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Thursday 24 May 2012

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Kenya Ports Authority

Biggest regional port poised for growth

With a history spanning many centuries, including when dhows called on the north side of Mombasa Island, Mombasa is today the premier port of call in the East and Central Africa region handling about 18.93 million tons of cargo in 2010 including 5.262 million tons of transshipment.

 

As Kenya’s biggest and busiest seaport, Mombasa is the doorway to a vast hinterland where people depend on agriculture for their livelihood. It serves Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, southern Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia and northern Tanzania.

 

The port is a superb natural harbour with a first-class shelter and deep water berths for larger vessels such as bulk carriers, container ships, motor vehicle carriers and luxury cruise ships. For those in trade — the particular transshipment consignments — the port offers a broad range of shipping services to key destinations around the world. The port’s major markets encompass Western Europe, Asia, the Far East, America and the rest of Africa.

 

 

The port also provides anchorage and storage for regular feeder services between Mombasa and Dar es Salaam, Durban, Mogadishu, Djibouti and Dubai. It is the best connected port of call in the East Africa region after Durban, with about 35 shipping lines calling and direct connectivity to over 80 seaports.

 

Container services are provided entirely by liner vessels, while other types of cargo are carried by a mixture of liner and RORO (Roll-on/Roll-off) vessels. The port is run by the Kenya Ports Authority, which was established on 20th January 1978 through an Act of Parliament. It is also a key boost to Kenya’s tourism industry whose abundant wildlife and scenery are easily accessible through air or by road.

 

The port’s proximity to the Moi International Airport makes it convenient to cruise liner passengers who wish to disembark and head back home by air, as well as those who come by air to board cruise liners at Mombasa. It is efficiently equipped to handle a wide range of cargo, including dry bulks such as grain, fertiliser, cement, soda ash and liquid bulks such as crude oil and oil products as well as bagged products (coffee, tea, sugar, etc) break bulks (iron and steel, timber), motor vehicles, machinery and containerised cargo.

The premier port of call

Imports declined by 1.9 per cent to 16.20 million tones, while exports and transshipment grew by 5.1 per cent and 50.5 per cent respectively.Port productivity improved, with the average container dwell time declining to 5.7 days in 2010 from 6.0 days in 2009. Ship turn-around time, however, increased to 4 days from 3.6 days due to the ongoing rehabilitation of berths 16-18 and the increased number of bigger container vessels served at the Container Terminal.

 

The Authority is also undertaking various measures to contain growing traffic. The construction of Berth No 19 has been progressed to accommodate three standard size container ships. In addition, the conversion of berths 11- 14 into container handling facilities is underway.

 

The detailed designs and pre-qualification of firms to construct the second container terminal west of Kipevu Oil Terminal (KOT) has been completed. The first phase, which involves the construction of two berths for Post-Panamax and Panamax container ships of 60,000 DWT and 20,000 DWT respectively, is expected to be completed by 2015.

 

Dredging and widening of the port channel and turning basin to a depth of 15 metres commenced in February 2011. Once completed, it will increase the port’s competitiveness by allowing larger vessels to call.

 

The implementation of an integrated security system that will improve security and safety of the port is also on-going. In line with the new vision ‘World class seaports of choice’, KPA will ensure operational excellence and provide quality services that exceed customer satisfaction.

Kenya’s international trade

The Authority has subsequently upgraded its ICT infrastructure by acquiring new high memory servers for faster documentation and information management. The Authority will continue to work closely with other stakeholders to facilitate the implementation of the National Single Window System that will provide a common platform to all stakeholders. The ultimate goal is to achieve an e-port status.

 

To ensure equipment reliability and port efficiency, the Authority has continued making substantial investments in equipment modernisation. The delivery of ten Rubber Tyred Gantry cranes (RTGs) and four Reach Stackers in 2010 has enhanced yard operations and service delivery. The remaining consignment, which comprises three Ship-to-shore Gantry Cranes (STS), 10 terminal tractors, floating craft which include two mooring boats and one pilot boat is expected by August 2011. To further improve on service delivery, the Authority is in the process of establishing a one-stop centre for conventional cargo operations while the obsolete Portal Cranes will be replaced with Mobile Harbour Cranes.

 

To enhance efficiency, the port has roundthe- clock working schedules, a system interfaced with Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) systems, enabling flawless movement of crucial documents between the two institutions. There is also a Container Freight Stations (CFS) component where customers using CFSs can execute documents online. This is a brilliant IT system that helps in relieving saturated container terminals through smooth flow of information on container movement.

 

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