Financial closure for the upgrading of the Kingston Container Terminal (KCT) is expected to take place by the end of March, with handover of the facility to port concessionaire, Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL), to occur simultaneously, reported the Jamaica Information Service.
Speaking in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, January 13, Transport, Works and Housing Minister, Omar Davies, said that the necessary documentation and other legal requirements are being put in place.
The government signed a 30-year concession agreement with KFTL in April 7, 2015, to finance, expand, operate, maintain, and transfer the KCT. The agreement, according to Dr. Davies, gave KFTL and its sponsors six to eight months within which to secure funding for phase one of the capital works.
Meanwhile, phase one works will begin immediately after the handover, and will include the dredging of the access channel and basin to accommodate vessels with draught of 14.2 meters.
It will also include the rehabilitation of 1,200 meters of sheet piles on the South Terminal to facilitate additional deepening of the berth, and strengthening of the piles to be consistent with international codes.
The overall construction is scheduled to be completed within 24 months and will be phased to ensure that transhipment operations at the port are maintained throughout the construction period.
[mappress mapid=”21806″]