PROJECTS AT TANZANIA’S MTWARA PORT TO COMMENCE IN MARCH

Construction of the new berth and the cargo yard at Mtwara port is on track and the new cargo terminal is expected to be completed next March, port management has stated.

Briefing reporters who toured the port recently, Mtwara Port Manager, Engineer Juma Kijavara, said the construction project is currently at 55% of implementation.

He said the new berth is 300 m long and 13.5 m in depth (draft) will have the capacity to accommodate mega cargo ships weighing 65,000 tonnes. Currently, the port accommo- dates cargo ships of 40,000 tonnes.

All the necessary state-of-the art cargo handling equipment, including modern mobile cranes and other heavy lifting machines, will be availed at the port upon completion.

The construction of the new multipurpose terminal is being implemented through a joint venture of two Chinese firms – M/S China Railway Construction Engineering Group and China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group at a cost of 137bn/-.

Engineer Kijavara said the modern multipurpose cargo terminal will be capable of delivering quality services to the southern regions (Lindi, Mtwara and Ruvuma) but focussing on serving the neighbouring countries – Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia.

However, he said, the government’s future plan on Mtwara Port is to have four berths. “The old berth measures 380 m long while its yard is 40,000 m². Therefore the construction of the second berth 300-m-long berth will give us a berth of 680 m long,” he said.

The second yard, currently under construction, measures 79,000 m². Upon completion next March, Mtwara Port will increase its cargo handling capacity from 400,000 tpa to 1,000,000 tonnes.

The ongoing expansion of Mtwara Port is one of the measures by government to implement a number of projects under Mtwara Development Corridor.

Mtwara Port Engineer Norbert Kalembwe said the construction of the second berth started in May 2017 under the ‘Design and Build’ approach.

According to the port engineer, preparations of all necessary construction materials are nearing completion. Currently, Mtwara Port plays a significant role in ferrying cashew nuts abroad, including Vietnam.

Cement produced at Dangote Cement Plant has been reaching markets in Comoro, Zanzibar and some parts in SADC region through Mtwara Port.https://allafrica.com/stories/201911030030.html