2merkato

The Ethiopian Shipping and Logistics Services Enterprise is to take charge of two tanker ships in October according to sources.

The ELSE ordered the two tankers along with seven multi-purpose ships in deals that total 293.5 million US dollars. 80 percent of the financing for the acquisition of the ships was covered by the Export-Import Bank of China.

The two tankers cost 37 million US dollars each while the 28 thousand ton multi-purpose ship where each purchased for 32.5 million US dollars according to sources.

Ethiopian Shipping Lines (ESL) made a 661.5 million birr profit during the fiscal year to 7 July 2011 nine percent more than its projection for the year.

Over the last quarter of the 2009/10 fiscal year, ESL made an unprecedented profit of 641.3 million birr, 154 percent of its projection for that fiscal year outperforming its projection by 56 million birr.

ESL transported 2.2 million tonnes of goods in the same year, below its projection of 2.5 million tonnes.

The Ethiopian Shipping Lines Share Company announced that it had finalised preparations to buy nine new ships for 300 million dollars this fiscal year.

Out of the nine ships, seven will transport dry cargo while two will carry oil, Ambachew Abraha, managing director of Ethiopian Shipping Lines, said.

Ambachew said that loans from the China Exim bank will cover 80 percent of the price of the ships while the balance will come from the Commercial bank of Ethiopia.

The Ethiopian Shipping Lines Share Company announced plans to open Multi Modal Transport service to the private sector.

Multi Modal transport offers the transportation of goods through different means of shipping (eg rail and road) under a single contract. The carrier is held liable for the whole trip across the various means under this system.

The Multi Modal system will be in effect for goods passing through Port Djibouti which accounts for 98% of Ethiopia’s imports and exports.

Ethiopian Shipping and Logistics Services Enterprise’s (ESLSE) two oil tankers named Bahr Dar and Hawassa, which were bought 11 years ago to carry the country's oil, have been replaced by Abay 2, a huge ship with a loading capacity of 63,500 tons.