Global ports operator DP World's chairman Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem has reiterated the company's focus on sustainability at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in Saudi Arabia.

 "For us sustainability is a necessity - not an option. For example, where we've converted diesel to equipment to electric, we're saving money," FII tweeted Sulayem as saying.

The DP World chairman's comment was made in a panel discussion: Can global CEOs find ways to meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)? What frameworks will promote equitable growth and solve environmental challenges?

The global ports operator has undertaken numerous business programmes aligning with the SDGs.

At the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, Sulayem had explained how shifting from diesel to electric-powered machines helped the company save costs and helped lower carbon emissions. 

In its drive to create an eco-efficient and sustainable future for the cargo-handling industry, DP World has tied up with Kalmar, part of Cargotech, to supply equipment at several DP World terminals worldwide.

In September 2018, the Finland-headquartered company signed a contract with DP World Southampton to supply 12 hybrid diesel-electric straddle carriers for their container terminal.

In its press statement, Kalmar had said hybrid straddle carriers can majorly reduce the fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, as well as noise levels of a terminal's straddle carrier operations compared to using traditional diesel-powered machines.

A deal in August paved the way for DP World to use 15 Kalmar rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGs) for its Nhava Sheva International Container Terminal (NSICT) in Mumbai, India. The Kalmar Classic RTG combines diesel and electric technology for fuel savings, low emissions and easy maintenance, Kalmar said in a statement.

However, in an interview with Bloomberg TV in Riyadh, DP World’s Sulayem said the company is putting its expansion plans in UK on hold due to uncertainties over Brexit.

Global finance and business elites including Blackstone Group CEO Stephen Schwarzman and Softbank Group founder Masayoshi Son are attending the three-day Future Investment Initiative in Saudi Arabia.

 (Writing by Seban Scaria seban.scaria@refinitiv.com, editing by Anoop Menon)

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