Expansion of Dar es Salaam port

The Tanzanian Ports Authority (TPA) has drawn up plans to expand and modernise the port of Dar es Salaam. As a major gateway to eastern, central and southern Africa, the port handles more than 75 per cent of Tanzania's trade but is struggling to keep up with the demands of a rapidly-growing regional and domestic economy.

Major international port operator APM Terminals has recently expressed interest in investing in modernising and extending the port. At the eighth Pan African Ports Conference in Arusha in December, the Netherlands-based international port operator expressed interest in working with the Tanzanian Ports Authority (TPA) and the Tanzanian government in developing an extension to Dar es Salaam port alongside Hon Kong-based Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH).

Established in 1958, APM Terminals is now the second biggest port operator in the world. It operates out of 60 ports in 34 countries worldwide, including the African ports of Abidjan in Ivory Coast, Cotonou in Benin, Tema in Ghana, Apapa and Port Harcourt in Nigeria, Doula in Cameroun and Pointe Noire in Congo, Luanda in Angola and recently Monrovia in Liberia.