Tibar Bay Port
Aerial view of the port in August 2023
Aerial view of the port in August 2023
Location of port in East Timor
Native name
Location
CountryEast Timor
LocationTibar Bay
Coordinates8°34′22″S 125°28′28″E / 8.5728°S 125.4744°E / -8.5728; 125.4744
Details
Opened
  • 30 September 2022
  • (operations commenced)
  • 30 November 2022
  • (official inauguration)
Operated by
  • Africa Global Logistics
  • (formerly Bolloré Africa Logistics)
Owned byAfrica Global Logistics
Type of harbourCoastal natural
No. of wharfsOne, 630 m (2,070 ft) long
Draft depth15 m (49 ft)
ChairmanRafael Ribeira
Statistics
Website
Africa Global Logistics

Tibar Bay Port (Portuguese: Porto da Baía de Tíbar, Tetum: Portu Baía Tibar) is a container seaport at Tibar Bay, near Dili, the capital city of East Timor. The largest item of infrastructure in East Timor, and in the country's history, it commenced operations on 30 September 2022.

Geography

The port is located on the western side of Tibar Bay, approximately 12 km (7.5 mi) west of Dili.[1]

History

In June 2016, the government of East Timor signed an agreement with the Bolloré Group to build and operate a new container port at Tibar Bay. The 30-year concession contract was the first public-private partnership ever undertaken in East Timor. At a value of US$490 million (comprising $130m public and $360m private funds[2]), it also amounted to the country's largest ever private investment.[1]

The greenfield project was intended to replace the existing, capacity-strained and congestion-ridden container handling facilities at the Port of Dili. The new port was planned to be a modern container port able to handle up to 350,000 TEU annually.[1][3]

Subsequently, Bolloré Group contracted with China Harbour Engineering Company to construct the new port.[3][4] Amongst the works required to complete the construction project were 3.5 million m3 (120 million cu ft) of dredging, reclamation of 27 ha (67 acres) of land, and establishment of related housing, storage yards and other supporting facilities.[5]

The construction work was declared to be underway in June 2017 and August 2018,[6] and was originally scheduled to be completed by the end of 2020.[2] However, issues with funding and subcontracting delayed progress. The official ceremony launching the project was not held until 15 July 2019, and construction actually began the following month.[3][6]

In February 2021, the port's Executive Director informed the government that the construction project had reached 42% completion at the end of December 2020, and had proceeded to construction of pillars, wharf compaction, and yard work. But there had also been delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and final completion was now predicted to be reached in April 2022.[7]

In particular, the pandemic had caused the majority of foreign workers, mainly from China, to return to their home countries. The project manager therefore asked the government to authorize a special flight from Guangzhou in China directly to Dili, to carry 186 workers, so that the works can be completed according to the revised plan. The government agreed to facilitate such a flight.[7]

As of the end of 2021, the port works were 72% complete, and construction was expected to be finished in May 2022,[8] but then there were further delays.[9]

The port's ship-to-shore (STS) gantries and rubber-tyred gantries (RTGs) were unloaded in mid-May 2022, in the presence of the Prime Minister, Taur Matan Ruak, and several members of his government. By then, the government was saying, based on the then current plans, that the port would be ready to become operational in September or October 2022.[9]

The first container unloading tests were conducted in mid-September 2022, using two vessels belonging to Mariana Line, a subsidiary of Pacific International Lines (PIL). A total of 500 containers were unloaded in less than 24 hours for each vessel, and 22 full containers were loaded for export.[10]

On 21 September 2022, the government announced that the port would come into operation on 30 September 2022.[11] Operations commenced with the arrival of the vessels Selatan Damai and Meratus Pematangsiantar.[12] On 30 November 2022, President José Ramos-Horta and Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak presided over the port's official inauguration ceremony.[13]

Between the commencement of its operations and its official inauguration, the port collected US$195,000 in various fees.[13]

With effect from December 2022, Bolloré Group sold Bolloré Africa Logistics, the owner and operator of the port, to the MSC Group of Switzerland,[14][15] and in March 2023 MSC Group announced that the name of the company had been changed to Africa Global Logistics.[16]

Description

The port's administration building in September 2022
The port's administration building in September 2022

Tibar Bay Port is the largest item of infrastructure in East Timor, and in the country's history.[10] It consists of a 630 m (2,070 ft) wharf with a 15 m (49 ft) draft, and a 29 ha (72 acres) container yard.[1][6]

The port can receive larger ships than the Port of Dili, and thus has better operating economics.[7] Its wharf includes a 7,000-TEU berth and a 3,500-TEU berth.[5] When fully operational, it will be East Timor's only logistics centre for maritime cargo transport and trade.[5]

As such, the port represents a significant change in maritime cargo transport to and from East Timor. Previously, such transport was strongly affected by the limited size of the Port of Dili, as that port could only receive ships equipped with cranes, and was plagued by delays in the processing of containers, and by 'extra costs', often 'hidden'.[10] By contrast, Tibar Bay Port has an annual cargo throughput capacity of up to one million containers,[7][17] and a storage capacity of 20,000 containers.[7]

Shortly before the port went into operation, the president of its board of directors, Laurent Palayer, claimed to Lusa News Agency that the near-monopoly container operator in the country, Meratus Line [translation]:

"... have been working in a niche market, without competition, with high profit margins. And now, instead of adjusting prices, they just want to increase. In practice, they will save money: less waiting time, less time in port and the ability to bring in larger ships,"[10]

Mobile equipment at Tibar Bay Port includes two ship-to-shore (STS) gantries, four rubber-tyred gantries (RTGs), 10 terminal tractors and 16 trailers.[12] At 80 m (260 ft) high, the STS gantries are East Timor's tallest structures, and, as the port's most visible element, dominate its landscape.[10] The port also has 11.6 ha (29 acres) of offices and workshops,[6] and X-ray scanners have been approved for purchase.[13]

By January 2023, the port had 38 permanent staff and 32 permanent workers from the local area, and the port's subcontractors had engaged 76 workers. It is expected the total number of staff will reach 200.[13] The port's Executive Director is Rafael Ribeira.[18]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Mooney, Turloch (10 June 2016). "Bolloré to develop new top container port for Timor-Leste". The Journal of Commerce. New York. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  2. 1 2 "Bolloré starts work starts on Timor-Leste's $490m deepwater port". Global Construction Review. London. 15 June 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 Staff reporter (6 June 2021). "Timor-Leste's Tibar port opening in May 2022". Macao News. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  4. ↑ "Timor-Leste's Tibar Bay Port Project Enters Next Phase". World Maritime News. Schiedam, The Netherlands. 18 July 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  5. 1 2 3 CCCC (6 December 2022). "Timor-Leste's President and Prime Minister attend opening ceremony of Tibar Bay Port". China Communications Construction Company. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Third time lucky: Work finally gets under way on $490m Timor-Leste deepwater port". Global Construction Review. London. 18 July 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Media PM (2 February 2021). "New Tibar port starts operation in April 2022". Prime Minister of East Timor. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  8. ↑ "Timor-Leste: Construction of the Port of Tíbar reached 72% in 2021". e-Global News in Portuguese (in Portuguese). 26 February 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
  9. 1 2 Media PM (16 May 2022). "Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak oversees the unloading of cranes at the new Tibar Port". Prime Minister of East Timor. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Porto Canal (21 September 2022). "Porto timorense de Tibar, maior infraestrutura do país, a operar em 10 dias" [Timorese port of Tibar, the largest infrastructure in the country, to operate in 10 days]. Porto Canal (in Portuguese). (with Agencies). Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  11. ↑ "Tibar Bay Port construction reaches 92% and enters into operation on September 30th". Government of Timor-Leste. 21 September 2022. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  12. 1 2 Bruno, Margherita (3 October 2022). "Timor Port starts ops at new Tibar Bay port". Port Technology International. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  13. 1 2 3 4 Filomeno Martins (5 January 2023). "Tibar Port Bay collects more than US$195,000 in two months". Tatoli. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
  14. ↑ "MSC Group completes acquisition of Bolloré Africa Logistics" (Press release). MSC. 21 December 2022. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  15. ↑ Bezat, Jean-Michel (21 December 2022). "French tycoon Vincent Bolloré exits African ports and railways". Le Monde. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  16. ↑ Port News Editorial Staff (31 March 2023). "New name for Bolloré Africa Logistics". PortNews. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  17. ↑ "Timor-Leste: Porto de Tíbar podera abrír em junho" [Timor-Leste: Port of Tíbar may open in June]. e-Global News in Portuguese (in Portuguese). Lisbon. 12 September 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  18. ↑ de Sa, Jose Belarmino (14 September 2022). "Tibar Port: first triers of Singapore's ship "Damai Dunia" by loading 200 containers". Tatoli. Retrieved 8 April 2023.

Further reading

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