Khalifa Port Container Terminal in Abu Dhabi. Ravindranath K / The National
Khalifa Port Container Terminal in Abu Dhabi. Ravindranath K / The National
Khalifa Port Container Terminal in Abu Dhabi. Ravindranath K / The National
Khalifa Port Container Terminal in Abu Dhabi. Ravindranath K / The National

Business

Energy

AD Ports signs agreement with Adnoc Distribution to sell lubricants globally

Ports Cluster, which owns or operates 24 terminals worldwide, will initially sell lubricants to customers in the UAE

John Benny

April 19, 2024

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AD Ports Group, the operator of industrial cities and free zones in Abu Dhabi, has said its Ports Cluster subsidiary will broaden operations to include the global distribution of marine lubricants.

The announcement follows a strategic agreement with fuel retailer Adnoc Distribution, the company said in a statement on Friday.

Ports Cluster, which owns or operates 24 terminals worldwide, will initially sell lubricants to customers in the UAE before expanding its reach to include a global network, AD Ports said.

AD Ports Group signed a strategic agreement with fuel retailer Adnoc Distribution. Photo: Adnoc
AD Ports Group signed a strategic agreement with fuel retailer Adnoc Distribution. Photo: Adnoc

“This agreement will see two major global corporations, with vast expertise in their respective fields, creating new opportunities within the marine lubricants market,” said Saif Al Mazrouei, chief executive, Ports Cluster, AD Ports.

“The distribution solutions … add tremendous value to our partners and stakeholders."

AD Ports has a presence in more than 40 countries. Under Kezad Group, part of AD Ports, it also operates more than 550 square kilometres of economic zones in Abu Dhabi.

The company has been rapidly expanding its presence in recent years. Last month, it signed an agreement to buy a majority stake in a key dry port in Tbilisi, Georgia.

In January, its Spanish operations division Noatum Terminals fully acquired APM Terminals Castellon for €10 million ($10.7 million) in a move to strengthen operations in the western Mediterranean region.

“By signing a strategic agreement with the Ports Cluster … we are further expanding the distribution base for our products, gaining access to over 70 international destinations,” said Bader Al Lamki, chief executive of Adnoc Distribution.

The Adnoc subsidiary’s fourth-quarter profit increased 61.4 per cent on an annual basis, boosted by a surge in retail fuel volumes sold. Revenue for the reporting period climbed by nearly 17 per cent annually to Dh9.56 billion ($2.6 billion).

Adnoc Distribution added 41 new stations in 2023, exceeding its full-year target to open 25-35 new stations across its network. The company expects to add 15-20 new stations across its network this year.

While you're here
While you're here
Closing the loophole on sugary drinks

As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.

The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.

Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.

Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
 

Not taxed:

Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.

Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Euro 2020 qualifier

Ukraine 2 (Yaremchuk 06', Yarmolenko 27')

Portugal 1 (Ronaldo 72' pen)

if you go
While you're here
While you're here
Kareem Shaheen on Canada
While you're here
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021

Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.

The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.

These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.

“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.

“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.

“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.

“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”

Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.

There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.

“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.

“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.

“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”

Europe's top EV producers
  1. Norway (63% of cars registered in 2021)
  2. Iceland (33%)
  3. Netherlands (20%)
  4. Sweden (19%)
  5. Austria (14%)
  6. Germany (14%)
  7. Denmark (13%)
  8. Switzerland (13%)
  9. United Kingdom (12%)
  10. Luxembourg (10%)

Source: VCOe 

Ain Dubai in numbers

126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure

1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch

16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.

9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.

5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place

192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.

Updated: April 19, 2024, 11:28 AM
Adnoc