R20bn port upgrade planned for Tema

The Port of Tema in Ghana has
announced port upgrade plans
that will enable it to handle
larger size vessels now serving
the African trades. This mostly
as a result of vessels cascading
from the major trades where
mega ships are now deployed.
The project is being carried
out by Meridian Port Services
(MPS) – a joint venture
between APM Terminals and
Bolloré Africa Logistics – and
the Ghana Ports and Harbours
Authority (GPHA).
The development will cost
the equivalent of almost R20
billion, according to Richard
Anamoo the director-general
of GPHA, and is scheduled
to be completed by the fourth
quarter of 2019.
Two organisations funded
the project. The World
Bank Group’s International
Finance Corporation (IFC)
provided over R8.7bn, with the
remaining amount from the
partners of MPS.
And the contract, started last
October by the China Harbour
Engineering Company and
Aecom professional services
(Ghana), will result in four
deep-water berths, a new
breakwater and an access
channel able to accommodate
mega-ships. This is expected to
increase the port’s capacity to
3.5 million TEUs.
The port of Tema handles
80% of Ghana’s import and
export cargo, including the
country’s chief export, cacao.
Apart from this, the port
also deals with transit cargo
destined for the landlocked
countries of Burkina Faso,
Mali and Niger.
Cyrille Bolloré, chairman
of Bolloré Transport &
Logistics, noted that it
would improve Ghana’s trade
competitiveness, facilitate
trade growth and improve
revenue mobilisation. The
project, he added, would allow
the port to accommodate
some of the world’s largest
container ships, and improve
cargo handling services and
capacity.
CAPTION
The Port of Tema.