Ship chandlers & ship supply at King Abdullah City SAKAC

King Abdullah Port lies on the Red Sea coast inside King Abdullah Economic City, 90 km north of Jeddah, on 17.4 km². It is described as the first privately owned, developed and operated port in the Middle East — developed by Ports Development Company since 2010, under the oversight of the Economic Cities and Special Zones Authority.^[2,4]

—Container terminal (operated by National Container Terminals): berths at 18 m depth, cranes spanning 25 containers across with 65-tonne capacity, and calls by ships of over 23,500 TEU — MSC Irina (24,346 TEU) called in 2023.^[3,4]

—Current capacity per the port: 5.5 million TEU of containers, 3 million t dry bulk, 4 million t agri-bulk, 2 million t general cargo and 200,000 CEU of Ro-Ro, against a full build-out of 25 million TEU. Other terminals: Ro-Ro, bulk and general cargo, AMSTEEL and Almarai.^[1]

—The port cites the World Bank’s 2022 container port performance report ranking it the world’s most efficient container port.^[1,4]

—A transshipment port lives on Red Sea routing: Lloyd’s List Intelligence counted 48 calls in Q1 2024 against 206 a year earlier (−76.7%), with transshipment previously around 90% of its volume.^[11]

There are no designated anchorages at King Abdullah Port. Ships reach the dredged approach channel (18 m below chart datum) via the port’s Deep Water Route, inside Vessel Traffic Service limits that extend west and south-west of the port; every vessel arriving, sailing or passing through the Deep Water Approach Channel must report to KAP VTS and follow its rules.^[7,5]

—Pilotage is compulsory for vessels of 500 gt and above, provided 24/7; a minimum of two tugs is required, ordered through the agent (the port runs four ASD tugs of 47–85 t bollard pull). Maximum speed is 6 knots in the channel and 3 knots in port.^[5,7,6]

—Report ETA at least 48 hours before arrival, together with the Saudi Ports Authority / GCC forms: pre-arrival notification, ISPS pre-arrival report, GCC vessel waste collection report and maritime declaration of health.^[7]

—Disposal of any garbage or polluting waste in the harbour, its entrance or the approach channel is strictly forbidden (Port Information Notice 1-2015); garbage and oily or chemical waste go ashore through the agent via the port’s waste management service.^[8,7]

—An agent: tugs, pilot bookings, stevedoring (by NCT, 24 hours in three shifts), shore leave, crew transfers — Jeddah airport is about 1.5 hours away — and medical assistance are all arranged through the vessel’s agent.^[7]

—Fresh water: there is no fixed supply at the berths; water is requested by bowser through the agent.^[7]

—Bunkers: the port’s marine-operations page says in-port bunkering is not available at present, and the port guide says any bunker delivery by bowser needs the Marine Director’s agreement via the agent. The port’s logistics pages also list a 355,000 m² bonded Marine Service Complex for bunkering, dry dock and ship-to-ship services — ask the agent what is running before you plan around it.^[6,7,9]

—Service companies working inside the port apply for a services authorization from Ports Development Company — ask your supplier whether it holds one.^[10]

—Provisions and stores delivered alongside during a short transshipment call: post a requirement and chandlers serving King Abdullah Port answer with sealed bids — suppliers never see the vessel’s name until award. If you are authorised to supply ships here, be the first supplier in.