Borouge, a leading petrochemical company that provides innovative and differentiated polyolefin solutions, announced that more than 700,000 tonnes of polyolefins have been transported during its first year of operations with Etihad Rail, the developer and operator of the UAE National Rail Network.

Since September 2023, over 36,000 Borouge containers have been transported from a rail freight terminal in Al Ruwais Industrial City to Khalifa Port in Abu Dhabi. Etihad Rail Freight, a subsidiary of Etihad Rail, has operated the service.

The rail route takes only four hours each way compared to 12 hours via other modes of transport, enabling Borouge to realise higher cost efficiencies and reduce carbon emissions.

The rail service, established through an agreement signed at the end of 2022 between Borouge and Etihad Rail, supports scalability and is more resilient to weather conditions such as fog in comparison to road transport.

Hazeem Sultan Al Suwaidi, CEO of Borouge said: “Using the rail network to transport our products from the Al Ruwais Industrial City terminal has unlocked new opportunities for us, strengthening our focus on exporting our ‘Made in UAE’ solutions to meet growing customer demand, and enhanced the local supply chains. The partnership has enabled Borouge to move larger volumes per trip, at higher speeds via rail, increasing our competitive advantage. We are keen to diversify our logistical services to mitigate business risk, as shipping via rail uses more optimised transport networks. This is a key milestone in our roadmap of achieving more sustainable and cost-efficient operations.”

This partnership supports the national In-Country Value programme, with 88% of the value flowing back into the local economy, boosting economic diversification and growth.

This agreement comes on the back of a long-term partnership between Etihad Rail and Abu Dhabi National Company (ADNOC), which is the first company to use Etihad Rail’s services to transport granulated sulphur across the UAE and for export.

Shadi Malak, CEO of Etihad Rail, said: “We create solutions for our customers so they can deliver for theirs, enabling them to increase their competitiveness in the market as a result. We are committed to developing these services and solutions in line with the directives of our wise leadership, and under the supervision of His Highness Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of Etihad Rail, and this has been reflected in our cooperation with many of our customers. Customers like Borouge, are seeing the benefits that rail can have on their businesses; not only is rail transport reliable and cost effective, but we are able to better serve our customers with expedited transitions through ports to get products into the hands of their own customers in a more sustainable and efficient way. We look forward to continuing our impactful partnership with Borouge for years to come.”

The new rail freight terminal in Al Ruwais Industrial City spans over one million square metres, and covers the full spectrum of container activity.

Borouge and Etihad Rail are now extending their partnership to transport products to other UAE ports, including the Port of Fujairah.