Port operator Yilport Holding is entering the African port industry with an investment in the Takoradi Port in Ghana. The Turkish company has signed a memorandum of understanding with Ibis Tek to establish a 70/30 joint venture that will invest in and operate the port located in the western region of Ghana and in the industrial district of Sekondi-Takoradi.
Yilport said it plans to invest over $700m in three phases to build and operate a port complex. The project scope involves developing the existing container terminal to reach up to 2.25m teu and multipurpose berths for liquid, bulk, and general cargo operations for about 20m tons annual handling capacity. Building new access roads and gate facilities for the port is also being considered. The port operator will also have a container handling facility 2 km away from the port and Marshall oil jetty terminal, with plans to build a tank farm to handle 2.5m tons of liquid products annually.
Takoradi will be the 23rd terminal in Yilport’s portfolio. The company will take over the port in April and expand the total length of the berths to 2.5 km and deepen the draft between 14 and 16.5 m. The new terminal, which mainly exports cocoa, timber, bauxite, and manganese but also imports wheat, fertilizers, clinker and general cargo, will serve the West African corridor cargo in Ghana and Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
“Takoradi Port will be Yilport’s first step into the African continent, and it will be a gemstone in our vision to rank among the top 10 global container terminal operators by 2030,” said Robert Yuksel Yildirim, chairman and CEO of Yilport Holding.
