• Al Malek: We enhance the UAE’s leadership in adopting digital solutions and keeping pace with the latest developments and global trends

Dubai, UAE: The UAE continues its active role in strengthening the national maritime sector and advancing the maritime and logistics industry globally. In a new achievement that consolidates the UAE’s leadership in the maritime sector and its efforts in innovation and sustainability, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure has won “Regulatory Initiative in Maritime Sustainability & Innovation Award” at ShipTek International Awards 2022.

This recognition underlines the UAE’s maritime position, which is recognised globally. The UAE has been re-elected to the Executive Council of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in Category B for the third time in a row, receiving the highest number of votes in the category. This recognises the UAE’s pivotal role in developing strategies, policies and agreements that enhance maritime safety standards, protecting the marine environment and enhance the efficiency of the industry globally.

H.E Hassan Mohamed Juma Al-Mansoori, Undersecretary for the Infrastructure and Transport Sector at the UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, expressed his happiness for the award, pointing out that it recognises the Ministry’s efforts to transform the UAE into a global hub for innovation in maritime services and industries as well as its initiatives to promote sustainability in the maritime sector.

Al-Mansoori added, “The UAE places innovation at the top of its priorities. At the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, we support the development of the maritime sector, promote the adoption of modern technologies and quality innovations in the industry, enhance the UAE’s leadership in adopting digital solutions and keeping pace with the latest developments and global trends in the maritime sector, in addition to consolidating the standards of maritime safety and protecting the marine environment worldwide. These efforts have contributed to enhancing the UAE’s global competitiveness in the maritime sector. The UAE ranks 3rd globally in transport services trade and in Bunker Supply Index and 13th globally in Port Performance and Efficiency Index. The UAE’s ports are among the top 10 internationally in the volume of container handling. The country’s ports rank among the top 10 internationally in the volume of container handling. The UAE is one of the top maritime centres worldwide.”

Emphasising the UAE’s competitiveness in the maritime sector

The UAE has over than 20 leading international seaports and some of the largest oil export ports in the world. It ranks 3rd in Bunker Supply Index and is the headquarters of Abu Dhabi Ports Group, the developer of Maqta Gateway, the UAE’s first digital port community powered by blockchain. The UAE is also home to DP World, the leading enabler of smart trade, which has launched a number of innovative platforms and products that have reshaped the mechanisms of international supply chain. These include Dubai Trade, the one-stop shop for cross-border trade and SeaRates, which provides instant and live rates for container shipping. The company recently launched CARGOES.com, a platform that provides integrated solutions for financing and shipping goods around the world. DP World has transported more than 10,000 containers through the BoxBay intelligent High Bay Storage (HBS) system and, in partnership with Hyperloop One, it is developing a high-speed ‘Cargospeed’ system for transporting goods in pods that move inside vacuum tubes at a speed that is equal to planes but on land.

H.E Hessa Al Malek, Advisor to the Minister for Maritime Transport Affairs, said, “The UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure contributes to enhancing sustainability across all sectors in the UAE, including the maritime industry, which adopts the highest standards of sustainability and environmental protection. This has consolidated the UAE’s leading position among the best maritime centres in the world. Through its membership in the IMO Council, the UAE has introduced fundamental amendments to many decisions about preserving the environment. The UAE continues to work with member states to advance the global maritime sector and the shipping industry to ensure the safety and security of maritime transport in clean oceans.”

ShipTek International Awards team said that the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure has made sustainability and innovation an integral part of its occupational practice and described the ministry as a forward-thinking organisation that has taken initiatives for employee and community welfare, set a separate team to handle innovation and sustainability matters, and taken up multiple environmental initiatives playing a major role of the growth of maritime industry in the region. 

ShipTek Awards are part of the ShipTek International Conference, which focuses on the maritime shipping, oil and gas sectors. The 15th edition witnessed the participation of a number of industry leaders and senior officials from major companies and institutions that have distinguished contributions to the maritime sector regionally and globally.

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