The Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, yesterday inaugurated the new liquid bulk terminal project at the Takoradi Port.
The project initiated by Ibistek Ghana Limited in March 2018, at the cost of $56 million with funding from the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund and the Consolidated Bank Ghana , will provide essential link in the supply chain for the oil and gas industry through the Takoradi port.
It consists of a 14m-water depth berth, (the deepest in-harbour berth in Ghana), a loading arms for five petroleum products namely petrol, diesel, LPG-gas, bitumen, and other heavy fuels, full berthing structures including fenders on dolphins, bollards and hooking points.
It is also designed to support vessels up to 60,000tons of petroleum cargo carriers. A header station, where all the pipes terminate had been developed so that importers can tie-in to receive their various cargos, meaning that more than 50 per cent of Ghana’s domestic petroleum consumption demands can be met with ease.
The Vice President also cut sod for the second phase of the construction of the dry bulk terminal at the same premier maritime facility.
The superstructure works of the dry bulk terminal is also being carried out by Amandi Investments Limited, at a cost of $70million and is designed to handle nearly18.5 million-metric tons of cargo per annum. Currently, the dry bulk cluster is hovering around 6.5million metric tons per-annum.
Works are expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2022.
The terminal is an 810-meter long wharf facility for three large ore carriers that will be served by loaders (or unloaders) and conveyor systems and designed to handle increased volumes of bauxite, manganese and all the cement-related cargos such as clinker, gypsum, limestone, lime, furnace slag and then other new bulk cargoes that may evolve within the market space.
Later, Vice President Bawumia inspected progress of work on the Ibistek Atlantic Terminal Services Container and Multipurpose Terminal project, designed to greatly enhance the Port of Takoradi’s competitive participation in the container cargo space and strategically spread the development of these services towards the west of the country.
Currently, works on the multipurpose container terminal is progressing steadily and is presently about 45 percent complete.
In his address, Vice President Bawumia indicated that Ghanaians must resolve to believe that the private sector could be relied on to deliver efficiency for the transformation of the Ghanaian economy.
“Not many people believed in their ability to execute these huge projects. We need to pay homage to Ibistek. You have done what many could not do. It’s really fantastic and amazing and without GPHA, you wouldn’t have been here. In the area of infrastructure-we will build the capacity of the private sector.”
“To invest about 300 million dollars in the port and government not putting in any money, they have done well and we need to believe in them. I think there’s more to be done in delivering the infrastructure of this country,” he added.
The Vice President thanked GPHA for believing that Ibistek could deliver the job for the expansion and improvement of the Takoradi Port.
The Western Region, which, he noted, produced about 50 per cent of Ghana’s resources, needs to be reckoned as a new major growth pole as part of the new vision to develop the railway and port sectors for infrastructure and industrial development of the country.
The three projects, he told the gathering, would make the Takoradi Port a petroleum hub and also propel Ghana integrated bauxite and aluminum industry.
Dr Bawumia said the port of Takoradi needed to be major driver in the maritime transport and exports in the West Africa sub region delivering efficient services to landlocked countries including Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali, while reducing cost, turnaround time, loss of revenue and cost of doing business.
The Minister of Transport, Kwaku Ofori Asiamah, reported the challenges Ibistek faced in executing the projects, but, added that he carried a huge mantle to help them succeed, saying, “In such situations we can surmount any mountain”.
Board Chairman of Ibistek, Lawyer Kwame Gyan said: “ We have invested about $322.7 million in the Takoradi Port alone to make the facility provide capacity for future growth in investment.”
