KPA bullish on port business, expects to handle 1.8m containers this year

The Port of Mombasa is projected to handle 1.8 million TEUs by the end of this year. 

KPA managing director Captain William Ruto highlighted the port’s impressive performance, announcing it had surpassed one million TEUs (20-foot equivalent unit), reaching 1,003,208 TEUs by Friday.  

He attributed this success to the port's modernisation efforts, a dedicated workforce and enhanced operational efficiency.

 “As a port, we continue doing so well and as of yesterday (July 12), we crossed the one million TEUs mark,” Ruto said.

“In our projections this year, we are targeting 1.8 million TEUS, which is more than 10 per cent growth compared to last year.” 

He spoke during the inaugural visit of MV Ever Vim at the Port of Mombasa.

In 2023, the port handled 1.6 million 20-foot equivalent container units (TEUs), a significant increase from the 1.45 million TEUs recorded in 2022.

“This is very positive in this port because as you are aware, the growth initially was only 0.4 per cent, but since 2023, the performance has been so good and if you compare what we have been doing this year, we have been breaking records left, right and centre,” Ruto said.

In May, the port handled a record-breaking 176,000 TEUs, which is about 6,000 TEUs (5,000 trucks in and out of the port every day).

“We have done well this year and we continue improving our performance. I want to thank KPA staff for the commitment they have shown in terms of their performance. We can’t achieve such a performance without having a dedicated workforce,” he said.

The MD exuded confidence more shipping lines will transact their businesses through the Port of Mombasa, owing to the improved efficiency.

Ruto said waiting time for ships to berth had been reduced to less than a day and turnaround time had also reduced significantly.

“The Port of Mombasa prides itself as being the gateway to East and Central Africa and one of the things we are proud of is that we have reduced the waiting time to less than a day," he said.

“This vessel you see here arrived on Friday and docked on Saturday. Work began immediately and we expect to be done with it in three days.” 

The MV Ever Vim is the 12th first-time caller vessel to dock at the port this year.

The newly built modern vessel by Evergreen Marine Corporation has a capacity of 3110-TEU. It is built with green shipping technology and is expected to discharge 2,499 TEUs and load about 2,700 TEUs.

The ship loaded from four ports in China, then loaded in Singapore and their last port was in Malaysia.

Captain Ruto said the presence of the vessel underscores the growing confidence that major shipping lines have in the Port of Mombasa.

He said the port recently welcomed MV Ever Vow, a vessel from the same shipping line, further solidifying its position as a preferred port of call.

“Having a new ship in this port shows the confidence Evergreen and other shipping companies and agencies have in deploying more vessels in this route. Mombasa port handles business for the top 10 shipping lines in the world because of the confidence they have in us,” Ruto said.

The Evergreen Shipping Line deploys more than five ships in different routes and the Port of Mombasa receives a vessel from the line every two weeks.

Evergreen Line headquarter representative Amr Abdesalam lauded the efficiency at the Port of Mombasa, saying this has contributed to them bringing in more vessels to Mombasa.

“We are happy with using this port because it is the best in Africa. This is not coming by chance but due to hard work,” he said.

“The performance of the port speaks volume, initially we could wait for five days or more but now has reduced to less than two.” 

Abdesalam said they have no doubt their vessels are not only safe in Kenya, but the operations are also very efficient.

“Working with the Port of Mombasa has improved our performance too. It is really a big improvement and this has led to us bringing in more vessels to Kenya,” he said.