Central African Republic
2.1.1 Central African Republic Port of Bangui
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Above: Port localisation in Bangui district/town 

Port Overview

In 1996 Bolloré Africa Logistics (SOCATRAF affiliated) was awarded the concession for the container terminal at the port of Bangui. SOCATRAF is a mixed company (60% for the Bolloré Group and 40% for the government of the Central African Republic) which manages the river port and barge transport along the Ubangui River up to Brazzaville or Kinshasa. However, the container section is managed by SCAC DELMAS VIELJEUX (SDV), another company of the Bolloré Group.
The corridor starts at the ports of Pointe Noire (RoC) or Matadi (DRC) to reach Brazzaville or Kinshasa by railway or road. From these two towns, cargo is loaded on barges and transported through the rivers Congo and Ubangui up to the port of Bangui.

On February 26-27, 2018, in Bangui, transporters in Cameroon and Central African port and customs authorities met to discuss the problems encountered by Central African operators in Douala port and on the Douala-Bangui corridor. On this corridor, about 90% of the freight is transported by Cameroonians. According to Central Africa, this represents a violation of the law which stipulates that 65% of the goods should be transported by Central African transporters. “Normally, from Douala Port to Bangui, only two checkpoints should be installed. However, there is more than fifty. So, these additional checkpoints generate costs that affect the selling price in Central Africa”, Bertrand Ngougnon, chairman of central African transporters’ council, lamented. Indeed, earlier in February, Cameroon’s syndicates complained about the multiple customs, police and road safety agents’ checkpoints along this corridor and Douala-Ndjamena. They also revealed that transporters had to pay between CFA1000 and CFA5000 at each checkpoint during every trip. Based on the figures provided by the syndicalist, for a trip monthly, all the transporters pay about CFA175 billion at the checkpoints along Douala-Ndjamena corridor, every year.

In March 2018, the Autonomous Port of Douala (PAD) has opened an office in Bangui, the capital of the landlocked Central African Republic (CAR) which uses the facility for the bulk of its exports and imports. After Ndjamena in Chad in December 2017, the CAR now hosts the latest PAD office. The Cameroonian port authorities say this move explains their determination to reclaim and retain such landlocked neighbours at the heart of its business expansion strategy. According to statistics from the General Directorate of Customs (DGD), some CFA 55 billions of CAR goods pass through the port of Douala each year. Against this backdrop, “the opening of the PAD offices in Ndjamena and Bangui is indeed a new offensive to regain the threatened market share and retain customers,” the authorities of the port said. The meeting between carriers, port authorities and Cameroonian and CAR customs officials held on the heels of the initiative of the Central African Council of Carriers (CCT) provided an opportunity to examine the problems encountered by Central African economic operators in the port of Douala. According to customs director, more than 80 percent of Central African imports and exports pass through the port of Douala, which are transported by road for nearly 1,500 km.

Port Location and Contacts

 

Country

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC

Province or District

Lobaye

Town or City (Closest location) with Distance (km)

Name : BANGUI

km: 0.5 KM FROM CITY CENTER

Port's Complete Name

Port fluvial de Bangui

Latitude

4.357486

Longitude

18.57779

Managing Company or Port Authority

(If more than one operator, break down by area of operation)

SOCATRAF (Bollore Africa Logistics group)

Management Contact Person

SOCATRAF

Bruno PERIER - Directeur Général

+236  21 61 43 15 / +236  75 50 24 64

bruno.perier@bollore.com

Closest Airport and Frequent Airlines to / from International Destinations

Airport Name: Bangui M’poko


For information on Central African Republic Port of Bangui, please see the following link:

4.8 Central African Republic Port and Waterways Company Contact List

 

 Above: Aval and Central Port areas including:

  • Warehouses: 10,000 m2
  • Berth
  • Mobile Crane
  • Fixed Crane

Above: Amont Port Areas including:

  • Container Berth: 5000 m 2
  • Fixed Crane

Above: Main Port Berth

Above: Port Hoists

Port Performance

Seasonal Constraints Yes/No

From <month> to <month>

Rainy Season

Yes

June-July>>December

Major Import Campaigns

Yes

June-July>>December

Handling Figures

Year 2016 figures N/A

Handling Figures

Year 2012

Vessel Calls

 

Container Traffic (TEUs)

5000

Handling Figures Bulk and Break Bulk

2012

Bulk (MT)

n/a

Break bulk (MT)

n/a

Discharge Rates and Terminal Handling Charges

Fee for loading or unloading of a container is 166 600 XAF /TTC.

Cost of berthing fee for a boat: 50 000 to 500 000 XAF, depending on capacity.

The stay in quay is 50 XAF per day per 1 ton

Berthing Specifications

The maintenance of the entire network of navigable waterways of the Congo-Ubangui-Sangha Rivers, representing some 2,000 km, is the responsibility of SCEVN[1], a company jointly owned by the Central African Republic and the Republic of the Congo.
In order to facilitate the access to the port of Bangui, constant dredging of the Ubangui and Congo should be done, which is unfortunately not the case. As a result, the beds of the two rivers are subject to silting as demonstrated by the low draught level. Consequently, only barges could navigate on these rivers.
The quay at the port of Bangui measures about 330m, divided into the upstream port (Port amont) for the cement and petroleum products and the downstream port (Port aval) for general cargo such as cereals and cotton.
It should be mentioned that only two barges can berthed at the same time.
[1] Service Commun d’Entretien des Voies Navigables du bassin Congo-Oubangui-Sangha.

Type of Berth Quantity

Length (m)

Maximum Draft (m)

Conventional Berth

3

545m

n/a

Container Berth

n/a

n/a

n/a

Silo Berth

n/a

n/a

n/a

Berthing Tugs

n/a

   

Water Barges

3

   

Port Handling Equipment

 

The port is under the management of SOCATRAF, which has been awarded in 1996 to manage the concession of the container port terminal (Port Amont).All port handling equipment belong to SOCATRAF, which also supports manual handling with workforce.

Equipment

Available

(Yes / No)

Total Quantity and Capacity Available

Comments on Current Condition and Actual Usage

Dockside Crane

Yes

1 (30mt)

1 (110 mt)

Operational
Ongoing installation 

Container Gantries

No

   

Mobile Cranes

Yes

4 (3 mt each)

Operational

Reachstacker

Yes

1 Svetruck (40mt)

Operational

RoRo Tugmaster (w/ Trailer)

No

   

Grain Elevator w/ Bagging Machines

No

   

Transtrainer

Yes

3 ADF 185m3/hr berth

Operational

Forklifts

Yes

5 (2*30mt, 2*5mt and 1*2.5mt)

Operational

Container Facilities

Facilities

20 ft

40 ft

Container Facilities Available

Yes

Yes

Container Freight Station (CFS)

Yes

Yes

Refrigerated Container Stations

No

No

Customs Guidance

For information on Central African Republic Customs Guidance, please see the following links:

1.2 Central African Republic Customs Information

Terminal Information

Main Storage Terminal

Storage Type

Number of Storage Facilities

Area (square meters)

General Cargo

5

2000m2

Stevedoring

All activities are handled by SOCATRAF at port.

Hiterland Information

Road - transport Company available.

Waterway – river barge available at Port Amont.   

Port Security

Private security on site is available for global compound security. Customer is required to contract an extra private security company. 

Security

ISPS Compliant

(Yes / No)

No

Current ISPS Level

n/a

Police Boats

No

Fire Engines

Yes

 

 

The port is under the management of SOCATRAF, which has been awarded in 1996 to manage the concession of the container port terminal (Port Amont).All port handling equipment belong to SOCATRAF, which also supports manual handling with workforce.  

 

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