DP World is planning new investments in Mozambique, where it already operates and is expanding the port of Maputo, the president of the multinational in the logistics and port sector said on Monday, following a meeting in New York with the Mozambican president.
“I want to say that we are enthusiastic about the country and the nearby cities, Nacala [northern Mozambique], many places today where, we believe, we can add value to the trade sector,” said Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, speaking to journalists after meeting with Filipe Nyusi, who is visiting New York as part of the 79th United Nations General Assembly.
“We’ve been in Mozambique for more than 20 years and Mozambique is now a major cargo hub, especially for neighbouring countries, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia, and the region.
And this is reflected in our investment to expand the port of Maputo and we have discussed the possibility of creating industrial parks in various parts of the country and improving logistics in the country and in neighbouring countries.
For Maputo it’s a great victory in terms of trade,” added Ahmed Bin Sulayem about the meeting with Nyusi.
According to the chairman of DP World, a multinational based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, investment in the expansion of Maputo’s port – around US$600 million over the next three years alone – is also already underway: “It’s going to be much bigger than the previous one.”
The concession of the port of Maputo to Sociedade de Desenvolvimento do Porto de Maputo (MPDC) will run until 13 April 2058, according to the terms of the addendum to the contract, approved by decree of the Mozambican government published last April.
MPDC is a private Mozambican company that resulted from a partnership between Mozambique Railways (CFM) and Portus Indico, which is made up of Grindrod, DP World and the company Mozambique Gestores.
“It is extended for an additional period of 25 years from the term contained in its second addendum (13 April 2033), with the concession ending on 13 April 2058, with a view to recovering the additional investments requested by the government,” reads the decree.
The same decree approves the terms of the Business Plan for making additional investments, “aimed at increasing cargo handling capacity at the Port of Maputo, with the concessionaire being authorised to make additional investments” of US$2.060 billion (€1.9 billion) in the Port Concession Area.
The Maputo port concessionaire plans to invest US$600 million (€553.4 million) over the next three years in expanding the port infrastructure, the first phase of investment in the addendum to the concession contract, until 2058.
MPDC’s executive director, Osório Lucas, previously explained to Lusa that this first phase will increase the container terminal’s capacity from the current 170,000 to 530,000 containers in three years.
“And it will also increase the capacity of the Matola Coal Terminal, from seven million [mtpa] to 12 million. And our general cargo capacity will rise from 10 million [mtpa] to 13 million in phase 1, which will be completed in the next three years,” he said.
MPDC expects to go from a cargo handling volume of 26.7 mtpa (million tonnes per year) in 2023 to 50.9 mtpa in 2058, at the end of this new contract extension period of another 25 years (starting in 2033).
By 2058, it also estimates an increase in operational capacity from the current 37 mtpa to 54 mtpa and in terminal capacity from 270 to one million containers, the expansion of the Matola Coal Terminal from 7.5 to 18 mtpa and the General Cargo Terminal from 9.2 to 13.6 mtpa.
The port of Maputo currently employs around 10,000 direct and indirect workers, with the expansion expected to bring in an additional 2,000 employees.
Lusa
