Luxembourg-based company Jan de Nul, next May will start dredging the Maputo harbour channel to allow navigation of ships of up to 80,000 gross tons, the company managing the port said in a statement.

This project, which will deepen the port channel from -11 metres currently to -14.2 metres, has an estimated cost of US$115 million, an amount that will be financed by banks operating in Mozambique.

“Dredging the access channel to the port is a strategic decision that will not only help to achieve the set target of handling 40 million tons by the end of the concession, but also have long-term benefits for the Mozambican economy,” said the chief executive of the Maputo Port Development Company (MPDC), Osório Lucas.

This is the second dredging of the port access channel, after in 2010/2011 the channel was dredged to -9.4 m (the depth the channel was designed for) to -11 metres, which contributed to an increase in handled cargo from 12 million tons in 2011 to over 19 million in 2014.

The MPDC is a partnership between state port and rail company CFM and Portus Indico, a partnership of Grindrod of South Africa, DP World UAE and Mozambican company Mozambique Gestores.

Source: Macauhub