The new terminal will be located on the riverbank of the Congo River in Matadi, which is already the main point of entry for containers into DRC, serving the greater western region and the Kinshasa market.
Jens Floe, senior vice president, Africa, ICTSI, told Port Strategy: “Africa is one of the most important regions for us. DRC has shown excellent economic growth in recent years averaging around 7-8% annually with corresponding expansion in its trade with the rest of the world.”
“With improving economic and political stability combined with its large and young population of more than 65 million people, DRC is set to emerge as one of Africa’s most important economies and trade destinations,” he added.
DRC is ICTSI’s third project in Africa after Madagascar and Nigeria. With this, the company says it hopes to bring new and improved service to the fast growing economy and hopes it can decrease total transportation time and cost.
Phase one of the project will consist of two berths with a total length of 350m, which will be servicing shipping lines, importers and exporters with its modern infrastructure and state-of-the-art equipment.
The facility will be able to handle 120,000 teu and 350,000 tonnes. ICTSI says the capacity and berth length can, subject to demand, be doubled in phase two.
It is estimated that the total capital expenditure of the project for phase one will be around US$100m.
ICTSI Congo DR is a joint venture owned by ICTSI Group (60%) and Simobile SPRL (40%).
The facility is expected to begin operation in 2015.