Growing demand for modified containers

Angola has seen a significant increase in the demand for modified containers of all kinds, says Christopher Lee, managing director of Container World. Founded in 1983 the company, which specialises in the sale, rental and customised conversion of used and new containers, has much experience in Angola, a country where they have been active for more than 15 years. “After a quiet period in 2009, we have seen a significant increase in the demand for modified containers of all kinds, particularly accommodation units, ice manufacturing plants and our specialised DNV-approved offshore containers,” says Lee. While there are many challenges when dealing with Angola – such as the poor roads and port infrastructure leading to extended delivery periods and higher costs – there are also many opportunities, especially for containers. “Particularly in the mining as well as oil and gas-related industries there are ample opportunities,” says Lee. “Civil construction and housing development have also been good markets. Our success in Angola has come through supplying quality products at competitive prices – and keeping to promised delivery schedules and providing on-the-ground technical support when requested.” Another necessity is having someone on board who speaks fluent Portuguese, which Container World has in the form of a regional sales manager who has lived and worked in Angola for ten years. “The Angolan market will continue to grow driven by healthy oil revenues and an effort by the Government to spread some of that wealth throughout the country, particularly with the provision of housing and other infrastructure,” says Lee. “In order to develop the Angolan market more extensively, we have established a joint venture with ES-KO International, a global leader in the supply of remote site service and engineering solutions. The company has set up a facility at Viana, Luanda where we maintain a substantial stock of MultiHouse (TM) flat-pack units for immediate local delivery. The facility also provides a full erection and installation service using its own teams of experienced technicians.” Lee says the company’s regional office in Windhoek is especially active in the sales of all kinds of modified and standard containers into southern Angola. A recent project was the supply of over 100 of their flat-pack MultiHouse accommodation units for various Customs Border Post facilities. These included banking halls, offices, accommodation and warehouses.