The Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) posted a 0.6 per cent increase in the cargo handled to 2,720,000 deadweight tonnage (DWT) during the month of June this year compared to June 2017.
The growth has been attributed to the rise in dry bulk and containerised cargo which represented a surge of 6.8 per cent and 10.6 per cent respectively. On the other hand, throughput rose 2.4 per cent for the period from January to June compared to the same period in 2017.
KPA’s Ag managing director Dr Arch Daniel Manduku said the increase in throughput and container traffic is a sign of vibrant economic activity in the region.
“Numbers give a concise picture and our performance indicators are showing an unmistakable improvement. The indicators cover productivity and berth occupancy all of which have shown a distinct improvement,” he said.
Imports contributed 83.6 per cent of the throughput share while exports contributed only 12.5 per cent. The remaining percentage went to trans-shipment cargo.
In June, the port registered a 6.9 per cent rise in cargo capacity to 106,153 TEU’s from 99,727 TEU’s last year. From January to June, cumulative container traffic rose 5.3 per cent to 614,625 TEUs from 583,661 TEUs during the same period in 2017.
The Authority’s performance report also indicates that the average container dwell time dropped from 3.8 days last year to 3.4 days while turnaround time was 4.5 days compared to 3.8 days in 2017. The increased turnaround time was caused by disruptions during the delivery of port handling equipment in June.
The second container terminal that started operations in mid-2016 handled 34,837 TEUs in June 2018 compared to 21,882 TEUs in June 2017.
