Abu Dhabi Ports, an ADQ company, has been assigned as the primary custodian of all of Abu Dhabi’s waterways and marine ecosystems, through the creation of Abu Dhabi Maritime.
The new body was formed by the Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT) based on an agreement between Abu Dhabi Ports and DMT, in which both entities agreed to cooperate in launching a wide variety of integrated services and facilities. The joint effort is in line with Abu Dhabi Government’s strategy to integrate and streamline governance and oversight of priority growth sectors, and delivers on the leadership’s vision as reflected in the Abu Dhabi Plan Maritime.
Leveraging on Abu Dhabi Ports’ maritime expertise, the new entity will function as a consolidated single point of regulatory entry with a mandate to implement effective maritime services and state-of-the-art infrastructure, supported by highly-qualified human resources and upholding the highest health, safety and quality standards.
Abu Dhabi Maritime will be supported by a new Maritime Advisory Council, which will represent the interests of key partners and customers including, government entities, ports, individual users, communities, and marine service companies.
Under its mandate, Abu Dhabi Maritime will oversee all of Abu Dhabi’s waterways and the people who use them. It will be responsible for drafting, monitoring and enforcing regulations and codes, as well as developing and maintaining all waterway infrastructure and assets.
As part of its next steps, the entity will soon launch the new expansion of Delma Port, which will accommodate more than 60 local fishing dhows, in addition to new slipways, a digitalised booking system serving the wider boating community, and mooring facilities in four Marine Protected Areas in coordination with the relevant entities. These efforts will also be supported by the launch of the Abu Dhabi Maritime’s official website, which will serve as the single window portal for the entire Abu Dhabi maritime community.
Abu Dhabi’s waterways comprise 45,000 sq km along a 2,400 km stretch of coastline, which hosts 17 commercial and community ports, over 100 maritime facilities, over 1,000 companies, and provides for over 40,000 vessel movements per year.