Danish shipping giant Maersk launches its largest logistics park in the Middle East, aiming to strengthen Saudi Arabia’s burgeoning logistics sector.
The $250 million (Dh918 million) facility at Jeddah Islamic Port is Maersk’s biggest single-site logistics and services centre in the region.
Covering 225,000 square metres, the Maersk Logistics Park features warehousing facilities with comprehensive connectivity across ocean, land, and air transport.
It includes temperature-controlled storage for a range of industries, including fast-moving consumer goods, frozen food, automotive, retail, lifestyle, petrochemicals, electronics, and pharmaceuticals.
As part of its commitment to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, the facility will source up to 70 per cent of its electricity from 32,000 solar panels installed on a 64,000 square metre rooftop. The park will employ electric equipment and trucks, energy-efficient LED lighting with motion sensors, and other sustainable technologies.
This investment is part of a broader strategy to boost non-oil trade within Saudi Arabia. Earlier this month, the Saudi Export-Import Bank reported awarding $4.3 billion (Dh15.7 billion) in financing and insurance in the first half of the year, marking a 128 per cent increase year-on-year.
According to the latest figures from the General Authority for Statistics, non-oil exports, including re-exports, rose by 8.2 per cent year-on-year in May.