DP World inks $1.13 billion Senegal port deal

Global port and terminal operator DP World DP World has signed an agreement with the government of Senegal to develop a deep-water port at Ndayane worth a total of $1.127 billion.

The new port, 50 km from the existing port and near the Blaise Diagne international airport, will further reinforce Dakar’s role as a major logistics hub and gateway to West and North-West Africa, the Dubai based ports operator said on Wednesday.

DP World Dakar, a joint venture between the Dubai-based logistics provider and the Port Authority of Dakar (PAD), will finance, design and develop land and maritime infrastructure for the new 600-hectare port.

The agreement to build the port was reached after talks between President Mack Sall and DP World Chairman Sultan bin Sulayem. It is in addition to existing plans for DP World to develop and operate a 300-hectare container terminal in the Port of Dakar.

The first phase of the project will see an investment by DP World Dakar of $837 million, which will make it the single largest private sector investment in the history of Senegal and is expected to be followed by the second phase of investment of $290 million.

DP World is also planning to develop a special economic zone next to the Port of Ndayane to further strengthen the attractiveness of Senegal to foreign investors looking at the Ecowas region.

“This will be DP World’s biggest port investment in Africa to date, and is a testament to our commitment to Senegal and belief in its potential for further economic growth,” Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, group chairman and CEO of DP World, said.

Cheikh Kante, Minister of State, and Special Envoy to the President, said the development of the new port at Ndayane would enable Senegal to maintain its position as the maritime gateway to the region and “play a significant contribution towards the realisation of Maky Sall’s vision for an Emergent Senegal.”

“The development of the new port at Ndayane will provide a strong engine of growth for the next phase of the Plan Senegal Emergent,” said Aboubacar Sedikh Beye, director general of PAD, referring to Sall’s Emerging Senegal Plan by its name in French.

DP World, which has been on an expansion drive despite the headwinds posed by the global economy, reported a profit attributable to owners of $313 million for the first half of 2020, a decline of 58.5 per cent from the last year’s equivalent of $753 million. However, the company reported a revenue growth of 17.7 per cent on a reported basis having booked $4.07 billion in revenue for the period.

In November, DP World inaugurated the expansion of the main berth at the DP World Caucedo port terminal as part of its expansion plan in the Dominican Republic. In September, DP World and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), a global institutional investor, announced the expansion of their ports and terminals investment platform through a new commitment of $4.5 billion, which increases the total size of the platform to $8.2 billion. — issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com