DP World wins Congo port concession

Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem and Jose Makila Sumanda at the signing of the Port of Banana concession.

Global ports operator DP World said on Sunday it had won a 30-year management and development concession for a greenfield, multi-purpose port in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The project in the Atlantic Coast's Port of Banana will be undertaken as a joint venture with the Central African country's government. An initial $350 million will be invested to construct a 600-metre quay and a 25-hectare yard extension with a container capacity of 350,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) and 1.5 million tonnes for general cargo, DP World said in a statement.
The total project cost will be over $1 billion, spread over 4 phases, and dependent on market demand industrial and logistics zone infrastructure.
The award includes an option to extend the concession for an additional 20 years. The Port of Banana will be the first deep-sea port in the country along its small coastline of 37 kilometres, which currently only has the riverine port of Matadi.
Construction is expected to start this year and take 2 years to complete, said the Dubai-based company, which operates a portfolio of 78 marine and inland terminals supported by over 50 related businesses in over 40 countries.
DP World, which has been on an ambitious expansion drive, recently completed the acquisition of Peru's Cosmos Agencia Maritima.
The latest joint venture port development project follows DP World's announcement that it would invest $1.4 billion in 2018, mainly in the UAE where its flagship Jebel Ali Port is located, and in Ecuador, Somaliland, South Korea, Mozambique, and Egypt.
The ports operator said it would control 70 per cent of the joint venture with the government of Congo retaining the remaining 30 per cent, the statement said.
The development gives the Democratic Republic of the Congo the opportunity to be connected into global trade lanes, to have access to a wide range of global markets and to reduce its dependency on the neighbouring countries' ports.
"We are delighted to extend our African footprint further with a major investment in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which is Africa's third-most populous country but has no direct deep-sea port. Investment in this deep-water port will have a major impact on the country's trade with significant cost and time savings, attracting more direct calls from larger vessels from Asia and Europe, and ultimately acting as a catalyst for the growth of the country and the region's economy," said Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO, DP World.
"DP World has become a major player in Africa and the Port of Banana will contribute to our global network and continued growth in the developing markets. We are confident that this investment will deliver attractive returns to shareholders over the longer-term and we look forward to bringing DP World's world class productivity-enhancing, security, safety and environmental best practices in container terminal development and operation to DRC."
Jose Makila Sumanda, Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications, Democratic Republic of the Congo, said the Port of Banana would offer the first deep-water port to the Democratic Republic of the Congo that will dramatically improve the cost and time of trade as the majority of the cargo is still handled by neighbouring countries.
"The project will provide us with a first-class marine facility comparable to other African countries in terms of capacity, draft and ability to handle the latest generation of vessels.
"The country was waiting for this strategic and structural project for a long time. We are confident that with DP World as a partner, we will be able to meet the expectations of our people, traders and exporters to have access to more markets and to bring more efficiency and cost effectiveness to international trade," said Sumanda.
- issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com
 

• Infrastructure