TIM eMagazine Vol.3 Issue 11
Matadi Gateway Terminal
unlocks shipping system
benefits
T
he recent call of the 2,500-TEU capacity Safmarine Nuba
at the Matadi Gateway Terminal (MGT), an ICTSI Group
company, opens the door to major new shipping system
benefits for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The call, which took place at the end of January,
marked the first call by a gearless containership and the
first by a vessel with a capacity as high as 2,500 TEUs. The
deployment of a vessel of this size unlocks economies of
scale as well as provides the most cost-efficient means of
serving the capital city of Kinshasa. Use of any other port gateway entails
substantial additional land transport costs dramatically pushing up the
overall container transport cost from point of origin to destination.
The transit along the Congo River is also time competitive – it takes
just eight hours from the Banana Roads, at the head of the Congo River,
upstream to Matadi, compared to approximately five hours by road when
optimum conditions are available.
“The MGT is built to handle vessels of up to WAFMAX dimensions and
as such the Safmarine Nuba was straightforward to berth and work,”
explains Tim Van Campen, MGT director general. “We see this,” he
elaborates,” as a step on the road to handling even bigger vessels as
demand builds, eventually up to WAFMAX dimensions from direct calls.”
MGT, with support from the Government of DRC, has a two-step plan
in place to realize strategic dredging in the Congo River up to a draught
of 12.5 meters thereby opening the door to Panamax class vessel calls.
This will be demand triggered as will a third phase, under development,
which will facilitate access for the slightly larger WAFMAX vessels, which
will require a draught of 14 meters. Handling over the quay at MGT is
undertaken by two Terex Gottwald Model 5 mobile harbour cranes, each
able to handle up to 60 tons when working with an automatic twin-lift
spreader and 50 tons in a single lift. Maximum working radius is 51 m.
A third Kone mobile, now on order, will soon be installed, providing the
Credit : ictsi.com
ability to turn a 2,500-TEU capacity vessel in under 12 hours.
Container clearance from the terminal is the most efficient in the DRC
averaging around seven days, half the time typically taken and thereby
promoting further supply chain efficiencies. The advances made in this
respect have also served to double the terminal’s annual capacity from
175,000-TEUs to 350,000-TEUs.
“Progressively MGT is fulfilling its potential and unlocking scale
economies and service efficiencies for cargo owners,” underlines
Hans-Ole Madsen, ICTSI Senior Vice President and head of EMEA. The
terminal is having a positive impact right along the supply chain, and is
delivering tangible practical benefits to cargo owners, a scenario we
expect to grow as demand builds, even larger vessels are phased in and
the terminal reaps the benefits of comprehensive continuous improvement
programs. The Safmarine Nuba represents a ground-breaking ‘first’ and we
are very confident that MGT can deliver further efficiencies and consolidate
and expand its role as the premier container gateway for the DRC.
“There is always competition,” adds Madsen, “but the logic of using
Matadi, the closest port gateway to Kinshasa, where virtually all the cargo
goes, is irrefutable. If you start your overland journey from points such as
Banana or Pointe Noire the additional overland transport costs, compared
to using Matadi, will work out to be more expensive than the entire sea-freight
cost from Shanghai to Matadi! We are also working with the relevant
authorities to enhance the rail link between Matadi and Kinshasa, the only
direct uninterrupted rail link between a port gateway and the capital city.
Matadi is by far the logical choice,” he concludes.
www.ictsi.com
Matadi, located on
the left bank of the
Congo River, 92
miles upstream,
is the closest port
gateway to the DRC
capital of Kinshasa
and offers major
savings in overland
transportation.
Credit : ictsi.com
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