Walvis Bay Port Expansion, Namibia

The Namibia Ports Authority (Namport) plans to expand and deepen the Walvis Bay port to cater for increased business from the Southern African Development Community. The port's master plan includes the expansion of the port's berths and quay, increasing handling capacity to 500 000 twenty-foot equivalent units. The expansion programme will also entail installing new ship-to-shore cranes capable of unloading containers from large vessels, and the purchase of rubber-tyre gantries, which can stack containers 5m high. There are also plans to construct a fishing industry quay comprising a 25 000 m³ cold-storage facility. The port authority is considering the construction of a waterfront to boost local and international tourism arrivals. Project value : $264 million.