Djibouti inaugurated a new port intended mainly for exporting potash from another Horn of Africa nation, Ethiopia. The port is the second of 4 new ports that Djibouti has been constructing in the aim of bolstering its position as a continental hub.

The newly inaugurated port, built at an outlay of 90 million USD, is located in a small fishing town known as Todjourah in the northern part of the country. The port is near to Afar and Tigray states of Ethiopia, where a number of foreign companies are developing potash mines.

"Ultimately, 35 percent of the volume of goods destined for Ethiopia can be unloaded here," the Chairman of Ports and Free Trade Zones, Aboubaker Hadi, explained. "It is, therefore, a major port for the entire region."

A month back, Djibouti upgraded and inaugurated Doraleh multipurpose port. The port is part of a Chinese backed plan to establish Africa’s largest free trade zone that has the capacity to handle goods worth 7 billion USD per year.

According to Reuters, Doraleh’s bulk terminal can handle 2 million tons of cargo a year and offers space to store 100,000 tons of fertilizer and 100,000 tons of grain, plus warehouses for other goods.

In addition to these 2 ports, Djibouti will open a new port, designed for salt export, this month.

Source: Reuters