The government is keen on using Naivasha Inland Container Depot to ease congestion in Nairobi ICD and Mombasa following the low evacuation of the cargo at the port due to Covid-19 pandemic that has left Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) working on a very lean staff.
Transport Cabinet Secretary Mr James Macharia yesterday toured Naivasha Dry Port to assess its readiness for business. Naivasha ICD is expected to play a major role in the fight against COVID-19, as it facilitates the direct shipment of goods from Mombasa to Naivasha via the SGR, and thus eliminates the need for people to move the cargo for hundreds of kilometers, Macharia said.
“The Naivasha ICD will also reduce congestion in Nairobi ICD and Mombasa Port, and facilitate the seamless transshipment of goods destined to neighboring countries. These countries have also been allocated space for logistics operations at the Naivasha Special Economic Zone,” Macharia twitted.
Naivasha inland container depot has not been receiving cargo train since President Uhuru Kenyatta launched freight operations to the Rift Valley town, due to what the industry stakeholders cited as lack of some crucial infrastructural components.
In February this year, KPA took freight stakeholders to the ICD station who pointed a number of gaps that needed to be fixed to make the ICD usable.
On December last year, President Kenyatta launched the extended standard gauge railway (SGR) freight services from Mombasa to the Naivasha ICD, promising faster transportation of cargo to western Kenya and on to neighbouring countries.
“As we mark the completion of Naivasha ICD and commencement of freight operations, it is our expectation that these new transport infrastructure facilities will significantly support and provide anchorage for the development of the Naivasha Industrial Park,” President Kenyatta said during the launch.
Freight stakeholders from our neighboring East African countries, the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as the counterparts from Mombasa and Nairobi toured the Naivasha ICD in February.
Earlier this year, plans were underway to start operations with two trains to serve the Naivasha ICD with cargo destined for neighbouring countries, with two shipping lines shipping lines committing to transport goods directly from Mombasa to Naivasha.
The Naivasha ICD is at the heart of Kenya’s ambition to become the transport corridor of choice for neighbouring countries.
Before Kenya announced its first case of Covid 19, Kenya Railway managing director Philip Mainga had sent letters to stakeholders notifying them of the cargo charges from Mombasa to Naivasha.
The letter also said that goods destined for the hinterland and neighbouring countries including Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Burundi, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo could be delivered straight to Naivasha from Mombasa, thus taking the cargo closer to the customer.
According to the letter, KR has set the freight rates at $600 for a 20ft container for upward lift from Mombasa to Naivasha, and $300 for a downward trip.
The company will charge $850 for a 40ft container of up to 20.9 tonnes, and $910 for 21 tonnes and above for the inbound trip; $420 and $455 respectively for the Coast bound journey. The tariff for transporting empty containers is $120.
“The conventional cargo is billed at $0.044 per tonne/km,” said the letter.
Kenya is hoping to increase the volumes of transit cargo being transported on the SGR. About 30 per cent of all cargo coming through Mombasa Port goes to neighbouring countries.
Last year the government give Uganda and Rwanda land in Naivasha to help the two countries to construct ICD to handle cargo destined to their countries. Currently, cross broder trade between Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania has become very challenging requiring proof that the truck drivers and crew are Covid 19 free.
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