The Namibian Ports Authority (Namport) has selected Terminal Investment Limited (TIL), a subsidiary of the MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company, as its preferred concessionaire bidder for the new Container Terminal at the Port of Walvis Bay.
TIL was selected ahead of Abu Dhabi Ports, which had also bid for the lucrative contract.
Founded in 2000, TIL has interest in more than 60 terminals, handles at least 60 million TEU’s per annum and operates in 31 countries across 5 continents, is now expected to enter into a 25-year specialised lease arrangement where it runs the terminal and handles the containers in lieu of an upfront payment to Namport.
“The next stage of the process will be to commence with negotiations between Namport and TIL on the Concession Agreement, focusing on the detailed operational matters, including but not limited to the exact terms and conditions of the personnel to be taken over by the operator. This will culminate in the formal award of the concession, the signing of the Concession Agreement and the handover of the cargo handling operations to the private operator or concessionaire. We envisage to finalise the negotiation and handover process by the first quarter of 2023,” Namport Chief Executive Officer Andrew Kanime said.
The latest development comes after Namport approved plans to concession its N$4.2 billion new container terminal commissioned in 2019 to recoup its investment on the back of significant changes in dynamics in the shipping industry as well as depressed macro-economic conditions which negatively impacted industries across all sectors.
Meanwhile, Namport’s revenue for the year ended 31 March 2022, amounted to N$1.23 billion, up from N$1.11 billion in the previous financial year and representing an increase of 11%.
Overall, the Authority’s operating profit for the year increased from N$121 million to N$374 million and excluding the non-operational income of N$147 million, the year-on-year increase in operational profitability amounts to 88%.
