Update Published: 12 March 2010
Delays in São Tomé
Preliminary development work on a new port in the Gulf of Guinea state of São Tomé and Príncipe will now not begin until 2011
French firm Terminal Link, an offshoot of CMA CGM, signed an agreement with the government of São Tomé and Príncipe to plan and develop the planned deepwater port last August.
Work was due to begin this year but the financial difficulties affecting the entire shipping industry appear to have prompted the twelve month delay.
Terminal Link was expected to complete the project’s feasibility and environmental impact studies by 2014, with the container terminal and other port facilities due to come into operation by 2018.
The port is to be constructed at Fernão Dias11 kms north of the capital city São Tomé, on the island of the same name.
A spokesperson for the French company said that the project remains economically viable and added: “Before we enter the construction phase...there will be a number of technical jobs to do, besides finishing arrangements with the companies involved and potential project financers so that we can effectively begin the execution phase in 2011.”
Although the country has yet to begin commercial oil or gas production, the creation of a joint development zone in maritime territory disputed with Nigeria has allowed upstream exploration to begin in a region that is widely considered to be prospective for hydrocarbons.
The government of São Tomé and Príncipe hopes to provide a more diverse economic base to support the expected influx of oil revenues.
Total port development costs are put at US$570M, with some financial support provided by the World Bank, African Development Bank and Agence Français de Développement, as well as the lion’s share by Terminal Link itself.
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