Abu Dhabi Port 2015 Box Traffic Up Sharply

Container volumes rose by 32 percent at Abu Dhabi's Khalifa Port in 2015 buoyed by industrial and infrastructure development in the emirate, operator Abu Dhabi Ports said on Wednesday.

Built on a man-made island, Khalifa Port handled 1.50 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent unit containers), up from 1.13 million a year earlier, it said in a statement.

Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates, is investing billions in industry, infrastructure and tourism as it diversifies its economy away from oil.

"Imports and exports due to the huge infrastructure and industrial projects contributed to the growth in container volumes," said Mohamed Juma al Shamisi, chief executive of Abu Dhabi Ports.

Improved shipyard and terminal facilities and services also helped, he said.

The port began operations in late 2012, taking over container traffic from Mina Zayed port.

Over 20 shipping lines operate to Khalifa Port currently and serve more than 50 destinations.

Abu Dhabi's new cruise terminal at Zayed port posted 16 percent growth in 2015 with 170,360 cruise passengers visiting the emirate compared to 146,997 passengers in 2014, the company said.

Reporting by Stanley Carvalho