Trade between Australia and Dubai is set to increase with Emirates SkyCargo announcing that as of 1 November it will provide four weekly flights between the two regions.
The flights will link Adelaide in South Australia with Dubai in the UAE and each of the four flights will offer space for 14 tonnes of freight.
According to a media release from Emirates, the additional 56 tonnes will take the weekly capacity to and from Australia to 1,500 tonnes.
Emirates SkyCargo’s capacity – which includes three dedicated freighter services from Sydney each week - will be further strengthened from 1 March 2013, when the number of services operating from Dubai to Australia will rise to 84 per week.
Emirates’ flights to Adelaide will be operated with a B777-300ER, and will rise to a daily service from 1 February 2013, further cementing Emirates’ commitment to Australia.
The new Emirates SkyCargo South Australian gateway will connect businesses with the key trade hub of Dubai and onwards to more than 100 destinations on the Emirates network, boosting growth for Adelaide and its manufacturing, agriculture and mining intensive economy.
“We expect demand to be strong for a variety of commodities going into and out of Adelaide and Dubai, and are keen to build on our role as the first carrier to link Australia and the Middle East with direct services,” said Ram Menen, Emirates’ divisional senior vice president cargo. “To date, Emirates SkyCargo has carried over 357,000 tonnes of Australian exports,” he added.
Australia was ranked the 16th highest trading partner of the UAE, exporting US$2.2m worth of goods in 2010-2011; a growth of 11.3 per cent year on year.
In the UAE, with its substantial expat community and diversification into an immense trading port, there is a continued demand for foodstuffs that aren’t easily produced locally, such as organic farm produce and cold meats.
Emirates SkyCargo will move a mixture of commodities from its new port to Dubai and onwards, including such perishable goods as meat, fruit, vegetables, dairy and eggs.
The introduction of Emirates’ services to South Australia will open up lucrative export markets for Australian businesses, including the Middle East, Europe and Africa.
Emirates SkyCargo offers a customised, tailor-made solution for this varied range of goods, with the expertise and equipment to provide a number of specialised services for the transport and warehousing of perishable goods and vulnerable electronics, and also temperature-controlled items, urgent deliveries and bulky loads such as pharmaceuticals, dangerous goods, oil and gas components as well as unusual consignments.
Its Cargo Mega Terminal in Dubai is capable of processing 1.2m tonnes of cargo a year, and can handle all types of cargo from one central location.
