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Since its inception, the Democratic Republic of Congo has been considered a landlocked country without deep-water ports. This has made Congo dependent on its coastal neighbors for the transportation of its products, especially raw materials and imports. The Lobito Corridor in Angola is one of the routes used by Congo to transport minerals.
That may soon change. Dubai Ports World and the UK government’s development finance arm will soon break Congo’s isolation, starting in 2022 with plans to build a deepwater port in the Democratic Republic of Congo by 2025, while Emirates Logistics ramps up its expansion in Africa, Bloomberg announced.
British International Investment will invest $35 million to build DP World’s infrastructure at the Banana Port, located where the Congo River meets the Atlantic Ocean, bordering Angola. The two companies have previously established similar partnerships in Somaliland, Egypt and Senegal.
“The port is being developed in multiple phases and its capacity is expected to increase gradually over time,” Beijing Investment Group said in a statement on Monday. British government agencies estimate that the investment will reduce trade costs in the Democratic Republic of Congo by 12% and create up to 85,000 jobs.
The project adds another foothold to DP World’s footprint in Africa, with the company planning to invest $2 billion in ports and $1 billion in logistics operations over the next three to five years to meet long-term growth. The company’s competitors have also been investing across the continent in light of growing demand for basic mineral exports.
The decline of South African rail and logistics company Transnet SOC Ltd. has created more opportunities for regional ports, which are adding capacity as the once-dominant company takes steps to improve operations.
Atlantic-Indian Corridor
DP World Group President Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem said its strategy includes developing bananas and building a new trade corridor connecting them to Africa’s east coast. “We like to build corridors,” he said in an interview. “Here we will connect the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. This is good for us.”
The project aims to transform infrastructure in the Democratic Republic of Congo by adding a 600-meter (1,968-foot) long quay with a draft of 18 meters, capable of berthing the largest ships in operation. DP World plans to have a throughput capacity of approximately 450,000 containers.
Mohammed Akuji, CEO of DP World’s sub-Saharan Africa unit, told Bloomberg News earlier this year that expanding markets for key minerals, including copper from Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, are helping drive demand for greater logistics capacity.
“In recent years we have seen an increase in demand, driven largely by the global electrification movement and demand for commodities such as cobalt and lithium,” he said. The project has been criticized for its potential environmental threats as it is adjacent to the Congolese Mangrove National Park, which is home to vulnerable and endangered species of plants and animals.
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