BERBERA PORT EXPANSION TO COMMENCE IN SEPTEMBER.

Berbera port expansion to commence with just concluded agreement between UAE and the Government of Somaliland.

The Berbera Port expansion project is about to start with the just concluded agreement between United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Somaliland Government.

The Head of Port Operation Ali Ismail Mohamed confirmed that the project is set to kick off after his visit to the port. Adding that the first phase will commence in September and concluded by 2020.

The port currently handling 150,000 TEU: 20-foot equivalent unit is expected to handle 1million TEU of 20 and 40 foot mixed units.

Hence, the US $442m project will be completed in two phases. The first phase will be to construct a 430 m berth to carry two vessel at any given time. The second phase is to construct a total of 800 m wide berth to accommodate five ships at a time. The current state of the port is accommodating five vessel with  a 650 m long berth which is not conducive.

19% of the ports stake is owned by Ethiopia. However, the country is looking at shipping some 30% of its import/export trades whereby close to 10% of the total volume of shipment will be directed to Port of Sudan. Currently 95% of the country’s international trade channels through the Port of Djibouti.

In addition, Somaliland has already built a container strip close to the ship main yard named Wuchale. It was named after a historical place in Ethiopia. Therefore, some of the general cargoes which the Berbera Port handles include 25,000 tons of food aids. As a result of the coming upgrade this volume is expected to climb to 40,000 tons this year.

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