Workboats Expo launched in Abu Dhabi

Vanessa Stephens, Events Director at Seatrade, the organiser of Middle East Workboats, commented, "Our ongoing commitment to and research into maritime business in the Middle East indicated great demand for a dedicated workboats event, irrespective of scale or function. The industry response we have received so far, fully justifies our decision to launch. We are confident that more than 150 exhibitors, covering 5,500 square metres of exhibition space, will participate in the three-day event."

Annually, more than 2,000 vessels, from tugs to dive boats to dredgers - the vast majority workboats of some kind - are docked or repaired in the Middle East. The region offers excellent facilities for ship repair and conversion. There are 13 ship repair yards in the region sustaining five dry docks, eight floating docks and 17 slipways, confirming the Gulf as a well established hub for workboats and Abu Dhabi as the undisputed principal gateway to the offshore market.

One of the biggest growth areas is that of dredgers and support vessels for the huge offshore projects taking place in virtually all GCC countries. Dredging work has brought a large proportion of the world's dredger fleet to the region. So great is demand that it has been estimated that between 25 and 30 new dredgers are needed each year in the Gulf just to keep up with the unprecedented level of offshore construction-related land reclamation and marine operations.

The most significant part of the demand is from the United Arab Emirates where dredgers have moved, or are in the process of moving, an astounding 1.75 billion cubic metres of sand and stone to form Dubai's three iconic Palm projects and Nakheel's The World. The scale of these offshore developments has led to a long-term need for workboats, not just in the construction phase but also for ongoing maintenance and servicing of the projects.

"Put into perspective, the amount of sand moved by dredgers off the Dubai coast would be enough to build a wall two metres wide and four metres high along the entire length of the equator," said Stephens.

In addition to the growth of the workboat sector for land reclamation projects, there is also unprecedented demand for offshore service vessels (OSVs) across the oil and gas industry in the Middle East, home to almost two thirds of the world's proven oil reserves.

The growth is being driven by higher oil prices which have made offshore projects even more cost-effective, combined with increasing global demand. More than 250 OSVs are currently estimated to be operating in the region.

"Middle East Workboats will provide one comprehensive platform to unite all of the key industry players operating in the workboat arena," added Stephens.

The event will also include a dedicated conference which will address prevalent industry issues. International and regional industry experts will share their experience. There will also be a series of technical seminars providing up-to-date information.

Middle East Workboats has already gained industry backing with Det Norske Veritas (DNV), ADNOC and rather appropriately, ESNAAD (which is not an acronym - in Arabic it means 'support').