Two mobile harbor cranes inaugurated at Cotonou
APM Terminals Cotonou, operating as Coman SA at Benin’s primary port, adds two new cranes, the largest mobile cranes in the Benin port, the Group said Thursday in its press release.
Cotonou, Benin- Coman SA, operated by APM Terminals Cotonou in Benin’s primary port, has commissioned two new Mobile Harbor Cranes (MHC) at a ceremony presided over by the Benin Minister of Transport, Hervé Hehomey. The new cranes will bring the terminal’s operating total to five, after the decommissioning of an older crane. The cranes have a lifting capacity of 144 tons, making them the largest in the port area.
Coman SA Managing Director Koen De Backker said “These new cranes reflect our ongoing investment in improving Benin’s port infrastructure, productivity and competitiveness for our customers. More importantly, our goal is to ensure we have safe operations and Safety is an integral part of everything we do here at the port for all our employees and end users.”
Benin, a West African nation with a population of 9.6 million, shares borders with Togo and Burkina Faso to the west, Niger to the north, and Nigeria to the east. Benin generated a GDP of USD $8.4 billion in 2015 ($22.9 billion by PPP), and the World Bank has projected strong annual economic growth rates of 5.5% in 2016, and 5.8% for 2017. The Port of Cotonou, in addition to serving as Benin’s primary port, is also a gateway for Nigerian cargo and transit cargo for Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso.
APM Terminals is one of the largest terminal operators in West Africa, with 11 operating facilities in nine countries in the APM Terminals Global Terminal Network, and two more major terminals now in development. APM Terminals Cotonou handled 288,000 TEUs in 2015.
“We encourage all the port operators to follow the lead of Coman” stated Minister of Transport Hehomey.
