The Port of Maputo has launched a $150 million (approximately R2.47bn) project to deepen and widen its access channel, allowing vessels of up to 366 metres in length to call at the port.
The project was launched on October 12, Radio Mozambique reported, citing the port’s concessionaire, the Maputo Port Development Company (MPDC).
The channel’s depth will increase from 14.4 metres to 15.3 metres, with work expected to take approximately a year. Port operations will continue throughout, according to the MPDC, as reported by Jornal Económico.
The channel will be widened from approximately 110 metres to 210 metres along straight sections and from 150 metres to 295 metres at bends.
The investment forms part of a broader infrastructure development programme linked to the extension of the port’s concession agreement to 2058.
The project would support trade, investment and exports while strengthening Mozambique’s role in serving regional markets, President Daniel Chapo said at the launch.
Efficient inland transport and border processes would also be essential to realising the benefits of the investment, he said, according to an account published by the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA).
Chapo highlighted rail and road connectivity, customs procedures and coordination among logistics operators as priorities for port competitiveness. He called for simpler procedures, greater digitalisation and improved coordination between institutions, warning that time saved at sea could be lost through unnecessary administrative delays.
The dredging comes as DP World advances its $164 million (approximately R2.70 bn) expansion of Maputo’s container terminal.
The first phase is expected to increase annual handling capacity from 255 000 to 500 000 TEUs, Freight News reported in August. Completion is expected in the first quarter of 2027.
The terminal project includes additional quay infrastructure, cranes and reefer capacity. The expansion is expected to create opportunities for direct international vessel calls, with cargo traditionally moving through transhipment hubs, according to DP World Maputo CEO Captain Sumeet Bhardwaj.
