The Director of Takoradi Port, Peter Amo Bediako, has stated that the Ports achievement in the year 2024 is a testament to the resilience, dedication, and innovation that continue to drive its operations.
The Port made a history in the year 2024 by receiving a transit vessel carrying approximately 50,000 metric tonnes of bagged rice – the first of its kind in more than 10 years.
The cargo was discharged efficiently within a reasonable turnaround time, showcasing the Port’s capability to handle high-volume transit cargo with precision and speed.
Speaking to Journalist at a press soiree, Mr Bediako announced that as of November 2024, the Port had recorded an impressive 32.28% growth in cargo volume, rising from 7.1 million metric tonnes in November 2023 to 9.4 million metric tonnes.
Also, cruise or passenger ship calls recorded a 100% growth in calls, increasing from seven (7) cruise vessel calls at the end of November 2023, to 14 cruise vessel call as at end of November 2024.
These achievements, he indicated, reflected the Ports unwavering commitment to operational excellence and customer satisfaction, but also most importantly, they reflected the positive brand image generated by the professional coverage and reportage by the media.
He gave the breakdown of the positive growth in cargo volume as follows:
Imported cargo volume as at the end of November 2024 was 2,877,273 metric tonnes compared to 2,591,340 metric tonnes recorded for the same period in 2023. This represents a positive growth rate of 11.03%.
Over 70% of these imports volume was driven by clinker and gypsum imports with a combined total volume of 2,072,490 metric tonnes as at the end of November 2024 compared to 1,757,883 metric tonnes recorded in the same period last year.
Exported cargo volume as at the end of November 2024 was 6,472,998 metric tonnes compared to 4,500,570 metric tonnes recorded for the same period in 2023, this represents a positive growth rate of 44 %.
This was largely driven by Manganese with 4,693,983 metric tonnes and Bauxite with 1,446,934 metric tonnes as at the end of November 2024, compared to 2,981,365 and 1,083,104 metric tonnes respectively of these two commodities, recorded in the same period last year.
Transit cargo volume as at the end of November 2024 was 51,086 metric tonnes compared to 2,247 metric tonnes recorded for the same period in 2023. This represents a very significant positive growth rate of 2,173.52% in our Transit Trade cargo volume.
However, Container TEU traffic recorded a decline in the year 2024 with a total traffic of 28,257TEUs as at end of November, compared to 31,763 TEUs recorded during the same period in 2023. This represents 11% decline.
This, the Takoradi Port Director, noted could be attributed largely to the delay in start of commercial operation of the YILPORT-ATSL Container Terminal.
Similarly, vessel calls recorded a decline in the year aforementioned with a total of 695 vessel calls as at the end of November, compared to 801 vessel calls recorded during the same period in 2023. This represents a 13.23% decline.
