The Namibia Ports Authority (Namport) has announced that it will commence with the process of the proposed concession of the new container terminal in Walvis Bay to an independent operator.
Concessioning is the process in which a public sector owned asset is availed for operation and management by the private sector for a defined period of time at a fee and undertakings of mutually set investment upgrades.
Addressing a media briefing at Walvis Bay yesterday, NamPort Chief Executive Officer Andrew Kanime said the decision came as a result of the current dynamics in the shipping industry, which have significantly shifted.
“Due to depressed macro-economic conditions which negatively impacted industries across all sectors with attendant decreases in imports and export handled through Namibia and other ports, shipping lines have moved to larger size vessel deployment as part of their own drive towards cost rationalisation.
The cumulative effect of these unforeseen and unfortunate developments has been a significant decrease in the volumes throughput through the new container terminal with a current handling capacity of 750 000 Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit (TEUs),” Kanime noted.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency
