By Achille Mbog Pibasso.
Activities are gaining momentum at the port of Kribi with the entry into operation of the multipurpose terminal.
The multipurpose terminal platform of the Kribi port is now operational. Managed by the Cameroon consortium Kribi polyvalent multiple operators (KPMO), it officially entered into business with the arrival of the first commercial vessel on January 18, 2019.
According to the General Directorate of Kribi Autonomous Port (PAK), a Chinese-flagged vessel docked there and unloaded at the multi-purpose wharf more than 3,000 pipelines for the city’s drinking water project. city of Yaoundé and its surroundings from the Sanaga River (PAEPPYS). A water supply project estimated at nearly CFAF 400 billion financed mainly by Eximbank from China, whose work will improve the drinking water supply of the political capital and its surroundings, from a little more than 200 000 m3 of water per day currently to more than 400 000 m3 of daily water by 2022.
According to PAK officials, the opening of the multipurpose terminal reinforces the attractiveness of this port which is a major project of economic transformation of Cameroon. And for good reason, “we can now say that the PAK is a reference port for logistics operations to Cameroon and the sub-region”, we welcome the South II customs sector.
For two years, the operation of the multipurpose terminal by KPMO will be governed by time for the PAK to select a new partner able to effectively develop the infrastructure after the “failure” found last year of the contractor said terminal, the French group Necontrans. A situation that has led the Cameroonian government to choose local operators gathered within the KPMO consortium while waiting for the choice of a reference operator over the next two years.
With a draft of 16 meters, the multipurpose terminal accommodates conventional vessels of 25 to 30,000 DWT (deadweight tonnage). According to forecasts, the average traffic that the PAK estimates to be able to process during the two years is around 500 000 tonnes.
