Today the first concrete element was moved from land into sea marking a new phase of the Tema Port Expansion project delivered by Meridian Port Services.
This achievement is significant as it shows the project is on time for building the first 700 meters of quay wall ensuring the new port facility can be operational by June 2019.
At that point Ghana will have significantly upgraded its container handling facility attracting bigger vessels from the shipping lines.
MPS CEO Mohamed Samara explained that over time he expects that the vessels calling Tema will move from a vessel size of 4000-5000 TEU to around 14,000 TEU. He emphasized that bigger vessels means lower cost for trade enabling Ghana’s competitiveness globally and it will ultimately drive growth and employment.
Adding to this Port Project Director Jesper Kjaerulf-Moeller explained, ‘Including phase 2 we will build 1,400 meters of quay which will enable several big vessels to berth simultaneously giving Tema the capacity to both serve Ghana and become a transhipment hub for West Africa’.
The concrete elements used for building the quay wall are called Caissons and Head of Construction Finlo Paish shared some interesting facts: ‘Each caisson weighs 2,600 tons and is roughly 20 by 20 meters in size’. He continued: ‘Together with our Marine contractor we have worked tirelessly to reach this milestone and I am very pleased with our progress to date’.
