Abu Dhabi’s Hope Consortium has established the largest ‘freezer farm’ in the UAE to enhance the country's vaccine storage capacity. Recently, Abu Dhabi Ports received a delivery of 32 additional ultra-cold freezers at its 19,000 sqm cold and ultra-cold storage facility located in Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD).

According to a statement issued by authorities, the new addition has increased the total number of freezers from 21 to 53 units, along with boosting the ultra-cold storage capacity of the facility from 4 million to 11.4 million doses stored at (ultra-cold) temperatures of -80°C - a significant increase of at least 185 percent.

The freezer farm represents a state-of-the-art ultra-cold storage solution in the pharmaceutical industry. It complements the existing static capacity of the facility to store more than 120 million vaccine vials at temperatures of 2°C to 8°C as well as the storage capacity for 11,000 pallets to store large quantities of support materials such as syringes and other medical equipment.

The addition will amplify Abu Dhabi Ports’ logistics capabilities and expedite the consortium’s supply chain to store and transport all kinds of COVID-19 vaccines and pharmaceutical equipment across all temperature ranges.

These freezers are connected to Maqta Gateway’s digital blockchain-enabled solution “mUnity,” which facilitates real-time tracking of transportation of vaccines through the consortium’s supply chain. It also ensures the safe and transparent delivery of vaccines to countries across the world.

In addition, the storage facility is digitally connected through Maqta Gateway’s power backup systems which help in safe data transfer to the master control tower dashboard that monitors all activity at the facility.

Speaking over the development, Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, Group CEO at Abu Dhabi Ports and Executive Committee chairman at Hope Consortium, said that Abu Dhabi is ensuring a smooth flow of crucial COVID-19 vaccines to countries in need with the provision of well-planned logistics solutions with a diversified vaccine supply chain.

Robert Sutton, head of the logistics cluster at Abu Dhabi Ports, also noted that with greater vaccine supplies coming on stream, the Hope Consortium is prepared to meet the expected surge in demand. The Consortium is equipped with the largest regional capacity to store and distribute extensive quantities of vaccines across all temperature ranges, he noted.

Based in Abu Dhabi, the Hope Consortium is a public-private partnership aimed at transporting large quantities of COVID-19 vaccines to countries across the world. The Consortium provides a complete supply chain solution to address challenges related to transportation of vaccines, demand planning, sourcing, training, and digital technology infrastructure, in order to ensure that vaccines are delivered to all nations in need.