AGL, Lobito Port sign concession contract for multipurpose terminal

Olivier De Noray, managing director of AGL Ports and Terminals and Celso Rosas, chaiman of Lobito Port signed the concession contract for the multipurpose terminal (including containers) at the Port of Lobito on 11 December 2023.

As part of this partnership, AGL will invest nearly €100 million to turn the Port of Lobito into a modern, efficient and competitive port platform, capable of meeting the expectations of national and international customers and contributing to the growth and diversification of the Angolan economy.

This signing follows on the international call for tenders that led, last October, to the decision to award the Port of Lobito terminals to AGL (Africa Global Logistics).

Noray said, “With the support of the world's leading shipowner, MSC, AGL's industrial project will improve the connectivity of the Lobito port platform. it will boost trade in the region and support industrialisation efforts. The port of Lobito will thus be involved in the development of agricultural projects, construction sites and tertiary service companies.”

With a 14m deep quay and direct access to the sea, the port of Lobito will allow Angola to accommodate large capacity vessels. AGL will manage the multipurpose terminal, including the container activity, which has 1,200 m of quay, a storage area with a capacity of 12,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) and handling equipment.

As Angola’s second-largest port, the Port of Lobito aims to improve the living environment of 35 million Angolans and of the populations of neighbouring countries. The Port of Lobito is ideally positioned to play a strategic role in the global energy transition, being the first Atlantic gateway to the Copperbelt region. This port infrastructure will contribute to the transport of strategic minerals (copper, cobalt) to international markets. To this end, it will benefit from the rail line rehabilitation and construction projects currently underway to link the DRC and Zambia with Angola.

As part of this new concession, which will come into service at the end of the 1st quarter of 2024, AGL will take over the staff of the Empresa Portuária do Lobito EP port authority. The company will implement an extensive plan to develop the employees’ skills as well as the ecosystem of local subcontractors, to enable the Port of Lobito to offer services compliant with international standards.