Published: 2026-09-08
On 7 September 2026 AD Ports Group announced that SAFEEN Drydocks, its ship repair and shipbuilding joint venture, has put a 230-metre floating dock into service at Zayed Port in Abu Dhabi, the largest floating dock in the UAE. The dock lifts up to 21,000 tonnes and sits alongside 1,000 metres of quayside, so the yard can now take ocean-going commercial vessels and offshore rig repair projects that are too big for its 120-metre floating dock at Khalifa Port. SAFEEN Drydocks is owned 51% by AD Ports Group and 49% by Premier Marine Engineering Services and operates more than 170,000 square metres of shipyard facilities at Khalifa Port and Zayed Port, plus the Balenciaga shipyard in Spain, bought in January 2026 for EUR 11.2 million. For shipowners, offshore contractors and marine service companies the announcement means a second large-vessel repair hub in the UAE next to Drydocks World in Dubai, and this one belongs to the same group that runs Khalifa Port and the KEZAD industrial zones.
What AD Ports Group announced on 7 September 2026
The statement was issued in Abu Dhabi on 7 September 2026. SAFEEN Drydocks, which the group describes as the shipbuilding and repair subsidiary of Noatum Maritime, has expanded its drydocking operations with a 230-metre floating dock at Zayed Port. The dock is designed for ocean-going commercial vessels and rig repair projects. AD Ports Group says it strengthens the yard’s ship repair, maintenance and refurbishment offering and improves turnaround flexibility for customers: with two floating docks instead of one, the yard can run more projects in parallel and offer earlier docking slots.
The new dock will also be used to maintain Noatum Maritime’s own deep-sea fleet. In the second quarter of 2026 AD Ports Group deployed a 27-vessel container fleet and a 5-vessel bulk fleet to keep cargo moving around the Strait of Hormuz disruption, and in-house docking capacity cuts the downtime of those ships.
Captain Ammar Al Shaiba, CEO of the Maritime and Shipping Cluster at AD Ports Group, said: “The addition of the floating dock marks an important step in the continued expansion of SAFEEN Drydocks’ capabilities. By increasing our capacity to serve larger vessels and maintenance projects, we are strengthening our ability to support customers with faster, more flexible maintenance solutions, while also enhancing the efficiency of our own fleet operations.”
The new dock in numbers
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Location | Zayed Port (Mina Zayed), Abu Dhabi |
| Length of the floating dock | 230 metres |
| Lifting capacity | 21,000 tonnes |
| Quayside next to the dock | 1,000 metres, used for afloat repairs and fitting-out |
| Status | Largest floating dock in the UAE, according to AD Ports Group |
| Designed for | Ocean-going commercial vessels and offshore rig repair projects |
| Operator | SAFEEN Drydocks, a joint venture of AD Ports Group (51%) and Premier Marine Engineering Services LLC (49%), part of Noatum Maritime |
| Shipyard area in Abu Dhabi | More than 170,000 square metres at Khalifa Port and Zayed Port |
| Other docks in the group | 120-metre floating dock at Khalifa Port; two drydocks and a 105-metre slipway at the Balenciaga shipyard in Spain |
| Services | Drydocking, afloat repairs, maintenance and refurbishment, conversions, newbuilding, rig repairs |
| Vessel types | Tankers, bulk carriers, container ships, offshore vessels, jack-up rigs |
Who is SAFEEN Drydocks
SAFEEN Drydocks was announced on 26 June 2023 as a joint venture between AD Ports Group, which holds 51%, and Premier Marine Engineering Services LLC, a UAE shipyard company serving the marine and offshore industries, which holds 49%. The venture started at Khalifa Port with a 45,000 square metre shipyard and repair facility, a 350-metre quay wall for afloat repairs and a floating dry dock that was scheduled to begin operations in July 2023. Its first newbuilding orders were two barges for a UAE client. From the outset the yard was set up for tankers, bulk carriers, container ships, offshore vessels and jack-up rigs.
The venture sits inside Noatum Maritime, the maritime services arm of Noatum, the Spanish logistics and port group that AD Ports Group bought in 2023. That acquisition was completed on 2 July 2023 at an enterprise value of AED 2.65 billion, or EUR 660 million, and brought a network in 26 countries into the group. Noatum Maritime groups the shipping, marine services and shipyard operations of AD Ports Group, including its deep-sea fleet, which is why the new dock has a captive customer in the group’s own ships.
In January 2026 SAFEEN Drydocks went abroad. On 20 January 2026 AD Ports Group announced the acquisition of 100% of Balenciaga Astilleros, a shipyard in Zumaia in the Basque Country of Spain, for EUR 11.2 million. The yard has almost a century of shipbuilding history, two drydocks, a 105-metre slipway, a 22,385 square metre factory with automated fabrication lines and a 3,530 square metre manufacturing facility. It specialises in service operation vessels for offshore wind farms, research vessels, offshore support vessels and specialised tugs, and the group expected the deal to create more than 50 skilled jobs. On 16 July 2026 the yard laid the keel of its first vessel under the new owner, an offshore tug, one of two ordered at the yard. The Zayed Port dock, in the words of the group, complements that Spanish acquisition: Abu Dhabi handles repair and conversion of large ships and rigs, Zumaia builds specialised offshore tonnage.
Why Zayed Port
Zayed Port is the older of Abu Dhabi’s two big commercial harbours. It was established in 1968 and lies inside the city, minutes from the E11 highway. After container handling moved to Khalifa Port in 2012, Zayed Port became the emirate’s main gateway for bulk, breakbulk and general cargo, with 21 berths, 3,450 metres of quay wall and space for up to 10 ocean-going vessels at a time. It is also home to the Abu Dhabi Cruise Terminal. A floating dock does not need dry land or excavation: it is a hollow steel structure that is ballasted down, receives the ship, and is pumped up until the hull stands dry. Placing it next to 1,000 metres of existing quay gives the yard a lifting slot and a long afloat-repair berth in one location, close to the offshore oil and gas fields off Abu Dhabi where jack-up rigs work.
Where this fits in AD Ports Group’s plans
The dock is one more capital-intensive asset in a group that is investing heavily. In the second quarter of 2026 AD Ports Group reported record revenue of AED 7.08 billion and a net profit of AED 836 million, up 88%. The Maritime and Shipping Cluster, which includes SAFEEN Drydocks, generated AED 3.82 billion of that revenue, 62% more than a year earlier and 53% of the group total, with cluster EBITDA up 79% to AED 1.03 billion. Our article on the AD Ports Group results for Q2 2026 has the full breakdown.
The timing is also notable. On 17 August 2026 L’imad, the Abu Dhabi sovereign holding, moved through its subsidiary ADQ to buy the 24.58% of AD Ports Group it did not own at AED 6.25 per share, and on 8 September 2026 the company confirmed that all key conditions of the offer had been met, with payment and share transfer due no later than 9 October 2026. The offer document explained the logic: the group’s growth is capital-intensive and long-term and fits a private owner better than a listed structure. A 21,000-tonne floating dock is exactly that kind of investment. See our articles on the launch of the L’imad offer for AD Ports and on the satisfaction of the offer conditions.
Dubai is investing in the same segment. DP World put USD 214 million into its Marine Services division in the first half of 2026, mainly Maritime Solutions and Drydocks World, as part of the AED 4 billion DP World invested across the Middle East, Europe and Africa in the period. At the regional level, BlackRock estimates that USD 660 billion will go into ports, power and water across the GCC by 2030, as covered in our piece on the USD 2.1 trillion GCC investment cycle. Ship repair capacity follows that money: more ships call, more ships need docking.
What it means for business in the UAE
- Shipowners and operators: vessels up to 230 metres long and 21,000 tonnes of lifting weight can now be docked in Abu Dhabi rather than sailing to Dubai or abroad, and the 1,000-metre quay allows afloat repairs and fitting-out without occupying the dock. Two docks in the group mean more scheduling flexibility, which matters for fleets working the rerouted trade lanes via Fujairah and Khor Fakkan.
- Offshore contractors: the dock is specified for rig repair projects, so jack-up rigs and offshore support vessels serving the fields off Abu Dhabi get a docking option close to the work site.
- Marine service suppliers: a repair hub of this size runs on subcontractors, from steel and pipe work, coatings and blasting to electrical, HVAC, scaffolding, spare parts, surveys and crew logistics. Foreign suppliers need a UAE entity to invoice the yard, hold port passes and employ staff locally. Abu Dhabi offers a mainland licence from the Department of Economic Development or a free zone licence in KEZAD, the industrial platform next to Khalifa Port that AD Ports Group also operates, where ROX started car production in September 2026.
- Tax: services supplied in the UAE are subject to 5% VAT, and registration is mandatory once taxable supplies exceed AED 375,000 in 12 months. Corporate tax is 9% on taxable income above AED 375,000, while Qualifying Free Zone Persons pay 0% on qualifying income if they meet the conditions.
- Investors: with AD Ports Group going private under L’imad, exposure to the Abu Dhabi maritime cluster shifts from listed shares to contracts, concessions and partnerships with the operating companies, including joint ventures such as SAFEEN Drydocks itself.
Checklist for a marine services company entering Abu Dhabi
- Choose the jurisdiction: Abu Dhabi mainland for direct contracting with yards, port operators and government clients, or a free zone such as KEZAD for workshops, storage and 100% foreign ownership with free zone benefits.
- Match the licence activities to the actual work: ship repair and maintenance, marine engineering, trading in marine equipment and spare parts, or manpower supply, and check whether the activity needs approval from Abu Dhabi Maritime, the emirate’s maritime regulator, or from the port operator.
- Secure premises that fit the licence: a workshop or warehouse in KEZAD or in the Mussafah industrial area, or a serviced office if the company only trades and coordinates.
- Open a corporate bank account early: banks ask for the licence, the lease, the ownership structure and evidence of contracts, and onboarding for a new marine services company takes weeks rather than days.
- Obtain work permits and residence visas for engineers, supervisors and sales staff, and register with the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation and the pension and insurance systems where required.
- Register for VAT once turnover approaches AED 375,000, register for corporate tax, and keep accounting records from day one.
How Atlant Capital can help
Atlant Capital works with founders and companies that build their UAE business around the ports and industrial zones of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. We handle company setup on the mainland and in free zones, including KEZAD and the Dubai free zones used by marine and offshore suppliers, corporate and personal bank account opening with UAE banks, and work permits and residence visas for owners, engineers and staff. Accounting, audit and tax filings are performed by licensed accounting firms from our partner network. To discuss a structure for a marine services or trading company, contact us.
Conclusion
The 230-metre, 21,000-tonne floating dock at Zayed Port gives Abu Dhabi the largest ship-lifting capacity in the UAE and completes a three-year build-out of SAFEEN Drydocks: a 120-metre dock at Khalifa Port in 2023, a Spanish shipyard in January 2026 and now a dock for ocean-going ships and rigs in the capital. For AD Ports Group it is one more long-term asset added weeks before the company passes fully into the hands of L’imad. For businesses it is a new anchor customer in Abu Dhabi’s marine services market, with 1,000 metres of quay, 170,000 square metres of yard and a group-owned fleet to keep it busy.
FAQ
What is the largest floating dock in the UAE?
The largest floating dock in the UAE is the 230-metre dock that SAFEEN Drydocks put into service at Zayed Port in Abu Dhabi, announced by AD Ports Group on 7 September 2026. It has a lifting capacity of 21,000 tonnes, is positioned alongside 1,000 metres of quayside and is designed for ocean-going commercial vessels and offshore rig repair projects.
Who owns SAFEEN Drydocks?
SAFEEN Drydocks is a joint venture formed in June 2023 between AD Ports Group, which holds 51%, and Premier Marine Engineering Services LLC, a UAE shipyard company, which holds 49%. It operates within Noatum Maritime, the maritime arm of AD Ports Group, and runs more than 170,000 square metres of shipyard facilities at Khalifa Port and Zayed Port plus the Balenciaga shipyard in Spain.
What vessels can the new floating dock at Zayed Port handle?
The dock takes vessels up to about 230 metres in length with a docking weight of up to 21,000 tonnes: tankers, bulk carriers, container ships and offshore vessels, as well as jack-up rigs for repair projects. Smaller vessels continue to use the 120-metre floating dock at Khalifa Port, and afloat repairs are carried out along the 1,000-metre quay next to the new dock.
What did SAFEEN Drydocks buy in Spain?
On 20 January 2026 SAFEEN Drydocks acquired 100% of Balenciaga Astilleros in Zumaia, in the Basque Country, for EUR 11.2 million. The yard has two drydocks, a 105-metre slipway and a 22,385 square metre automated factory, builds service operation vessels for offshore wind farms, research vessels and tugs, and laid the keel of its first vessel under the new owner, an offshore tug, on 16 July 2026.
