As the coasts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia extend some 930 miles [1,500 km] along the Red Sea and Gulf coasts, great attention is given to continued expansion and modernization of seaports and maritime transport sectors. As a result, the Kingdom’s trade activities have expanded and seaports and harbors account for 90 to 95% of total export and import trade. The Ports Authority was established in 1976 with a mandate to modernize and upgrade the operational efficiency of the Kingdom’s seaports to meet the increasing volume of imports and industrial exports. The Saudi Ports Authority has successfully met these objectives through the use of modern techniques in operation and management. The number of berths at main seaports rose from 27 in 1975 to 183 in 1999.

The Kingdom has five major commercial ports and two major industrial ports. The commercial ports are at Jeddah, Dammam, Jizan, Jubail and Yanbu. The industrial ports are the King Fahd Industrial Port at Jubail and the King Fahd Industrial Port at Yanbu. There is also the oil port of Ras Tanura, as well as a number of minor ports.