DP World to invest $1.4bn as half year profit goes up 51.8%

REUTERS/ Hamad I Mohammed

Dubai-owned DP World, one of the world’s biggest port operators, is planning to spend $1.4 billion on capital expenditure in 2022, as it reported a 51.8 percent rise in profit during the first half of the year.

The company reported profit of $721 million for the first six months of 2022, as revenue rose 60.4 percent year-on-year to $7.932 billion in the same period.

Capital expenditure for the full year is targeted at $1.4 billion, with investments in the UAE, Jeddah, London Gateway, Egypt, Senegal and Peru.

It has already invested $741 million in the first half of the year, up from $687 million in 2021.

DP World, which also owns logistics parks, handled 39.48 million shipping containers in the first half, a year-on-year growth of 2.3 percent.

Despite its H1 2022 performance, chairman and CEO Sultan Ahmed bin Ahmed told reporters the company was facing a “more challenging macro and geopolitical environment” and the operator expected its growth rates to moderate in the second half of the year.

“Nevertheless, we remain positive on the medium to long-term fundamentals of the industry and DP World’s ability to continue to deliver sustainable returns,” he said in a statement.

DP World in June announced a deal with Canada’s CDPQ to investment $5billion the Dubai company’s flagship assets in the UAE, including Jebel Ali Port, the Jebel Ali Free Zone and the National Industries Park.

A month earlier, it also announced the creation of DPMETAWORLD, its entry into the metaverse, which will launch later in the year.