DP World moves 1mln containers via UAE land routes amid Hormuz disruption

Detailed summary

The ports operator has accelerated its $681mln Fujairah terminal expansion as alternative trade corridors handle around 3,500 TEUs daily ...

DUBAI: DP World has moved more than one million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) from UAE east coast ports to Jebel Ali and domestic markets by road and rail between the first week of March and the end of October, while accelerating the targeted phased opening of its two Fujairah terminals to 18–24 months from an earlier estimate of 24–30 months.

Shehab Mohamad Aljasmi, Chief Commercial Officer, Ports & Terminals, DP World GCC, said during a media briefing that the trucking network had been built from the ground up and now comprises more than 3,000 trucks managed and operated by the company, including 700 owned by DP World. Around 3,500 TEUs are moving through the land corridors each day.

He explained that cargo arrives at ports outside the Strait of Hormuz before being transported through customs-controlled corridors to Jebel Ali for clearance, storage and distribution.

Additional solutions include corridors through Sohar and Duqm in the Sultanate of Oman, as well as connectivity through Jeddah, providing alternative routes into the UAE and wider Gulf markets.

Aljasmi highlighted the opening of the Jebel Ali Rail Terminal and said the 100,000-square-metre empty-container depot in Al Awir had helped ease operational pressure on the port.

He said the experience had demonstrated the importance of accelerating cross-border rail connectivity and converting contingency arrangements into ready-to-activate plans.

Aljasmi said Jebel Ali Port had remained open and operational, with disruption since the beginning of the crisis limited to just six hours.

The port is connected to more than 80 weekly services reaching 150 ports worldwide and has annual container-handling capacity of 19.4 million TEUs. It handled 15.6 million TEUs in 2025, while its origin-and-destination cargo has recorded annual growth since 2020.

He added that port teams had maintained equipment and operational readiness over the past nine months in preparation for the full return of maritime services.

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