According to the concession agreement granted by the Togolese government in December 2011, the new container terminal, located in the port of Lome, will upon completion be equipped with four berths stretched out along a 1,050m quay and a yard measuring 53 hectares. It is designed to have an annual capacity of 2.2 million TEU.
The remaining 50% equity interest will continue to be held by a member of Terminal Investment Limited (the TIL Group), which operates 24 functioning terminals globally with four under construction, including LCT.
The deep-water Lome Container Terminal will not only be Togo’s first terminal, the facility is also expected to be the first of its kind built in West Africa, positioning the container terminal to act as a trans-shipment hub for the region. Regional container traffic volume has risen 10.3% annually for the past 15 years. Construction of LCT will be undertaken in phases, with the first 400m of quay line expected to be ready for operation by December 2013.
The Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC), the world’s second largest container shipping company, has signed a terminal service agreement with LCT to use the facility for 15 years from the start of operations
“Having made concrete inroads through our investment in Tin-Can Island Container Terminal in Lagos, Nigeria, which has delivered satisfactory results, we are continuing our positioning in container terminal investment in the promising African market. The LCT project reflects yet again CMHI’s on-going efforts to expand our international footprint,” said CMHI chairman Dr Fu Yuning. “Given its maritime proximity and its natural sea-depth, Lome lies strategically as Togo’s key import and export channel. Combined with the Togolese government’s open and free trade policies and LCT’s scheduled completion, the terminal is equipped to service cargo flows along the Gulf of Guinea and will stand to rapidly become a key trans-shipment hub for the West African region.”
“Furthermore, LCT’s land connectivity with the rest of Togo and its neighbouring countries such as Ghana, Benin, indicates its future potential in capturing land-based cargo flows derived from West African countries,” Fu added. “Strategically, not only does this investment further anchor CMHI’s position in West Africa, it also enables us to leverage the resources we have already committed for the Tin-can project onto LCT, thereby optimising our investment return in the region. In addition, the transaction reflects the deeper working relationship we are forging with MSC.”