The President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf offered praise for the successful partnership between the West African nation and APM Terminals as she dedicated the newly completed 600-meter quay at the Freeport of Monrovia on May 22nd at a ceremony attended by prominent members of her administration, as well as senior executives of APM Terminals.
“With hard work, determination and perseverance, I am proud to announce that the reconstruction of the wharf at the Freeport of Monrovia has been completed” President Sirleaf stated, noting that the quay was constructed to current industry standards the equal of any now operating around the world.
A 25-year agreement was signed in 2010, representing the first 100%-owned port concession for APM Terminals in Africa, which currently has interests in 11 port facilities in 10 African nations. APM Terminals is the largest terminal operator in Africa (outside of South Africa), with operations encompassing nine facilities in eight nations within the high-growth West African region, including West Africa’s busiest container terminal at APM Terminals Apapa, Nigeria, which handled 618,000 TEUs in 2012. A proposal for a new deep-water 1 million TEU annual capacity facility at Badagry, Nigeria is moving forward.
A three-year deadline for the completion of the new wharf was stipulated in the Monrovia concession agreement, which was concluded on the Build-Operate-Transfer model.
“It was a tight three-year deadline, and we are very proud to stand here with this milestone met ahead of schedule so that we can move seamlessly into the next stages of the port modernization project” stated APM Terminals Head of Project Implementation Soren Jakobsen.
New infrastructure investments at the 17 hectare (42 acre) concession site will include roadway reconstruction, yard paving, new offices and gates and cargo handling technology to increase capacity and efficiency, and improve safety standards and performance. APM Terminals will invest approximately $120 million USD over the 25-year concession term in improvements, equipment and training. Equally important, the company will invest an additional USD 25 million beyond what is required in the concession agreement to upgrade the container yard, buildings, gates and safety activities.
Also attending the dedication ceremony were the Commissioner of the Liberia Maritime Authority Biyan Kesselly, Liberian Minister of Finance Amara Konneh, Justice Minister Christiana Tah, Lands Mines and Energy Minister Patrick Sendolo, and National Investment Commission Chair O. Natty B. Davies, along with APM Terminals Liberia Managing Director Brian Fuggle.
“I am proud to say we have found a partner in APM Terminals, ” said President Sirleaf.
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Press Release, May 28, 2013