Lüderitz Looking to Add Iron Ore to Exports From Northern Cape
Namibian Ports Authority (Namport) believes that iron ore from Northern Cape mining houses in South Africa can be exported through the Namibian port of Lüderitz adding to manganese from Northern Cape mines which is currently exported through Lüderitz.
Namport said in response to questions that there is also a possibility of having a return leg of importation of coke to the Northern Cape mining houses.
The manganese is transported through the Ariamsvlei-Lüderitz railway and Namport believes that the railway line provides a competitive advantage for increasing the volume of goods transported through Lüderitz.
Namport believes that the increase in manganese throughput at Lüderitz is a significant boost to the Namport business portfolio as a port. In 2023, Lüderitz exported over 800,000 tons, and projects that in 2024, exports will exceed one million tons. Manganese exports through Lüderitz started in 2019 and so far the total exports amount to over two million tons, the company responded.
The main exports through Lüderitz are manganese ore, zinc and zinc concentrate, frozen fish and lead concentrate. The main imports through Lüderitz are petroleum and fish.
According to Namport the challenges faced on the Ariamsvlei-Lüderitz route include the dilapidated 42KM railway line between Sandverhaar and Bullchultzbrunn.
Namport said Lüderitz is becoming a centre of Namibia’s green hydrogen and oil exploration boom and the company added that massive economic related activities of oil and gas as well as green hydrogen present a great opportunity for Namport to expand its current port and to develop Agra Deep Water Port.
Namport believes that together with TransNamib, the railway operator in Namibia it shares a strategic partnership as key players in the transport and logistics industry.
Despite facing challenges such as railway line capacity and rolling stock issues, TransNamib is actively working to address these obstacles, NamPort said.
Lüderitz is located 254 nautical miles south of the Port of Walvis Bay. According to Namport, over the longer term, a new port is planned at Angra Point in Lüderitz with 886 hectares of additional land. This new port would have a water depth of 14 to 16 metres to accommodate deeper draught vessels.
Namport has stated that rail network connectivity is critical to the competitiveness of Namibian ports but says the lack of a rail connection to either Botswana or Zambia significantly impacts its ports’ effectiveness in serving landlocked countries.
The Namibian government has already announced plans to develop the Trans-Zambezi linking Namibia and Zambia and the Trans-Kalahari railway linking Namibia and Botswana.