Dredging at Maputo Port

26 Feb, 2016

Channel to be dredged to allow access to larger ships.

Major dredging works to deepen the access channel to Maputo Port are scheduled to begin in mid-May, according to its management firm Maputo Port Development Company (MPDC).

On completion of the ten-month project the channel will be 14.2m deep at high tide, an increase of 3m from its current depth, allowing access to ships of up to 80,000 tons.

The work will be carried out by the Belgian dredging company Jan de Nul and the $115-project is being financed by several partners including the Mozambican government.

The MPDC says the dredging works will allow the port to reach its target of handling 40 million tons of cargo annually year by 2035.

This is the second dredging of the access channel which was deepened from 9.4m to 11m in 2010, helping the port increase its cargo traffic from 12 million tons in 2011 to 19 million in 2014.