It is meant to be Africa’s biggest port, but talks between the Tanzanian government and Chinese and Omani developers over the $10bn megaport at Bagamoyo have stalled, an official said.
Deusdedith Kakoko, director general of the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), said in an interview with Tanzanian media that problems had arisen with the investors’ conditions.
He said: “The conditions include investors’ demand to be granted freedom to setting charges for cargo docking at the port. The investor also wants tax exemption on various commodities. The investor also wants to be compensated on business losses incurred during the project execution.”
Agreed between former Tanzanian president Jakaya Kikwete and Chinese president Xi Jinping in 2013, the scheme was to be developed by China and Oman’s State General Reserve Fund and built by Hong Kong-based conglomerate, Merchants Holdings International.
Bagamoyo was expected to have a capacity of 20 million containers, making it by far the largest port in Africa. The government of Tanzania announced in October 2017 that the first ships would unload in 2020.
Image: A fishing boat at Bagamoyo (Dreamstime)
Further reading:
