(Business in Cameroon) - Authorised sources have revealed that the future concessionaire of the Kribi deep water container terminal currently being built in the South region of Cameroon will shell out at least 32.7 billion FCFA (50 million euros), as an entrance fee, and will commit to paying a “variable annual franchise fee” equivalent to at least 13 billion FCFA (20 million eiros).
Of the two companies and the collective bidders granted access to pre-qualification talks for the concession at Kribi’s first container terminal (the concessionaire is also slated to build another), none has made a bid under the amount required by the Cameroonian government. Following the call for expressions of interest, the Philippine company, ICTSI, the Danish company, APM Terminals and the Bolloré-CHEC-CMA CGM collective made a financial bid identical to the entrance fee: 39.3 billion FCFA or 60 million euros.
However, Bolloré-CHEC et CMA CGM grouping has an advantage over the variable annual royalty, offering 16.3 billion FCFA or 25 million euros, compared to 10 billion FCFA (15 million euros) offered by APM Terminals. The Philippine competitor did not pass the 6.5 billion FCFA mark (10 million euros) for the first five years operating the future container terminal in Kribi.
Once completed, the Kribi deep water port will be the largest port in Cameroon and is already considered to be the port with the largest draught on the West-African coast (16 metres). A 282 billion FCFA investment, the deep water port will have iron, aluminium, fuel and multipurpose terminals.
BRM