The government of Tanzania said the $10 billion Bagamoyo Port development project, one of the largest port developments currently planned worldwide, has not been suspended and that work on the project would commence in July. The ministry of works, transport and communications issued a statement yesterday to clarify the status of the project following reports it had been suspended and that the government was instead planning to focus on improving the capacity, performance and efficiency of the existing Dar es Salaam and Mtwara ports.
The statement said work on the project would start in July after the conclusion of negotiations on financing with China Merchants Holding International and the sultanate of Oman. It said the negotiations were expected to finish in March. “The Government of the United Republic of Tanzania in December, 2015 compensated a total of 2,183 Bagamoyo residents Sh45.65 billion ($21 million) [to pave way for the project]. A joint working team, comprising technical people from the United Republic of Tanzania, China and Oman is preparing technical and commercial contracts for the implementation of the Port of Bagamoyo,” the statement said.
The minister for works, transport and communications, Prof. Makame Mbarawa, had previously been quoted by the Tanzania press as saying the project was suspended because it needed more attention and planning due to its scale and because it needed a major source of funding. The project to build the new port at Bagamoyo, 75 kilometers (46 miles) to the north of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s capital and the location of its main port, first materialized in March of 2013 when a framework agreement was signed between Tanzania and CMHI during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to the country.
This was followed in October of 2014 by an infrastructure development agreement between Tanzania, CMHI and Oman’s biggest sovereign wealth fund, the State General Reserve Fund. Work was scheduled to commence in July of 2015. At the signing, Li Jianhong, executive chairman of CMHI, asked Tanzania’s government to remove obstacles that were delaying the start of work on the project. The Bagamoyo project has become something of a political football in Tanzania, with opposition politicians and elements of the private sector saying it is a waste of resources and urging instead for the improvement of the existing Tanga, Dar es Salaam and Mtwara ports and connecting infrastructure.
President Jakaya Kikwete held a groundbreaking ceremony for the project in October and some residents were relocated to pave way for construction works to commence. The port, together with new investment in Dar es Salaam and other spending on roads and railways, are part of efforts by the government to create a transport hub that can challenge the dominance of Mombasa in neighboring Kenya. The port is to occupy 800 hectares (1,976 acres) with an adjacent 1,700 hectare industrial zone. It would eventually be capable of handling 20 million 20-foot-equivalent units per year, making it larger than Mombasa which is currently the largest port in East Africa.
Tanzania’s largest port is currently Dar es Salaam, which shippers complain is plagued by delays and inefficiency. According to the African Development Bank, Dar es Salaam currently handles 90 percent of Tanzania’s imports and exports. With the government forecasting throughput growth of 10 percent per year, Dar es Salaam is projected to reach full capacity by 2020.

Source: JOC

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