The Ministry of Transport has projected that with the increase in trade relations in the Portuguese Speaking Countries Community (CPLP), along with the successful exploration of mutually beneficial business opportunities, the movement of goods at Angolan ports may increase to over 5 million tons annually by 2015. It also predicts that in addition to serving internal markets, the ports will also most likely have a relevant role to play in regional supply chains, particularly in attracting goods and traffic destined for nearby landlocked countries.
Exploration of these opportunities, according to Deputy Transport Minister Jose Joao Kuvingua last year, could position Angola in the future to be a logistical service base and provide a substantial boost for its transport services industry. In addition to contributing to the diversification of the economy, this development would have a strong impact on the creation of wealth and employment. It would also increase the need for greater investment in infrastructure, the development of fast and efficient processes, up-to-date training of human resources, and support technological advancement. This all means Angolan port operators are stepping up their efforts to modernize and expand.
MULTITERMINAIS WILL SPEND MORE THAN $50 MILLION IN UPGRADING ITS FACILITIES AT PORT OF LUANDA AND BUILD NEW OFFICES AND WAREHOUSES, INCREASE SECURITY AND EXPAND THE CARGO TERMINAL
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In 2005, the government privatized the nation’s largest port in Luanda, with a 20-year lease being awarded to
Multiterminais – a consortium comprised of Nile Dutch Africa Line BV, which has been in Angola since 1984, NDS Lda, and Copinol SARL. “As we were looking at a long-term business vision, we were always in front of other players in terms of getting cargoes dispatched swiftly, and as a result importers started to prefer us to be in charge of their goods,” says Leonel da Rocha Pinto, general manager of Multiterminais, who has been with the company since NDS days.
Multiterminais last year pledged to invest more than $50 million over the following five years to upgrade the general cargo terminal at Port of Luanda. It is part of their drive to turn the Luanda port into Africa’s leading transshipment hub. The money will be used to pay for major civil engineering work and the purchase of modern equipment, such as industrial forklifts, a platform scale, tugmasters, and an ambulance. The company will also enhance port security by installing closed circuit TVs and other security devices, including 24-hour surveillance guards. The 80,000m2 cargo terminal will be expanded, highways resurfaced, new offices and warehouses built, and a series of giant silos installed, each with a capacity of 30,000 tons.
According to Mr. Rocha Pinto, the port’s enhancements “will be of key importance as the nation is expanding its horizons and efforts are being made to boost the production and transformation of goods.”
He adds, “The port will become an agent of change, and our cargo terminal will contribute towards that.”
Another subsidiary, Multiparques, has created dry ports, such as the complex 15 miles from Port of Luanda at Viana, to help meet the rising demand for storage space. Mr. Rocha Pinto says, “We created Multiparques as a warehouse solution for the problem of space we were having in Port of Luanda because the logistical flow is very important for any economy, as containers can become very costly for the owners if they remain in the terminals for too long, which at the end of the day has a huge impact on the consumer’s pocket.”
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