Mombasa Port is said to be reaping big after the Tanzanian Ports Authority suspended the bagging of loose cargo at the Dar es Salaam Port due to congestion.
Importers alternatively redirected their cargo to Kenya to reduce the number of waiting days in Tanzania.
According to the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), the move to suspend the bagging of loose cargo will help reduce waiting time at the outer anchorage.
“Due to the current line-up (sic) of vessels at the outer anchorage waiting for berthing, we wish to inform you that bagging of cargo inside the port will be temporarily suspended to evacuate and reduce waiting time at outer anchorage,” reads the letter.
Djibouti regional ports and South African ports were also reported to be experiencing massive congestion. The latter, however, directed ships to dock at Durban.
Gomet.com, an online real-time port congestion portal, predicted that ships docking at Dar es Salaam faced up t 16 days of delay, while Mombasa has recorded the highest port turn-around time of one day.
Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) Managing Director Captain William Ruto stated that the Mombasa port will receive more than 25 containerised cargo in the next two weeks.
“We have seen an increase in Traffic of ships since some regional ports experienced inefficiency, "Captain Ruto noted.
KPA further assured importers that it had the capacity to handle their vessels with the recent investments made at terminal 2 of the port.
“We prioritised efficiency, eliminated waiters and reduced ship turnaround time, making it attractive to shipping lines," Ruto added.
In May 2023, the World Bank ranked Dar es Salaam Port as the best, toppling Mombasa Port as the most efficient and preferred route for shippers.
The Container Port Performance Index ranked Mombasa Port at position 326 in 2022 out of the 348 ports worldwide that were assessed, behind the regional peers in eastern Africa.
