Transportation and Logistics in RAK
Ras Al Khaimah was an important for international trade already five or six hundred years ago when it was a major hub for shipping between the Arab peninsula and Asia. It was even a birthplace of the famous navigator Ahmed bin Majid who was the author of a famous treatise on sea navigation and who showed the Portuguese the route from the eastern coast of Africa to India in 1498 and thus helped them to open marine trade routes between Asia and Europe. This tradition lives on and due to its location and well-developed transport infrastructure, Ras Al Khaimah can serve as a logistics hub for both the UAE and the Persian Gulf and beyond.
Ports in Ras Al Khaimah
Ras Al Khaimah has three ports:
Saqr Port (also known as Mina Saqr), located next to the RAK Free Trade Zone´s Industrial Park and cement plants at Khor Khuwair, handles almost 90 per cent of the UAE’s cement exports. It is the first port vessels encounter when passing through the Straits of Hormuz to enter the Persian Gulf and thus is convenient for distribution of imported goods to other countries of the GCC, especially to Iran, as it major port Bandar Abbas is only 70 miles from Saqr Port.
The port handles containers, general cargo, heavy lifts and bulk products such as cement, stone, marble and gravel. It accommodates ships up to 12 metre drafts and offers chandlery service and diving.
Kuwaiti firm KGL Ports International was awarded a AED 165.15 million (USD 45 million) contract to build, operate and manage the container terminal at Port Saqr in 2004. The contract, which expires in 2025, involves investment of AED 55.05 million (USD 15 million) to build berths 8 and 9, AED 14.68 million (USD 4 million) to reconstruct berths 1, 2 and 3, and AED 11.01 million (USD 3 million) to build additional facilities for the port, including the roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) berth. Another AED 84.41 million (USD 23 million) will be spent on equipment.
The recently-opened (2003) Al Jazeera Port located south-west of Ras Al Khaimah city, in direction of Sharjah and Dubai, is mainly used for bulk cargo (aggregates) but has the potential for the development of container terminal too. The port currently has 7 jetties and is being dredged to the depth of 9 metres. It offers open storage, berthing, bunkering and ship´s chandlery. The port will also focus on ship repair and maintenance services.
Ras Al Khaimah Customs and Ports Department has already spent AED 30 million (USD 8.17 million) to build a new 303-metre quay at Ras Al Khaimah Port which is located in the Ras Al Khaimah city. The second phase will see construction of a 400-metre berth at a cost of AED 28 million (USD 7.62 million). Work has also begun on warehouses, including two cold storage facilities and an accommodation block for port employees. The port allows transportation of general cargo and livestock and has draft up to 10 metres.
Approval was given in 2006 for construction of Ras Al Khaimah’s fourth port at Al Jeer, north of the emirate at a total cost of AED 30 million (USD 8.17). The new port will have a 270-metre quay and will be dredged to 6 metres.
Ras Al Khaimah International Airport and RAK Airways
Ras Al Khaimah International Airport opened in 1976 and has one of the longest runways in the Gulf region – 3,600 metres. The airport is open 24 hours a day and has no restrictions on frequencies and time of arrival and departure. It handles some 700 flights per month to and from a variety of destinations in the Middle East, North and East Africa, Central Asia and India.
Ras Al Khaimah government is spending USD 272 million to expand RAK International Airport in anticipation of increased tourism traffic in coming years. With interest in Ras Al Khaimah as a tourist destination gaining momentum, traffic rose by 124,000 passengers in 2006 to more than 200,000 passengers in 2007. The airport handled 11,600 tons of cargo in 2007.
RAK Airways began operations in 2007 and aims to serve 13 international markets by 2010. It has two passenger and seven cargo aircraft. It has regular flights to India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka and plans to open routes to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and Syria.
Road Transportation
The Emirates Road which connects all emirates of the UAE federation except Fujairah has had a huge impact on traffic in Ras Al Khaimah. Dubai can now be reached in under an hour and Abu Dhabi in approximately 2.5 hours. Currently the Emirates Road is extended to the Oman border north of Ras Al Khaimah city. The old dual carriageway along the coast and smaller roads in the desert interior provide alternative routes to Um al Quwain, Ajman, Sharjah and Dubai.
The emirate is implementing an ambitious road development programme to upgrade its road infrastructure with an estimated investment of AED 2 to AED 3 billion. Plans are in place to upgrade the emirate's road network to cater to a predicted population of 500,000 - 600,000 by 2015. The government has prepared a RAK Road Network Development Strategy, which is designed to cope with the proposed growth plans for the entire emirate. Apart from the proposed extension of the Emirates Road, the other development plans include creation of new highways, widening of existing roads, building of flyovers and improving congested junctions. It would also include development of the Siji to Shokah Road and RAK Coastal Road as well as building the new Al Jais Mountain Road. The Road Improvement Programme has been drawn up on the basis of a transportation and traffic study commissioned by the Government of Ras Al Khaimah last year. The development plans include creation of new highways, widening of existing roads, building of flyovers and improving congested junctions.
Logistics
There is significant activity in the free trade zones near the ports and the airport. Ras Al Khaimah government has unveiled plans to develop a modern logistics park located near the fast-growing industrial zone in Al Jazeera Al Hamra, a development that will substantially enhance the emirate’s logistics infrastructure.
The development which includes inland container depot and warehousing space is the first of several potential developments targeting the cargo sector. For example, RAK Global Logistics is planning to establish a one-million square metre RAK Logistics City.
Related Links
www.nta.gov.ae
www.rakairport.com
www.rakairways.com
