Construction of a $10-billion new port at Bagamoyo in Tanzania was due to begin this month following an agreement with the government of China to build the facility. It is expected to be the biggest in Africa and handle some 20 million TEUs a year when complete, compared with the current 800 000-TEU throughput at Dar es Salaam. The project will include the building of a 34-kilometre road joining Bagamoyo to Mlandizi and 65 kilometres of railway connecting Bagamoyo to the Tanzania–Zambia Railway and the Central Railway. The port, which is expected to be completed in 2017 and run by Chinese operators, should ease congestion at Dar es Salaam, which may find other business in niche areas. “The development may however negatively affect Mombasa, as shipping lines may prefer to call directly at Bagamoyo new port," said Michelle du Toit, operations director of Beyond Africa Logistics Consultants. Inefficiencies at Mombasa can add 50–80% to the time required to move imports to landlocked countries, she said.
