KEZAD CEO Highlights Growing Demand for Integrated Industrial, Trade Centres in Abu Dhabi

Mohamed Al Khadar Al Ahmed, CEO of the Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi (KEZAD) Group, has stated that the economic cities and free zones of the Abu Dhabi Ports Group have helped achieve record results for the group in terms of leasing new land.

In the first half of 2022, the land leased by the group was estimated to total 3.9 square kilometres, underscoring the growing demand for integrated industrial and trade centres, especially in Abu Dhabi.

In his statements, Al Ahmed noted that the Abu Dhabi Ports Group is keen to ensure the consistency of its long-term strategy for Abu Dhabi and the UAE, in general.

It is keen to help make the emirate an international trade, industry and logistics centre.

Under this framework, KEZAD was launched as one of the group’s economic cities and free zones to provide a wide array of services and business models.

It will enable companies to achieve growth, aligning with the UAE’s leadership’s vision and Abu Dhabi’s industrial strategy, he added.

KEZAD has over 1,750 companies in 17 sectors, which include pharmaceuticals, minerals, vehicles, plastics, construction materials, recycling, food, agricultural technology, retail, logistics, advanced technology, clean energy, life science, oil and gas and specialist chemicals, he further added.

This step follows the successful merger of KEZAD and ZonesCorp, under the umbrella of the former entity.

This includes 17 industrial centres on an area measuring 550 square kilometres, to meet the needs of a wide variety of key sectors and establish a diverse portfolio of services and products, Al Ahmed said.

Regrading the purposes for establishing KEZAD, he stressed that Abu Dhabi is witnessing economic growth, as well as the growing adoption of sustainable practices and the circular economy.

As part of the efforts to accelerate this growth, the Abu Dhabi Ports Group has been keen to play a pioneering role in the emirate’s business community, through the development of economic cities and free zones.

The KEZAD Group is a driver of the emirate’s industrial strategy, by providing a flexible platform for local and international companies targeting the Middle East, he further said.

It aims to attract new companies that will help increase the size of the emirate’s manufacturing sector, with a goal of reaching a value of AED172 billion by 2031.

Increasing the number of companies will help expand the labour market for UAE nationals and achieve the goal of Abu Dhabi’s industrial strategy to create 13,600 job opportunities, he added.

Al Ahmed then highlighted the role of KEZAD in managing the planning, development, operation, organisation and promotion of its assets, which include 12 economic zones on an area measuring 550 square kilometres, including a 100-square kilometre free zone, a 300,000-square kilometre logistics warehouses and over 40 residential complexes for employees.

Through the merger of KEZAD and ZonesCorp, the former now provides a wide and integrated variety of services to customers and companies in all sectors, as well as various options related to land and locations while offering competitive prices, he added.

The Abu Dhabi Ports Group launched KEZAD to develop complexes and services (KEZAD Communities) that will improve employees’ well-being and their living areas in the emirate, he explained.

“In line with the circular economy objectives set by the emirate’s industrial strategy, economic and free zones aim to attract investment that will support sustainable manufacturing efforts in the textiles and packaging industries, among other areas,” Al Ahmed said.

The group has successfully created a competitive environment for global trade and logistics, as well as for the digital services and advanced infrastructure sectors.

Speaking about the group’s role in ensuring food security, he stressed that the construction of KEZAD’s Abu Dhabi Food Hub is a collaboration between the Abu Dhabi Ports Group and the Ghassan Aboud Group, with the cooperation of Rungis, the largest wholesale fresh food market in the world.