AD Ports Group and China Machinery Engineering Group Corporation (CMEC GROUP), a state-owned key enterprise directly managed by the central government of China, have recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a strategic cooperative relationship.

The MoU details how the two companies will explore opportunities globally, particularly in the Middle East, Central Asia, South Asia, South East Asia, East Asia, Africa, South America, and Europe.

Under the agreement, the two parties will cooperate within various fields and sectors, including global industry and infrastructure development, financing, building, operation, and maintenance, global economic cities and free zones development, and global logistics.

The MoU will be valid for three years and will focus on achieving complementary advantages, sharing resources, and establishing a long-term strategic cooperative relationship of mutual benefit and trust, to jointly expand the global market.

Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, CEO and Managing Director of AD Ports Group, stated, “We are looking forward to working with CMEC GROUP to explore potential opportunities globally. Our Group is committed to achieving both parties’ complementary advantages. This MoU demonstrates our strategic objectives to establish global partnerships with leading companies, such as CMEC GROUP, to expand our reach and share our expertise. In line with the vision of our wise leadership, this will enable us to accelerate the delivery of our ambitious projects and drive economic growth in our region and beyond.”

Wang Bo, Chairman of the Board of Directors for China Machinery Engineering Group Corporation, stated, “We are delighted to partner with AD Ports Group to cooperate on strategic projects within a range of industries globally. This MoU signifies our commitment to combining both parties’ advantages and characteristics, expanding development space, and creating a better future together.

“Our extensive experience in nearly 100 countries and regions, combined with AD Ports Group’s rapidly expanding network and significant resources, will bring mutual benefits and open doors to new growth opportunities for both parties.”

The cooperation between AD Ports Group and CMEC GROUP will lead to the growth of business networks and resources, and the two parties will provide comprehensive solutions and services to each other’s projects as per requirements, including, but not limited to, survey, design, building, operation and maintenance.

Both companies will prioritise each other’s participation in project procurement and choose each other as project partners.

China is among the UAE’s top commercial partners, with bilateral commerce between China and the UAE exceeding US$64 billion during the first eight months of 2022, an increase of nearly 28 per cent0 for the same period in 2021. Additionally, around 6,000 Chinese businesses currently operate in the UAE, with a sizable Chinese population working primarily in the infrastructure and energy sectors.

AD Ports Group and CMEC GROUP’s collaboration marks a significant opportunity for the global industry and infrastructure development to capitalise on the predicted further growth of China-UAE trade, with both companies poised to bring in a new era of innovation and prosperity to the regions they operate in.

Meanwhile last week AD Ports Logistics (ADPL), a subsidiary of the Logistics Cluster, AD Ports Group, and Acino, a Swiss pharmaceutical company that develops and manufactures well-proven and innovative medicines, have signed an agreement for ADPL to provide Acino with global freight forwarding services, inclusive of sea and air transport in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region.

The agreement will see ADPL leverage its fully integrated and GDP-certified end-to-end pharma cold chain capabilities to transport vital medications from Acino’s global locations of origin to markets in the Mena region.

The pharmaceutical products will require specialised transport and handling capabilities offered by ADPL’s Healthcare and Lifesciences division. Under the terms of the agreement, the scope of the freight forwarding services will include first-mile transport, seaport and airport loading, customs clearance, and final-mile logistics.

Farook Al Zeer, Chairman of Logistics Cluster at AD Ports Group, said, “We are delighted to have been selected by our partners at Acino as a pharma logistics provider. The agreement is a significant development opportunity for our Healthcare and Lifesciences division as it allows us to work with a leading global pharmaceutical manufacturer and showcase our capabilities as an enabler of global trade and logistics.”

Andrew Bird, Interim CEO of Acino, said, “Our collaboration with AD Ports Group strengthens our commitment to the Mena region, expanding outreach and improving patient access to quality healthcare.”