Located in the Port of Lome, the new container terminal will upon completion be equipped with four berths stretched out along a 1,050-metre quay and a yard measuring 53 hectares. It is designed to handle a maximum of 2.2 million TEU annually, according to the concession agreement granted by the Togolese government in December 2011.
The remaining 50 per cent equity interest will continue to be held by a member of Terminal Investment Limited (the TIL Group), which operates 24 functioning terminals globally with four under construction, including LCT.
The deep-water Lome Container Terminal will not only be Togo`s first terminal, the facility is also expected to be the first of its kind built in West Africa, positioning the container terminal to act as a transshipment hub for the region. Regional container traffic volume has risen 10.3 per cent annually for the past 15 years.
Construction of LCT will be undertaken in phases, with the first 400 metres of quayline expected to be ready for operation by December 2013, a statement from China Merchants said.
The Mediterranean Shipping Co (MSC), the world`s second largest container shipping company, has signed a terminal service agreement with LCT to use the facility for 15 years from the start of operations.
Commenting on the acquisition, CMHI chairman Fu Yuning said: "Having made concrete inroads through our investment in Tin-Can Island Container Terminal in Lagos, Nigeria, which has delivered satisfactory results, we are continuing our positioning in container terminal investment in the promising African market. The LCT project reflects yet again CMHI`s on-going efforts to expand our international footprint.
"Given its maritime proximity and its natural sea-depth, Lome lies strategically as Togo`s key import and export channel," said Dr Fu.
"Combined with the Togolese government`s open and free trade policies and LCT`s scheduled completion, the terminal is equipped to service cargo flows along the Gulf of Guinea and will stand to rapidly become a key transshipment hub for the West African region," he said.
"Furthermore, LCT`s land connectivity with the rest of Togo and its neighbouring countries such as Ghana, Benin, indicates its future potential in capturing land-based cargo flows derived from West African countries," said Dr Fu.
"Strategically, not only does this investment further anchor CMHI`s position in West Africa, it also enables us to leverage the resources we have already committed for the Tin-can project onto LCT, thereby optimising our investment return in the region. In addition, the transaction reflects the deeper working relationship we are forging with MSC," Dr Fu said.