Israeli logistics start-up plans to connect Dubai and Haifa ports via land to bypass Red Sea

Israeli logistics start-up plans to connect Dubai and Haifa ports via land to bypass Red Sea

Subject : IR

Section: Places in news

Context:

• Amidst the Houthi Red Sea Crisis, Israeli logistics start-up Trucknet has found a new way- to move cargo by road between Dubai and the Adani-run Haifa port in Israel. Cargo will move through Saudi Arabia and Jordan to reach Haifa port and proceed to Europe by sea.

Details:

• The cargo from Mumbai or Mundra can be sent to Jebel Ali, from where it could be sent by road to Haifa, and then via ships to reach ports in Europe or the US.

Red Sea crisis:

• Global trade is suffering due to the fallout of the recent attacks by Yemen-backed Houthi militants on ships passing through the Red Sea/Gulf of Aden.
• The container ships are now being diverted via the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa, resulting in a sharp rise in both transit time and freight cost.
• This adds approx. 6000 nautical miles between Asia and Europe and double the travel time.

Places in the news:

• Red Sea (or Erythraean Sea):
  • It is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia.
  • The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden.
  • To the north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez (leading to the Suez Canal).
  • The sea is underlain by the Red Sea Rift which is part of the Great Rift Valley.
  • The six countries bordering the Red Sea are: Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, and Djibouti.
• Haifa port: 
  • It is the largest of Israel’s three major international seaports, the others being the Port of Ashdod and the Port of Eilat.
  • It has a natural deep-water harbor, which operates all year long, and serves both passenger and merchant ships.
  • It is one of the largest ports in the eastern Mediterranean in terms of freight volume.
  • It is a part of the recently proposed India-Middle East Corridor (IMEC).
• Jebel Ali port:
  • Also known as Mina Jebel Ali, is a deep port located in Jebel Ali, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
  • It is located 35 km southwest of Dubai, in the Persian Gulf.
  • It is the world’s ninth busiest port, the largest man-made harbour, and the biggest and by far the busiest port in the Middle East.
  • It was constructed in the late 1970s to supplement the facilities at Port Rashid.
• Bab el Mandeb strait:
  • Also called  ‘Gate of Lamentation’, the Gate of Grief or the Gate of Tears.
  • It is a strait between Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula and Djibouti and Eritrea in the Horn of Africa.
  • It connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and by extension the Indian Ocean.

Source: The Hindu