighted to be

the first logistics company tocollaborate with Etihad Rail.This is a new and innovativemilestone for DHL in theUAE, which will enable us tofurther enhance our com-petitive logistical perfor-mance and develop ourcross-border services, in or-der meet our customersgrowing logistical needs.“Thismovewill helpmake

a real difference to the localenvironmentandreflectsGo-Green,ourglobalprogrammefor environmental protec-tion. This is part of our widerorganisational strategy to op-erate responsibly in our localcommunities.”Dr Hazem Mobarak, Act-

ing CEO of Etihad Rail add-

ed: “The Etihad Rail projectwill provide a safe, cost-ef-fective and more environ-mentally friendly mode oftransport, bringing consider-able benefits to businesses intheir operations.We are veryproud to be partnering withDHL, one of the world’sleading logistics companies,to create amore efficient andenvironmentally friendlybusiness solution for them inthe UAE.”DHL has been a pioneer

in the Middle East logisticsindustry over the last 30years through its innova-tion, service excellence andcommitment to providingcustomers with superior lo-gistics solutions.

DHLpartnerswith Etihad Rail


RAILMIDDLEEAST

In the backdrop of rising interest in rail con-struction in the Gulf and projects worthDh220 billion present in the sector, PMVLive discussed best practice in the construc-tion of these extensive projects.A presentation from Feras S Naser, a Rail-

way Engineering Researcher from the Uni-versity of Birmingham on GCC Railwaysdebated the most effective ways to designand construct rail projects in the sandy land-scape of the GCC.TheGCC railways project, whichwill unify

all six GCC nations, accounts for more than40 per cent of the total value, according to a

report commissioned by PMV Live.“This is a topic which has attracted a sig-

nificant amount of interest, highlighted bythe full attendance at Naser’s session,” saidNathan Waugh, event manager for PMVLive. “This is a sector of the industry that ispicking up speed quickly, andwe have foundthat many of our participants in the showwanted access to insight and information.With such significant budgets behind theseprojects, we envisage it will be a key trendfor PMV Live and collocated events MiddleEast Concrete and The Big 5 for many up-coming years.”

EtIhadRail has signed anMoU with Sharaf Logistics,one of the flagship compa-nies of Sharaf Group. Theagreement will allow SharafLogistics, provider for supplychain solutionswith a historyin maritime and containershipping, to use the EtihadRail network to transportgoods.With offices throughout

the UAE — in Abu Dhabi,Sharjah, Jebel Ali, DubaiAirport Free Zone andRashidiya—and presence inAsia and Africa (namely inPakistan, India, China,Egypt and Nigeria), SharafLogistics provides servicesto a number of carriers oper-ating in the UAE. It includessea freight, airfreight, sea-air cargo and supply chainmanagement.Stage Two of the Etihad

Rail network, which willconnect Mussafah, the Gulfports and the Saudi andOmani borders, will bringsignificant benefits to the lo-gistics company. The railnetwork will present thefreight and logistics providerwith a faster, more reliable

and sustainable mode oftransport in a major area ofits customer network.The agreement comes at a

timeof rapid progress forEti-had Rail, with constructionon Stage One underway andtendering for Stage Two inprogress.Commenting on theMoU,

Shadi Malak, Executive Di-rector-Commercial, EtihadRail said: “At EtihadRail, weaim to offer transport solu-tions to the UAE’s business-es, which in turn benefit theUAE economy on the whole.We are delighted to bework-ing with Sharaf Logistics —one of the nation’s leadingfreight and logistics compa-nies — to provide them witha safer, more efficient andmore environmentallyfriendly way of transportingtheir customers’ goods. It isan honour to partner withanother UAE company thatcontributes to the country’sgrowth and economic devel-opment, and we are confi-dent this agreement willbring positive impact to cus-tomers, further contributingto theUAE’s development as

a regional hub for freighttransport.”Managing Director of

Sharaf Logistics, Johan Berg-werff added: “Webelieve therail network will be the mosteffective means of transpor-tation for freight and that itwill create a great value-addtoour customers.Weareveryproud to be associated withthe Etihad Rail project andeager to continue being en-gaged as it further develops,andwe look forward to expe-riencing the newer andmoreefficient transport avenuesthatweanticipatewill changethe way we do business.”Upon completion, the Eti-

had Rail network, which willcater to both freight and pas-sengers, will span a total of1,200kmacross theemirates.It will connect urban and re-mote communities, facilitatetrade, open-up communica-tion channels and foster eco-nomic development. Thenetworkwill also form a vitalpart of theGCCRailwayNet-work — linking the UAE toSaudi Arabia via Ghweifat inthe west and Oman via AlAin in the east.

EtihadRail inkspactwithSharaf Logistics

Dh220 bn of rail projectsin theGulf

EtihadRail andSharjahCementsignagreement

Etihad Rail has inked anMoUwith Sharjah Ce-ment Factory, a ventureof Sharjah Cement &Industrial DevelopmentCompany (SCIDC), mark-ing the first prospectivecustomer for Stage Threeof the rail network. Theagreement will allowSharjah Cement Factoryto use rail for transport-ing basic rawmateri-als and cement to itscustomers throughoutthe UAE.

TheMoU, signed by DrNasser Saif Al-Mansoori,CEO of Etihad Rail,and Ahmad AbdallaAl Noman, Chairmanof Sharjah CementFactory, will facilitatethe transport of morethan fivemillionmetrictonnes (MT) of cargoper year – volume thatmatchesmore than halfof the factory’s existinglogistics needs. Theagreement will offerSharjah Cement Factorya logistics solutionthat will enhance itscompetitive advantage,reduce transport costsand improve efficiencythrough allowing thecompany to use amodeof transport that is saferandmore environmentalfriendly than trucks.

Dr Al Mansoori, CEOof Etihad Rail, said: “Theagreement with SharjahCement Factory is ofgreat significance as itmarks Etihad Rail’s firstcustomer for Stage Threeof the strategic nationalrail project, which willcontribute to the UAE’seconomic growth. Weare delighted to providethe local factory with asustainable transport so-lution that will positivelyimpact its customersand the UAE community,in line with UAE Vision2021.”

Date post:	13-Mar-2016
Category:	Documents
Upload:	red-door-productions-fz-llc
View:	218 times
Download:	1 times

Rail Middle East

Documents