The Minister of Infrastructure and Transport was received on the program ”Le Gouvernement en action”, Monday, June 20, 2022.
Hervé Hêhomey presented 12 infrastructure projects initiated to transform the Autonomous Port of Cotonou.
Construction of a new bulk terminal called Terminal 5; reconstruction of the northern quays and westward expansion of the harbor basin by 154 metres; establishment of a centralized access coupled with the development of a buffer park in Zongo; construction of a port logistics zone (an innovation that will make Cotonou the 2nd port in Africa after Tangier Med); construction of a hydrocarbon station to increase hydrocarbon processing capacity; reconstruction and development of the fishing port which will be moved; construction of the Grand Nokoué logistics park with a capacity of 96,000 m² of warehouses in Abomey-Calavi; construction of the Center for Maritime Affairs; construction of a building for the activity of saleswomen; construction of a hangar adjoining the buffer car park (Zongo large-vehicle car park) to improve conditions for port players; and reconstruction of the harbor fence.
These twelve (12) infrastructure projects were initiated by the government at the Autonomous Port of Cotonou, according to the presentation of the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport during the program ”The Government in Action”, last Monday.
The objective of the work is to “double the current capacity of the Port of Cotonou”, increasing it from 12 million 300 tonnes of goods handled to 25 million tonnes. according to the presentation of the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport during the program ‘
‘The Government in Action”, last Monday.
The objective of the work is to “double the current capacity of the Port of Cotonou”, increasing it from 12 million 300 tonnes of goods handled to 25 million tonnes. according to the presentation of the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport during the program ”The Government in Action”, last Monday.
The objective of the works is to “double the current capacity of the Port of Cotonou”, increasing it from 12 million 300 tonnes of goods handled to 25 million tonnes.
“Last year, we handled just over 12 million 300 thousand tons of goods. Our objective is to go to 25 million tonnes, so more than double that. With these works that we are undertaking, we will more than double the current capacity of the Port of Cotonou,” said Hervé Hêhomey.
Considering the scale of the projects, one wonders if all this can be achieved before the end of the second term (2021-2026) of President Patrice Talon?
In response to this concern, the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport wants to be reassuring. Each project with its deadlines.
For the bulk terminal, in September 2024, we would be done. The reconstruction of the north quays is work that we will be doing in phases. Because we cannot block the port to finish every 1,600 linear meters of quay; we will do this work in 5 phases. The last phase will be completed in 2026. Centralized access is very soon. We have already started by using the Zongo car park.
At the same time, we will continue the improvements. What is done today is not yet the final work. We are going to treat the ground, set up a video surveillance system to manage the entrances and exits of trucks inside this car park, and to connect with the port information system which will allow these trucks to be called. A truck will only leave this buffer zone when it is called to go directly to load. This is already the case today, but we are going to improve it further,” promised Hervé Hêhomey.
