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Jordan’s Aqaba Container Terminal (ACT) recently released its fifth sustainability report, claiming to be the only company in Aqaba offering this level of transparency and disclosure, and one of the only four companies in the whole of the country, together with Aramex, Arab Bank and Nuqul Group, to have done so.
ACT’s 2015 report highlights the most important achievements of the company in terms of economic contribution and community support.
Last year, the closing of the Syrian border put Jordan’s export industry at risk. As it lost its traditional access to neighbouring markets. Without notice, ACT adjusted its operations in the middle of the import season to accommodate the sudden re-routing of export cargo through Aqaba. It successfully handled a 48% increase in full loaded export containers from May to December 2015, compared to equivalent 2014 levels.
The sustainability report also details ACT’s achievements regarding the protection of the environment and the sensitive ecosystem surrounding the terminal. ACT’s environmental management system has received ISO14001:2015 certification, while other achievements have included the reduction of waste by 50%, the segregation of the remaining waste and an increase in recycling. Actively pursuing sustainable energy cost reduction, ACT has been implementing various projects, ranging from energy efficient air conditioning to more complex engineering system that will reduce heavy equipment energy consumption by switching from diesel fuel to electricity power during idle times.
ACT chief executive, Jeppe Jensen, says, “As the preferred gateway to Jordan and beyond, we fully recognise our role as a strategic partner for Jordan’s national growth and development. By publishing for the third year in a row a sustainability report rated GRI-4, we offer our stakeholders the highest level of transparency in our operations.”
ACT is a joint venture between APM Terminals and the Aqaba Development Corporation based on a 25-year build-operate-transfer agreement signed in 2006. While APMT Terminals is the majority shareholder, 97% of all the cash generated since the concession agreement has remained in Jordan in the form of tax and royalties, capital investment and employee compensations.
