The commissioning of the second port in Lamu that is expected to take place soon will open new opportunities for the transporters who have been hit hard by the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), which has been moving the entire Nairobi based containerized cargo to ICD in Embakasi.
One lane of a 10 kilometers dual carriage road linking the port to the main highway is complete with the construction of the other lane ongoing hence providing the necessary linkage for cargo out of the port. The construction of the Lamu – Garsen – Witu road has also registered tremendous progress, according to the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA).
The delay in the construction of highway infrastructure to feed and evacuate cargo from the new Lamu Port might have delayed the commissioning of the second Kenyan port, which was expected to happen late last year.
The progress of the construction of the 135-kilometre Lamu-Garsen road, which was awarded to H-Young Contractors in 2016, has been slow with President Uhuru Kenyatta last year making an abrupt visit and insisting on the completion of the road before the launch of the port.
During the awarding of the Sh10.4 billion tender, the contractor requested for security prompting the government to deploy Kenya Defense Forces and a special police unit to provide a safe environment for the workers.
This existing road can be used for the early evacuation of cargo from the port with shippers having a choice to either take their cargo through Garissa – Thika Nairobi or via Malindi, KPA managing director Arch. Daniel Manduku said in a recent email interview.
KPA has been able to gazette the port as customs area and allocated an area for a temporary warehouse as well as mark another area for transshipment cargo. Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) and Port Health among other key agencies involved in cargo clearance have already been posted to Lamu.
When it was conceived in 2008, the second Lamu port’s main market was supposed to serve the transit market of South Sudan and Ethiopia. However, infrastructural projects linking Lamu with the two countries has lagged behind.
The 505 Kilometres highway from Isiolo to Moyale was completed over 4 years ago and has significantly transformed transportation enabling faster and cost-effective movement of goods and people along the new corridor. This is expected to be connected to Lamu via the 536KM Lamu – Garissa – Isiolo road which has not been done.
“Though this project has not commenced, we can reliably report that detailed engineering designs are complete and negotiations for funding and construction of the same between Kenya National Highway Authority (KENHA) and a consortium are at an advance stage,” Mr. Manduku wrote.
In addition, the World Bank has approved a 500 Million USD loan for the construction of the section from Lokichor and Nakadok ultimately linking to Juba, South Sudan, he added.
The Railway connectivity for the LAPSSET Corridor will be done as the cargo traffic grows while there has been recommendation to establish another SGR line from Lamu to Mazeras via Malindi.
The first berth at Lamu Port is now complete together with a container yard with a holding capacity of over 21,000 Twenty Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs). The final preparation of the yards is on-going, and it was expected to be completed this quarter with a new date for commissioning of the new port and subsequent operationalization to be announced later.
“It is also pleasing to inform you that Maersk Shipping Line has already committed to call in the first vessel,” Manduku said.
Though the initial target of the new Port is transshipment cargo, the second commercial port in the Lamu will play a complimentary role to Mombasa Port. This shall provide an alternative route or option for shippers who might want to take advantage of the promotional tariff and revive the transportation sector.
In the advertisement last year, shipping lines and agents were offered free 30-day storage period for transshipment and transit cargo compared to the current 14 days in the Mombasa Port.
Domestic cargo was offered 14-days storage free period while cargo-based charges were slashed by 40 per cent as outlined in Section II and III of the KPA Tarriff 2012.
“We also hope and shall continue to encourage business communities of Northern Region’s Counties of Garissa and Isiolo and of course Lamu to import and export their goods including livestock and fish through this port,” Manduku said.
When the second transport corridor was conceived, the project consultants, in their concept paper, identified six components of the project. In order to become a transportation and commercial hub for the region, Kenya would have to, at a minimum, develop: (a) a commercial port of international standards capable of handling high volumes of containers and other goods traffic; (b) a free trade zone along with the port to foster the growth of trade and commercial activity to make the area a commercial hub; (c) a new beach resort city having facilities of international standards for native and international tourists; (d) an airport capable of being an air hub for the region; (e) a railway network to enable movement of goods from the port and the free trade zone to other parts of Kenya and the countries of the region; and (f) a road highway network to support the capacity of the railway network and provide for greater movement of goods into more areas.
All this are still in the pipeline. However, special priority has been given to the Port, Highways, Pipeline and Special Economic Zones (SEZ).
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