The importance of King Abdullah Port was highlighted by its Managing Director Abdullah Hameedadin, who stressed that the port constitutes a new main gateway to Saudi Arabia, a new shipping center for the world and a catalyst for domestic economic growth, at the TOC ME event here. King Abdullah Port was front-and-center at this year's event, the region and world's top gathering for the shipping, ports and terminal industry. Hameedadin also said, "King Abdullah Port is a fully privately developed, financed and operated project, the fruits of a new government outlook that stresses the importance of diversifying the Saudi economy and encourages private participation in the Kingdom's mega-projects." The region's newest port, King Abdullah Port, is the major sponsor of the conference and Hameedadin was part of the opening panel that discussed the current status of Saudi ports and the future impact that they will exert on the regional shipping industry. "This is very important conference and one that we are proud to be part of it. This is the place to meet up with regional officials and strategic partners and also global ones, as well," commented Hameedadin. "It is a fantastic forum to share information about the state-of-the-art features and economic advantages offered by King Abdullah Port. Our success is demonstrated by the steadily increasing activity at the port. That we have handled 1.3 million TEUs in only our second year of operation is a true mark of our early success." Hameedadin joined other regional shipping executives on a panel called "The Middle East Shipping & Ports Sector: Outlook, Market Analysis & Market Trends" that dealt with the question of how best to manage this vital and rapidly growing economic sector, taking current economic challenges into consideration. As part of its vision, Hameedadin stressed that King Abdullah Port as a new main gateway to the Kingdom, a new shipping center for the world, would prove to be a catalyst for domestic economic growth. The port's strategic physical location on the outskirts of King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) on the Red Sea coast, its to-be-constructed trade rail (Saudi Land-bridge) and road connections and its state-of-the-art transfer and huge warehousing facilities have attracted significant attention globally and allowed the port to make its mark regionally.
