PORT PROFILE — ARABIAN GULF
Jubail Commercial Port Profile
The Gulf coast’s second container gateway and the alternative route into Riyadh: newly deepened to 18 metres, capacity lifted to 2.4 million TEU in April 2026, and the port where Saudi Arabia’s first container train to the capital originated.
UN/LOCODE
SAJUB
Landlord
Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani)
Container operator
Modern Port Services Co. (Saudi Global Ports)
Container capacity
2.4 million TEU
Berth length · depth
1,400 m · 18 m
Distance to Dammam
≈80 km south
Operator and ownership
- Landlord & regulator
- Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani).
- Container terminal operator
- Modern Port Services Company, a subsidiary of Saudi Global Ports (PSA International + PIF), under a 20-year concession. Container operations under the new concession launched on 1 April 2026.
- Previous operator
- Gulftainer, through Gulf Stevedoring Contracting Company (GSCCO), developed and ran the container terminal from 2010, taking it from 200,000 to 1.5 million TEU of capacity.
- Programme
- The concession is one of four awarded under a SAR 2.2 billion ($586 million) build-operate-transfer programme announced in June 2025 for multipurpose cargo terminals across eight Saudi ports — the others being King Abdulaziz Port Dammam, King Fahd Industrial Port Jubail and Ras Al-Khair Port.
Location and coordinates
On the Arabian Gulf at Jubail, Eastern Province, roughly 80 km north of Dammam — immediately beside Jubail Industrial City, the largest industrial complex in the Kingdom, and distinct from King Fahd Industrial Port on the same coastline, which handles the petrochemical and bulk trades.
- Coordinates
- 27.0033° N, 49.6603° E
- Container terminal area
- 460,000 m²
- Quay length
- 1,400 m, extended from 1,000 m
- Berth depth
- 18 m, deepened from 14 m
- Distance to Riyadh
- ≈450 km by road; direct rail via the East network
Cargo types handled
Terminal facilities
- Container terminal
- 460,000 m². Quay extended from 1,000 m to 1,400 m and berths deepened from 14 m to 18 m; ship-to-shore cranes increased from six to ten and rubber-tyred gantries from 13 to 29 automated, electrified units.
- Container storage
- Approximately 32,540 TEU of yard capacity with around 800 reefer plugs under the previous operator’s configuration.
- Support services
- LCL handling, a container freight station, customs clearance, EDI, warehousing and a weighbridge.
- Rail siding
- A rail connection to SAR’s East network — the line on which the Kingdom’s first container train to Riyadh Dry Port ran.
The 14-to-18-metre deepening is the change that matters commercially: reefer-heavy and larger next-generation vessels can now berth at Jubail directly rather than transhipping via another Gulf port.
Annual tonnage and TEU
| Metric | Figure | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Container capacity | 2.4 million TEU | from April 2026 |
| Container capacity, previous | 1.5 million TEU | to 2026 |
| Rail link capacity | up to 140 TEU per train | current |
| First container train to Riyadh | 78 TEU | inaugural service |
| Container throughput, audited annual series | n/p | not published per port |
Mawani publishes container throughput as a national total — 8,317,235 TEU across its ports in 2025, up 10.58% year on year. It does not publish an audited per-port series, so the throughput cell here stays n/p and only the operator- and Mawani-stated capacity figures are printed.
SOURCES · Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) · Saudi Global Ports · Gulftainer · Saudi Arabia Railways (SAR)
Main carriers and shipping lines
MSC’s Himalaya Express, with handling capacity up to 14,000 TEU, connects Jubail Commercial Port and King Abdulaziz Port Dammam with twelve other ports. The 14,000 TEU MSC Danit has called here. The service list is shorter than Dammam’s; Jubail’s commercial case is the industrial hinterland and the direct rail link rather than network breadth.
Road and rail connections
- Rail — freight
- Connected to SAR’s East network. The first container shipment by rail from a Saudi seaport to Riyadh Dry Port originated here — 78 TEU on a line with a maximum capacity of 140 TEU per trip. SAR’s network links Riyadh Dry Port with Jubail Commercial Port, King Fahd Industrial Port, King Abdulaziz Port Dammam and Ras Al-Khair.
- Road
- Highway 95 and the coastal road south to Dammam (≈80 km) and north to Ras Al-Khair; Highway 40 west from Dammam to Riyadh.
- Industrial hinterland
- Jubail Industrial City sits immediately behind the port — the largest industrial complex in the Kingdom, under the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu.
- Air
- King Fahd International Airport is roughly 75 km south.
Customs facilities
ZATCA operates the customs post; FASAH carries declarations and permits.
Customs clearance, a container freight station and EDI facilities are provided at the terminal, so LCL and consolidated cargo can be broken down on site.
Bonded transit under customs seal supports the rail movement to Riyadh Dry Port, where inland clearance takes place.
Cold-chain capability
Around 800 reefer plugs at the container terminal under the previous operating configuration, alongside the yard’s 32,540 TEU of storage.
The berth deepening to 18 m has a direct cold-chain consequence: larger vessels carrying refrigerated containers can dock at Jubail rather than transhipping through another Gulf port, which removes a handling step and a temperature-risk point from perishable supply chains.
Dangerous-goods capability
Dangerous goods move under the IMDG Code with segregation and prior approval through Mawani and ZATCA.
Jubail Industrial City behind the port means petrochemical and industrial DG classes are routine, with the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu adding its own safety regime on the landside.
Expansion projects
- Container terminal upgrade — complete
- Berth length 1,000 m → 1,400 m; depth 14 m → 18 m; ship-to-shore cranes 6 → 10; RTGs 13 → 29 automated and environmentally friendly units. Capacity raised from 1.5 million to 2.4 million TEU across a 460,000 m² terminal. Operations launched 1 April 2026.
- BOT programme
- Part of a SAR 2.2 billion ($586 million) programme announced in June 2025 covering multipurpose cargo terminals at eight Saudi ports on both coasts.
- East-coast integration
- The concession is designed to integrate operationally with Saudi Global Ports’ other east-coast terminals and with Riyadh Dry Port, which the same group operates.
Official contact links
- Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) ↗
- The landlord and regulator.
- Saudi Global Ports ↗
- The container terminal operator group.
- Saudi Arabia Railways (SAR) ↗
- The rail operator on the Jubail–Riyadh corridor.
- ZATCA ↗
- Customs and bonded-transit rules.
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Latest related news
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Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Jubail Commercial Port and King Fahd Industrial Port?
They are two separate ports on the same stretch of coast. Jubail Commercial Port handles containers and general cargo; King Fahd Industrial Port Jubail, with 34 berths, handles the petrochemical, petroleum-products and bulk trades for Jubail Industrial City.
How much can Jubail Commercial Port handle?
Container capacity rose from 1.5 million to 2.4 million TEU when the upgraded terminal launched on 1 April 2026, across a 460,000 m² terminal with 1,400 m of quay at 18 m depth.
Can containers move by rail from Jubail to Riyadh?
Yes. The Kingdom’s first container train from a seaport to Riyadh Dry Port originated here, carrying 78 TEU on a line rated for up to 140 TEU per trip.
Who operates the container terminal now?
Modern Port Services Company, a Saudi Global Ports subsidiary, under a 20-year Mawani concession from 2026. Gulftainer’s Gulf Stevedoring Contracting Company held it from 2010 and grew capacity from 200,000 to 1.5 million TEU.
Why does the 18-metre depth matter?
It lets next-generation and reefer-heavy vessels berth directly instead of transhipping via another Gulf port — one fewer handling step and one fewer temperature-risk point for perishable cargo, and faster turnaround for everything else.
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