| Introduction |
Located in the northeastern coast of the United Arab Emirates, on the southern side of the Persian Gulf. Also known as the port of Rashid (MINA RASHID), and with the newly-built port of Minajebel Ali in 1981, under the jurisdiction of the Dubai Port Authority, it is the largest port in the United Arab Emirates and one of the world's container ports. Located at the junction of the three continents of Asia, Europe and Africa, it is the largest free trade port in the Middle East, especially famous for its developed entrepot trade. It is a ship repair center in the Gulf region, with one of the world's leading dry docks of one million tons. Major industries include shipbuilding, plastics, oil refining, aluminium refining, seawater desalination, steel rolling and vehicle assembly, as well as cement plants with an annual output of 500,000 tons. It has long been a commercial center on the southern coast of the Persian Gulf. It has the largest Dubai International Airport in the country, with regular flights to all parts of the world every day.
The harbor has a tropical desert climate and prevails west-northwest winds. The annual average temperature ranged from 20 30 with a maximum of 46 C. The annual average rainfall is about 100 mm. The most rainfall is from December to February, accounting for about 2/3. Average high tide: high tide is 2m, low tide is 0.8m.
There are 18 main wharf berths in the harbor area, with a length of 4265 m and a maximum water depth of 135.m. Loading and unloading equipment includes various shore cranes, portable cranes, container door cranes, loading and unloading bridges, transporters and rolling facilities, among which the maximum lifting capacity of container door cranes is up to 40 tons. The greatest reliable 70,000-ton tanker at the oil terminal has oil pipes connected with oil tanks. The port area has a shelf of 1 460 m in length, a container warehouse with air conditioning, and a cargo yard capable of carrying and diverting various commodities, including petroleum products, perishable goods, automobiles, refrigerated goods and timber. Container throughput reached 1882,000 TEUs in 1994, an increase of 12.2% over 1993, and 24.15 million tons of cargo throughput in 1993, an increase of 12% over 1992. In order to encourage trans-shipment business, the Dubai authorities stipulate that goods stored in warehouses in free trade zones are duty-free and then exported (trans-shipped) after customs entry are given full tax rebates. In 1993, there were 9694 ships hanging in port, an increase of 10% over 1992. Among them, 3171 container ships, an increase of 17%. Besides oil, the main export goods are natural gas, aluminium ingots, petrochemical products and local specialties. The main import goods are grain, machinery and consumer goods. |
