By Mohamed T. Massaquoi
The dream of the Freetown Port becoming the largest transshipment hub in Sub-Saharan Africa is getting closer to reality with the recent inauguration of its newly expanded container terminal.
The project funded by the renowned French port handler, Bollore Transport and Logistics, which manages the terminal, is expected to cut down on the time of clearing containers and increase output and thereby boosting the country’s economy.
Bollore Transport and Logistics, through a subsidiary outfit called Freetown Terminal Limited, began operating in Sierra Leone in 2010, following the ratification of its initial 10 years concession. In 2016, the concession was extended to a further 10 years, with a 20 percent share allocated to the government of Sierra Leone. That
agreement also approved the company’s plan for expansion of the terminal.
The project entailed the construction of a new quay of 270meters long and 13meters wide, alongside the construction of a 3.5-hectare new storage facility.
The project involved reclaiming part of the sea, and the procurement and installation of modern port equipment, notably two ship-to-shore cranes and four Rubber Tyre Granting (RTG) cranes. It also has a power plant of 6 megawatts capacity.
Construction work on the terminal commenced in April 2017. Officials say the project, which cost the company $120 million, is in line with government’s development aspiration to transform the Queen Elizabeth II Quay, as the Freetown Port is also known, into the largest state-of the art transhipment hub in West Africa.
The new terminal is said to have met internationally acceptable standards with its two mobile harbour cranes, with a life-time capacity of 100 tonnes. It will operate on a fully computerised system with reach stackers and two front-end loaders. The entire terminal has been fitted with CCTV security.
Besides jobs, the project was billed to raise the port’s level of income and revenue generation. Officials note that it will also crucially reduce the cost of shipping to Sierra Leone.
With the new state of the art machines, Freetown Terminal is expected to increase to 40, from 34, the number of containers it handles per hour.
According to ports officials, before now the biggest ship that could enter the Queen Elizabeth II Quay would carry 2,800 containers, but with the new facility they are expecting ships carrying up to 6,500 containers.
Each of the Ship to Shore Crane has a capacity of 1,200 tons weight, and both can handle 6,000 containers.
Bollore Transport and Logistics is itself a branch of the Bollore group which is a paper, energy, plantations and logistics conglomerate. The company’s branches spread across the globe, in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas.
The Freetown Port is the principal commercial port in Sierra Leone, as the most important entry point for trade and commerce to the country.
It is thought to have the largest natural harbor on the entire coast of Africa.
The port is also known to have one of the finest natural harbours on the West African Coast, with a well-protected anchorage, a draft at berth of 7-10 meters, a length of quay of 1,067 meters consisting of 6 berths, and sizeable and fenced land area allocated for the port.
Besides the Freetown Port, there are several other, smaller ports along the Sierra Leonean coast, including Cline Town Government Warf, Kissy Ferry Terminal, Kissy Oil Terminal and Tagrin Ferry Terminal. The Freetown Terminal Limited has control over berths 3 to 6, which is the container terminal, while a separate company, Nectar Sierra Leone Bulk Terminal, controls berths 1 and 2 and handles the bulk terminal.
Freetown Terminal says it is expecting doubling of productivity at the container terminal within four years.
Due to its close proximity to South America, Sierra Leone has the potential to attract bigger ships with containers destined for South America.
Seray Bollore, Chief Executive Officer of Bollore Transport and Logistics, said the Sierra Leone expansion is part of their goal to build a strong Africa appraisal. The expansion, he added, was expected to reduce the time for clearing containers at the port and provides more business opportunities to the country.
The newly constructed berth and storage facilities actually began operation at the end of August, ahead of schedule.
The facility was officially inaugurated by President Julius Maada on November 23.
The President hailed the initiative, while praising Bollore for its role in the economic development of Sierra Leone. He noted that during his recent engagement with the European Union and ACP in Brussel, he “reiterated” Sierra Leone’s vision for a trade investment relationship.
“We are looking for a mutual beneficial relationship. We want to grow and diversify our economy and create well paid jobs for Sierra Leoneans,” he said.
Mr Bio also used the opportunity to reiterate Sierra Leone’s readiness for business to the rest of the world.
“We want our current partners and investors in the country to tell other investors around the world that Sierra Leone is a good place to invest,” he said.
Bollore, through a substantial shareholding in the agribusiness company Socfin, is also investing in the palm oil and rubber sector in Sierra Leone’s southern Pujehun district.
(c) 2018 Politico Online
