Mozambique ports providing lifeline for regional economies

Billions are being invested
in Mozambique’s port and
supporting rail and road
infrastructure to reconnect the
hinterland of the country and
neighbouring states to the world
markets.
Aged and outdated infrastructure
is hampering economic development
through the sub-region, and the
Mozambican ports are regaining their
traditional status as gateways to world
trade through a number of public
private partnerships.
This comes at a time when the
United Nations Conference on Trade
and Development (Unctad) warns in
its 2010 World Shipping report that
the trend is towards larger container
ships, which “pose a challenge to
smaller ports as regards the necessary
investments in infrastructure”.
Manufacturers and exporters
based in countries not served
by ports capable of handling the
bigger container vessels will become
less competitive as they will not
benefit from the economies of scale
provided by the newer generations
of container vessel.
Mozambique offers a life-line
through its natural deep-water ports
of Nacala and Pemba, as well as Beira
and Maputo to the south. Dredging
has helped open up the ports of Beira
and Mozambique to larger vessels.
There are also plans for the smaller
river ports of Chinde and Quelimane,
with an upgrade of the Quelimane
airport to open up the interior of
Mozambique.
Quelimane Airport
The Danish agency for international
development (Danida) has provided
six million euros for the refurbishment
of Quelimane airport in Mozambique,
according to the director of airport
management company Aeroportos
de Moçambique in the Zambezia
province, Joaquim Cachaço.
The port itself has been upgraded
to handle the export of tantalum
concentrate from Noventa’s
Marropino mine.
In the northern ports of
Mozambique, the port redevelopment
is being supported by mining
companies following the discovery of
huge reserves of coal in Mozambique,
as well as expanding exports from its
neighbours.
Vale Mining the world’s largest
iron ore producer, has pledged to
help develop the Port of Nacala to
enhance mining activities in Zambia,
Mozambique and the Democratic
Republic of Congo.
Work has started on a
US$112-million transformation of the
Nacala air base into an international
airport.
There are also plans to connect
Moatize Zimbabwe to Nacala by a
200-kilometre rail link.
Nacala is the deepest port in the
Southern Africa region, and is situated
in a 60-metre deep bay.
The Nacala Development Corridor
links the port to Malawi, and is home
to about ten million people.
Mozambican officials have also
announced plans to expand the
northern port of Pemba, in part to
facilitate exploration for oil in the
region by a number of companies.
Pemba lies in the world’s thirdlargest
bay. However, despite its deepwater
harbour and strategic location,
it has been serving primarily as a
regional feeder port.
A multi-million dollar expansion
will allow Pemba to handle the rapidly
increasing volumes of cargo passing
through the port.
Road and rail links
Large-scale investment is required
into the road and rail links to Pemba
and Nacala. The fertile region is
also subject to flooding, and is still
suffering from the aftermath of the
civil war.
Short-term plans include the
dredging of Beira and rebuilding
of the road and rail links with the
interior. The Sena Line between
Moatize and Beira has recently been
upgraded, while Vale Mining and its
partner Riverside have refurbished
Berth 8 for the export of 5Mtpa of
coal from 2011.
Tenders have been called for the
Beira coal terminal and supporting
rail network, expected to be expanded
to handle 18 to 24 million tons a
year. At present, the Matola terminal
in Maputo handles most of the coal
exports from Mozambique.
An alternative for coal exports
would be by barge down the Zambezi
to the port of Chinde.