Satyendra Pathak
Doha
In a major step towards protecting Qatar’s marine environment, the Minister of Transport HE Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti launched two clean-energy boats -- Aljurula and Alsamlah -- at Doha Port on Monday.
Launched on the sidelines of day two of ‘Sustainable Transportation and Legacy for Generations’ conference hosted by the Ministry of Transport (MOT), the two vessels are the latest units to have joined Mwani Qatar’s fleet of vessels.
During the inaugural function, the minister boarded Aljurula and took details about its functioning.
Talking to mediapersons on the sidelines of the event, Al Sulaiti said, "The launching of the two boats reflects MOT’s commitment to protecting the Qatari marine environment and maritime navigation safety and security. This helps achieve the goals of Qatar’s national plan to combat oil pollution, and relevant regional and international conventions.”
The minister said that both the boats that run on clean energy will be very effective in combating marine pollution in Qatar.
Aljurula boat is a multifunctional garbage and oil spill collection vessel, used in cleaning the basins of Doha Port, Hamad Port, and Al-Ruwais Port using the best ecofriendly practices.
The 12.6-meter-long Aljurula can collect spilled oil and garbage. Its full capacity of 25,000 liters. It can collect spilled oils in an area of 200 m. Its draft is 1 meter deep.
The second boat, Alsamlah, is 32.7 meter long used in maintenance of navigational aids such as the buoys, in addition to the maintenance of commercial and tourism ports, thereby contributing to providing safer, more efficient traffic for all types of vessels in Qatari waters.
Prominent among those who attended the launch event were Qatar Tourism Deputy Chairperson E. Saad bin Ali Al Kharji, Permanent Committee for the Management of Maritime Ports Chairperson Brig. Dr. Abdulhadi Mohammad Zabin Al Dosari, and several senior officials from Mwani Qatar.
MOT’s two-day ‘Sustainable Transportation and Legacy for Generations” conference & exhibition was held under the patronage of the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani.
Industry and thought leaders gathered in the heart of Doha during September 17-18 to shed light on key achievements and milestones of Qatar’s transportation sector.
This two-day event offered a platform for exchange of expertise and insight among highly knowledgeable professionals and experts.
Hot topics cover land, maritime, and air transportation. This includes the plans of switching to a fully integrated public transit system and autonomous mobility and how all of this is supporting commercial, industrial, and logistics industries.