The capital city of Ivory Coast (Cote D’Ivoire) has many distinctions; it is not only the most populated French speaking city in Africa, it is also home to the second largest port in Africa. The port of Abidjan was opened in 1951 and throughout the years the port has led to increased traffic and international shipping services to West Africa. Abidjan is not only the economic hub for Ivory Coast, but it is also a major gateway to the surrounding countries of Burkina Faso and Mail. Abidjan is the second most populated city in West Africa with over 4 million inhabitants. The creation of the port brought economic growth to the city of Abidjan and the country as a whole. The port of Abidjan led to the increased movement of goods from Cote D’Ivoire thus allowing the country to reach new potential markets.
The history of the port of Abidjan stretches back to 1951 when the port was first opened upon the complete of the Vridi Canal. The Vridi Canal opened up the city to the ocean and allowed for the building of a deep water sea port allowing international shipping services into Ivory Coast (Cote D’Ivoire). The Vridi Canal is over 2.8 km long and has a depth of over 13m. The container terminal serves as a major transshipment hub and the roll-on / roll-off terminal is cable of handling heavy equipment shipping services as well as overseas car shipping services into Abidjan. In order to aid in further developing the port and accommodate the large influx of cargo shipping through the port, a port expansion project worth $2.5 billion was launched in 2014. Some of the developments projected to come out of the project includes the expansion of the Vridi Canal, construction of a major rail line and the addition of a second container terminal.
Some notable features of the port of Abidjan, Ivory Coast:
- Once the scheduled upgrades to the port are completed in 2020 the port will have the largest capacity in West Africa capable of handling over 2 million containers.
- Over 50% of international shipping services into Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali pass through Abidjan.
- International container shipping services into Abidjan has seen a yearly increase of over 15%, the top exports from the USA include heavy machinery and construction equipment shipping to Ivory Coast.
- International automobile shipping services is available to Abidjan through affordable roll-on / roll-off shipping services from the United States. In addition to handling automobiles, the port is well equipped with cranes and forklifts capable of handling breakbulk, heavy machinery and construction equipment.
For more information about the port of Abidjan, Ivory Coast please visit: http://abidjan-terminal.com/. To receive more information about our international shipping services or to receive an international shipping quote to Ivory Coast, please visit our rates request pages.
