Yannnick Ndombe Mayantika

Synopsis: The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)’s Port of Banana consists of one wharf of 75 m and depth 5.18 m, with two small cranes for cargo handling and a few small jetties. The port has an oil terminal 4 km further upriver, to which tankers discharge while at anchor in the creek. This terminal has road access separate from the main port east of Muanda. There is also a naval base of the Navy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which is partly maintained with Chinese assistance.

In early 2022, a $1.2 billion construction project began to turn the port into the DRC’s first deep-water port. The work is being carried out by DP World, despite a lack of public tender, as part of its 30-year development and management contract. When completed, the port is expected to process over 300,000 containers per year.