Johnson Controls Arabia (JCA), a global leader in smart, healthy, and sustainable building solutions, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with King Abdullah Port and an agreement with Bahri Logistics, a business unit of Bahri, the National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia, to boost exports. This milestone aims to propel the growth of the Saudi-made initiative and non-oil exports, reinforcing the national economy and paving the way for a brighter future.
Under this partnership, JCA plans to leverage Bahri Logistics’ extensive expertise to manage its exports and imports between the US, prioritizing King Abdullah Port as its preferred port for shipment. Currently, JCA exports 30% of its output to 26 countries, including China and the USA, aiming to double that percentage and significantly enhance its global competitiveness in the HVAC industry.
This year, JCA announced its most ambitious and largest export order of 1000 YORK Scroll Chillers over three phases. The first phase will export 300 Saudi-made YORK Scroll Chillers to the US, with plans to reach a total of 1000 overall.
"This collaboration represents a significant step forward in expanding our international footprint and enhancing our logistics capabilities. We made a strategic decision to increase our local content footprint and invested significantly to ensure this happens. As a result, we have now localized almost all of our HVAC product portfolio. In 2023, 80% of our sales came from products manufactured in KSA. This local content achievement was the catalyst for expanding our exports, and we plan to double our exports from 30% of our production output to 60% by 2027," stated Dr. Mohanad AlShaikh, CEO of Johnson Controls Arabia.
Eng. Soror Basalom, President of Bahri Integrated Logistics, added, "This alliance reflects our dedication to delivering outstanding results for our stakeholders while showcasing Saudi Arabia's high-quality manufacturing capacities. This strategic collaboration directly contributes to supporting Vision 2030’s objectives of diversifying the local economy and enhancing our global manufacturing and logistics capabilities. Through such initiatives, we are expanding the international reach of Saudi products, thereby enriching economic diversity and stakeholder value."
For his part, Jay New, CEO of King Abdullah Port, said, “We welcome Johnson Controls Arabia's decision to prioritize King Abdullah Port for their containerized shipments. This collaboration will help in providing unparalleled service and connectivity, encouraging more shipping lines and logistics companies to choose King Abdullah Port. We are keen to enhance the Kingdom's position as a global logistics hub.” King Abdullah Port ranked 1st Globally in the World Bank’s Container Port Productivity Index 2022 report.
The primary objective of the agreement with Bahri Logistics is to explore and enhance logistics handling between Saudi Arabia and the US, focusing on exporting JCA's Saudi-made HVAC products. Additionally, the agreement, which includes support from King Abdullah Port, aims to boost JCA's logistics operations and expand its global market reach, including the US. This will contribute to the growth of Bahri Logistics, furthering its expansion into international markets.
