CHAMWE KAIRA
The Port of Lüderitz present a great opportunity towards economic growth of Namibia and it can serve as an oil and gas logistics hub, Cliff Shikuambi, Manager Marketing and Stakeholder Engagement at Namibian Ports Authority (Namport) told Observer Money this week.
He added that the Port of Lüderitz can play a meaningful contribution towards Intra-African Trade under the African Continental Free Trade Agreement.
Shikuambi said further that the Port of Lüderitz fits well with economic zone aspect reflecting on the green hydrogen projects that is underway.
“The massive economic related activities of oil and gas as well as green hydrogen has present a great opportunity for Namport to expand our current port and to develop Agra Deep Water Port,” he said.
Commenting on the importance of the Ariamsvlei-Lüderitz railway to the operations of Namport, Shikuambi said the connectivity of the port with the railway line from Ariamsvlei provides a competitive advantage for increasing the volume of goods transported through the Port of Luderitz.
“The railway line connection acts as a catalyst for enhancing regional integration within the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and is cost-effective, particularly for transporting large quantities of manganese and iron ore,” he said.
The railway is used for manganese exports from the Northern Cape to Lüderitz. Shikuambi said the increase in manganese throughput at the Port of Lüderitz from Northern is a significant boost to the Namport business portfolio as a port. In 2023, the Namibian Ports Authority, via the Port of Lüderitz exported over 800,000 tons, and projects that in 2024, exports will exceed one million tons, he said.
Regarding, the kind of relationship that Namport have with TransNamib on railway operations linking both Lüderitz and Walvis Bay, he said both Namport and Transnamib share a strategic partnership as key players in the transport and logistics industry.
“Together, this partnership works towards creating synergy and fostering collaboration in business development and marketing our transportation routes. Despite facing challenges such as railway line capacity and rolling stock issues, Transnamib is actively working to address these obstacles,” he said.
On the amount of manganese that has been exported via Lüderitz, in the last five years, Shikuambi said since the inception of manganese volume throughput in 2019, the company has successfully exported over two million tons of manganese.
On other goods that can potentially be exported from the Northern Cape, he said iron ore is one such product and that the company can also have a return leg of importation of coke to the Northern Cape mining houses.
The challenges faced on the Ariamsvlei-Lüderitz route include the dilapidated 42KM railway line between Sandverhaar and Bullchultzbrunn, Shikuambi said.
