•The positive trend in container traffic has been consistent for the past three months, with March and April 2023 handling 132,119 TEUs and 138,373 TEUs, respectively.
• World Bank earlier released a report showing that Mombasa Port has been overtaken by Dar Salaam Port in terms of efficiency and effectiveness.
Image: CHARLES MGHENYI
The recent investments in the port of Mombasa have begun paying off with Kenya Ports Authority recording increased operations.
The port has record positive growth over the past three months with May registering a record performance.
KPA's data shows that Mombasa port registered 150,639 TEUs (Twenty Foot Equivalent Units) in May 2023 to post a record container traffic performance ever in a single month.
This is a growth of 26.84 per cent against the May 2022 performance of 118,765 TEUs.
The performance saw the port surpass its target of 620,719 TEUs by 31,873 TEUs, indicating potential annual container traffic of 1.48 million TEUs by the end of the year.
The positive trend in container traffic has been consistent for the past three months, with March and April 2023 handling 132,119 TEUs and 138,373 TEUs, respectively.
Following increased competition from its regional peers, the port has invested in new infrastructure, adding five new cranes earlier in the month.
The improvement comes despite a recent World Bank report showing that Dar Salaam Port has overtaken Mombasa Port in terms of efficiency and effectiveness.
KPA injected Sh3.7 billion shillings in purchasing five Harbour Mobile Cranes for the Lamu and Mombasa ports in a move aimed at improving operational efficiency.
Three of the cranes will be deployed in Lamu, while two will enhance operations in Mombasa. Additionally, four new Ship to Shore Gantry cranes will be delivered in July to replace the old ones.
From January to May 2023, the total container traffic reached 652,592 TEUs, compared to 595,319 TEUs during the corresponding period in 2022, an increase of 9.62 per cent.
KPA said the figures show significant improvement over the same period in 2022, which saw 112,245 TEUs and 121,249 TEUs handled.
Furthermore, operational efficiency has improved.
The average container dwell time has reduced to 3.5 days from 4.0 days, while the berth working time has decreased from an average of 2.6 days to 1.7 days. The average gross moves per ship per hour increased from 34 to 36.
This coming at a time that traders using the port of Mombasa will be required to pay for their goods instantly through banker’s cheques after the Kenya Ports Authority suspended payments through ledger accounts, effective July 1.
This means traders will only get services after paying with main channels being banker's cheques, Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) or electronic transfer and other available methods such as mobile banking.
Port users have raised concern that this could lead to higher demurrage fees, particularly on weekends when they cannot obtain banker's cheques.
The KPA used to grant ledger-guaranteed accounts to importers, which allowed for the payment of goods within six days following clearance.