Dredging works on the basin of the Takoradi Port under the multipurpose container terminal to create a deeper draft to make it easy for bigger vessels to dock at the port has begun.
The project, a collaboration between IbisTek Limited and Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA), would pave the way for the construction of a-600 metre-long quay wall for the berthing of large container vessels with an annual container output of one million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs).
Additionally, the dredging works would see the depth increase to 16 metres from the current 11 metres, while an approximate one million cubic metres of hard materials would be dredged under phase one of the project to create space for bigger vessels to dock at the facility.
The total cost of the “Upgrade and Expansion of the Port of Takoradi” project is $500 million and is expected to be completed by November 2021.
The Chairman of the Board of IbisTek, Kwame Gyan, in an interview with journalists after a tour of the project here on Monday, said the collaboration with GPHA to transform the port was significant and would position it as the preferred port in the West African sub-region.
“We are now masters and we are ready to reverse the fortunes of the country’s port and businesses. The job economy will improve and we shall see an increased activity in the maritime value chain, both direct and indirect,” he added.
The Chief Executive of IbisTek and Atlantic Terminal, Dr Nana Sackey, said “we have the capacity because we are fully prepared. Indeed, we are ahead of schedule because we know what we are doing.”
The dredging works is being done by the Cutter Suction Dredger (CSD), experts in the removal of hard and very hard material from the bottom of the sea, and is expected to end in April 2020.
Additionally, CSD, also known as CSD Zhen He, is executing dredging works on the berth pocket to depth 16 and the basin to 18.6 metres.
Captain Ebenezer Afadzi, Director of Takoradi Port, noted that the increase in depth from 11metres to 16 metres was significant and would assist in transforming business at the port.
He said the Atlantic Terminal Services expansion project also meant attracting more and bigger vessels to berth at the Takoradi Port, thus positioning the facility for increased traffic and productivity.
The project is being financed by the African Finance Group (AFC), the Ghana Infrastructure Fund and other partners.
It is expected to generate nearly a million jobs during the construction phase, about 400 permanent jobs and about 1,000 indirect jobs when completed and it became operational.
FROM CLEMENT ADZEI BOYE, TAKORADI
