DP World has been awarded a 30-year concession agreement for the management and development of a greenfield multipurpose port project in Banana, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The agreement, which has an option of a 20-year extension, will see DP World set up a joint venture with the government of DRC, with the former holding a 70 percent stake and the government controlling the remaining 30 percent.
According to DP World, the new development will be the first deepsea port in the country. The first phase of the project will include the construction of a 600 m quay and a 61 acre (25 ha) yard extension, enabling a container capacity of 350,000 teu and a general cargo capacity of 1.5 million tonnes.
Construction is expected to start in 2018 and take approximately 24 months to complete.
The estimated initial investment of USD350 million will be spread over 24 months, said DP World. The total project cost, estimated at around USD1 billion, will be spread over four phases and, according to the Dubai-headquartered terminal operator, will be dependent on the market demand for the port, industrial, and logistics zone infrastructure.
