Arab News | UAE and Jordan begin construction of railway to transport phosphate to Red Sea port

LONDON: King Abdullah of Jordan and the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohammed Al-Nahyan, oversaw the laying of the foundation stone for the Aqaba-Shidiya-Maan railway on Monday.

The UAE-Jordan Railway Company is carrying out the transport project, which officials say will be capable of transporting about 13 million tonnes of phosphate each year across Jordan from mines at Shidiya, in Maan governorate, to the port city of Aqaba on the Red Sea coast.

One of Jordan’s key transport mega projects, the railway will connect with the Maan Land Port project. Officials said it would improve the transportation of phosphate and cut shipping costs, the Jordan News Agency reported.

It is part of a wider national drive to connect cities through railway connections. Jordan and the UAE signed an agreement in April to construct a 360 kilometer railway network to transport phosphate and potash from mines in Shidiya and Ghor Al-Safi to Aqaba, Jordan’s only seaport.

Mohammed Thneibat, chairperson of the UAE-Jordan Railway Company, said the project “demonstrates long-term confidence in Jordan’s economic, investment and logistics outlook, and a collaboration that embodies Jordan and the UAE’s deep historical ties.”

Shadi Malakm, CEO of the UAE’s Etihad Rail and deputy chairperson of the UAE-Jordan Railway Company, said the project would provide “a new economic artery linking Jordan’s resources and production hubs to international markets through the Aqaba Industrial Port.”