AD Ports Group and UAE-based shipbuilding and repair outfit Premier MarineEngineering Services (Premier Marine) have formed a joint venture dubbed Safeen Drydocks to provide drydocking services at Khalifa Port, according to Wam. The JV will provide a range of services critical to the UAE’s marine sector, including drydocking, afloat repairs, ship building and refurbishment, the statement explained.

Ownership breakdown of the JV: AD Ports Group is the majority shareholder, with a 51% stake of the JV. The 49% remainder is owned by Premier Marine.

The details: The JV’s operational hub will be located at a 45k square meter shipyard and repair facility at Abu Dhabi’s Khalifa Port, Wam said. The hub will encompass a 350 meters quay wall for vessel afloat repair and a floating drydock for vessel maintenance and refurbishment.

The hub will be equipped to handle a range of vessels, including tankers, bulk vessels, container ships, offshore vessels and jack-ups.

Work at the shipyard has already kicked off, with construction of two barges for a UAE-based client underway at the facility. Operations at the drydock are slated to begin in July.

What they said: “The establishment of Safeen Drydocks is a milestone development for Safeen Group as it significantly broadens our scope of services and ability to serve the regional maritime industry,” acting CEO of AD Ports Group subsidiary Safeen Group, Ammar Mubarak Al Shaiba, said in the statement.

Background: AD Ports Group has been on a drive to boost maintenance and shipbuilding capabilities at its flagship Khalifa Port with a statement in May citing a need “to meet the growing demand for these services from regional and international clients.” The latest JV initiative follows a 25-year contract AD Ports Group inked earlier this month with Singapore’s Crystal Offshore to establish a marine vessels maintenance facility at Khalifa Port.

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