Construction work on the Banana deepwater port has resumed. Nico Nzau Nzau, General Manager of the Congolese Agency for Major Works (ACGT), broke the news. On May 16, he visited the site while on a working mission in Kongo-Central.

Nzau Nzau revealed that seabed dredging operations have been launched around the site that will house the future port. The first dredging vessel, from France, is already at work. It will enable a depth of 12 meters to be reached. A second vessel should come in a few days, expanding this depth to 18 meters, the level required to accommodate large tonnage vessels.

Launched in 2022, the Banana deepwater port project was paused repeatedly, notably in 2024, due to technical and financial disputes. Last April, executives from DP World, the port operator, assured Prime Minister Judith Suminwa Tuluka that the first phase of work could be completed by 2026.

In March, DP World awarded this first phase to the Portuguese company Mota-Engil, under a contract valued at $250 million. The contract includes building a 600-meter quay, developing a 30-hectare storage area, and installing state-of-the-art equipment capable of handling up to 450,000 containers per year.

Located in the province of Kongo-Central, Banana deewater port is of strategic importance to the Democratic Republic of Congo. It will provide the country with direct access to the Atlantic Ocean and a modern marine terminal capable of handling large vessels without relying on the port infrastructures of neighboring countries.

This article was initially published in French by Ronsard Luabeya (intern)

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho