AD Ports (Abu Dhabi Ports Group) signed an agreement to build and run a new cruise ship terminal at Port Aqaba (cruise port to Petra, Jordan).
Aqaba, which is located at the head of the Red Sea Gulf of the same name, is the sole seaport of Jordan. The new AD Ports cruise ship terminal is to be the first of its kind in the country.
In a statement, AD Ports said:
“The cruise terminal will serve as a gateway in the Port of Aqaba that will receive cruise ship passengers visiting the Red Sea, in addition to serving as a major attraction for the residents of Aqaba.”
The new cruise terminal will be part of Aqaba's long-running Marsa Zayed master-planned redevelopment project. The project relocated the industrial port facilities of Aqaba to a new complex on the southern periphery of the city in order to make room for the urban, multi-use waterfront development.
For some time cruise ships have called at the old Main Port cargo pier of Aqaba, but the new terminal is expected to provide better amenities for passengers. It will be AD Ports Group's first cruise ship terminal built outside of the UAE.
AD Ports will be setting up a digital PCS (Ports Community System) to coordinate communication amongst all of the port operators in Aqaba, along with government stakeholders including Jordan Maritime Commission, the Aqaba Development Corporation, and the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority.
The corporation hopes the new terminal will help attract cruisers from the Mediterranean basin and Europe, who typically visit Aqaba in order to tour the Golden Triangle area of the country.