Improved efficiencies in the port of Beira and investment in the roads between the Mozambican port city and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have led to an increase in imports and exports moving through Beira, says Richard Tiddy, group marketing manager of the J&J Transport group.
“The Beira port is continually improving which is attracting more interest.
“We have increased transport capacity on the Beira-DRC route to meet growing demand as DRC customers are seeing the benefits of using Beira as a preferred port.
“There has also been an increase in refrigerated traffic. We have J&Jowned gensets and so are able to offer a tailor-made solution via Beira which is proving to be popular,” he says. Productivity in the Beira port has improved following the completion of the dredging of the port and approach channel, as well as widening the turning area to cater for larger vessels.
“The shipping lines have added in new services and have increased calls on Beira, which in turn has helped attract more imports and exports,” he says. Zambian and DRC exporters also stand to benefit from investments being made by the J&J group in response to “exceptional growth” in the Zimbabwean market. J&J has established a ships agency division, Mozambique Vessel Agency (MVA). which is being run by Kanishk Jaiswal.
“This division pioneered the handling of bulk chrome via Beira and is currently looking at doing the same with Zambian Manganese,” says Tiddy. Continued investment in the Beira Logistics Terminal (BLT) has seen the building of a dedicated 2 000 sqm minerals warehouse to cater for exports from Zimbabwe, Zambia and the DRC, he says. The facility should be operational by the end of August 2018. Warehouse capacity in the Independent Beira Logistics Terminals & Services dry port facility has been increased by 4 000 sqm, bringing the total to 20 000 sqm of warehousing on the site.
A further 10 000 sqm is on the drawing boards to meet demand from hinterland customers. The J&J logistics hub and container yard in Lusaka is also being expanded and upgraded. Work has started on paving the yard, as well as a new office block. There is ongoing investment in systems to help customers to monitor the movement of their cargo and to plan accordingly.
Border delays and bureaucracy, particularly at the Kasembulesa border post, remain one of the biggest challenges, “although we are finding the authorities in Zimbabwe and Zambia are making efforts to make improvements,” he says.
Upgrades to the J&J terminal in Lusaka taking shape.
