Equatorial Guinea Overview & Port Information
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Overview
The territory of Equatorial Guinea includes the islands of Bioko and Annobon
and the mainland enclave of Rio Muni, which is bordered to the north by
Cameroon and to the south and east by Gabon. The continental portion, known
as Rio
Muni, constitutes 92% of the landmass.
The capital, Malabo [formerly Port Clarence/
Santa Isabel], is located on Bioko Island and has its own port which, while
smaller than Bata's port on
the mainland, can receive ships with deep drafts.
The population of the country is now over 1 million
with an annual growth rate of 2.5%.There are six ethnic groups recognized in
Equatorial Guinea and represented by stars on the national flag. The Fang ethnic
group [based on the mainland] constitutes the great majority of the population
and dominates political life and business. Others include the Bubi, Annobonese,
Ndowe, Kombe and the Bujebas.
Officially bilingual [Spanish and recently French],
Equatorial Guinea represents a small but growing share of the six-nation
Central African Economic and Monetary
Community [CEMAC], which also includes Cameroon, Central African Republic,
Chad, Congo and Gabon.
Equatorial Guinea's per capita income at independence
in 1968 was one of the highest in Africa, but plunged during the 1970's due
to mismanagement of cocoa
and timber resources and enormous political repression. The economy improved
somewhat when Equatorial Guinea joined the French-dominated CFA franc zone
in 1985. After the devaluation of the CFA franc in 1994, which brought new
value to Rio Muni’s lumber resources, Equatorial Guinea's economy recovered
somewhat.
The discovery of major oil deposits off Bioko Island
in 1995 prompted massive foreign investments in oil and gas production facilities.
Now Equatorial
Guinea
has the fastest growing economy in Africa, with GDP growth in ‘double
digit’ rates. The economy is based on hydrocarbon production and forestry,
which together account for around 97% of total exports and have replaced the
reliance on the traditional production and export of cocoa and agricultural
products. In 2005, GDP per capita was estimated at US$9,790 however the oil
boom has not yet been translated into human development, and developmental
outcomes remain poor with Equatorial Guinea ranking 121st out of 177 countries
on the UN Human Development Index.
Such economic expansion brought about by the establishment of petroleum production
has permitted an acceleration of the infrastructure improvement programme and
investment initiatives to diversify the economy. Equatorial Guinea has two
international and three local airports and four ports. Two are amongst the
deepest Atlantic seaports of West Africa namely Malabo and Bata. A new deep-water
harbour and Freeport is under development at Luba on Bioko Island and Mbini
on the continental coast used for timber exports and fishing.
Exports: $8.961 billion f.o.b. [2006 est.] Exports - commodities: petroleum, methanol, timber, cocoa, coffee beans Exports - partners: US 24.6%, China 21.8%, Spain 10.8%, Canada 7.3%, Taiwan
7.2%, Portugal 5.5%, Netherlands 5.2%, Brazil 4.6%, France 4% [2005] Imports: $2.543 billion f.o.b. [2006 est.] Imports – commodities: refined petroleum products, petroleum sector equipment,
other equipment, food products, building materials, machinery and equipment,
clothes and shoes, tobacco and cigarettes. Imports - partners: US 24.5%, Italy 20.6%, France 12.1%, Spain 10.8%, Cote
d'Ivoire 8.6%, UK 6.9% [2005]
Bata
Latitude: 1° 49" 27' N Longitude 9° 44" 27' E / GMT +1
Bata is the second largest city with a population of around 70,000 people.
It lies on the Atlantic Ocean coast of Rio Muni. Bata was formerly the capital
but now acts as the administrative center of the mainland.
The port of Bata, lies on the Gulf of Guinea 18 miles [29 km] north of the
Río Muni [called Mbini in Fang]. The countries number one port is one
of the deepest seaports in the region with a max draft of 11.58m. Because Bata
has no natural harbour, a jetty was built to facilitate offshore handling of
ships' cargoes. With a quay of 600m the port can handle 240,000 tons per year,
21,848 tons [import] and 116,799 tons [export] the majority of which are logs
and coffee.
The international airport at Bata has flights to several cities, including
the capital, Malabo and to Libreville, Gabon.
Bata Port Authority [Port Office]
Adminstracion
Puerto de Bata
Equatorial Guinea
Malabo
Latitude: 3° 45" 36' N Longitude 8° 46" 41' E / GMT +1
One of the deepest seaports in the region with a max draft of 13.70m. Holding
second position after Bata, Malabo port has a quay of 240m and handles a tonnage
of 200,000 tons per year: 44,712 tons [import] and 9 539 [export].
Luba
Luba, the country's third-largest port, is located on Bioko Island. Luba is
a major transportation hub for offshore oil and gas companies operating in
the Gulf of Guinea. Luba is located some 50km from Malabo and had been virtually
inactive except for minor fishing activities and occasional use to ease congestion
in Malabo. Now Luba Freeport is a deep water port and oilfield service logistics
base. Construction work commenced in March 2000 and the port became operational
early in 2002. Luba is a JV between GEPetrol and Luba Freeport Ltd.
The Luba development covers 50ha adjacent to the town of Luba, situated on
the west side of Bioko island approximately 40km by road from the main town
and international airport of Malabo. The development includes world-class port
and dockyard facilities with berthing for ocean-going ships, an oilfield logistics
base with warehousing, storage and workshop facilities and fabrication, repair
and maintenance yards capable of handling deep water drilling rigs. The Freeport
also offers the benefits of an autonomous duty free zone with its own 24 hour
customs and immigration regime and fuel storage and bunkering services. Luba
treats 156 tons in-coming and 75 tons out-going.
Luba Port has unrestricted marine access at all states of tide. The deep water
jetty has sufficient water for vessels of up to 10m draught. The loading dolphin
has 12m water depth on its oceanward side. The port has a helicopter landing
pad and there is good road access to Malabo [road upgraded in 2000] and other
parts of Bioko.
Roads
Infrastructure is generally old and in poor condition. Surface transport is
extremely limited at present, with little more than 700km of paved roads.
The African Development Bank is helping to improve the paved roads from Malabo
to Luba and Riaba; the Chinese are undertaking a project to link Mongomo
to Bata on the mainland, and the European Union is financing an inter-states
road network linking Equatorial Guinea to Cameroon and Gabon.
Transport
News
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Equatorial Guinea Aims To Become Shipping Hub, To Double
Port Capacity - 27/03/09
Equatorial Guinea aims to double its port capacity and turn the tiny oil-rich
nation into a shipping hub and the
Dubai of Africa by investing billions of dollars in its harbours. Port developments
are part of a broader
infrastructure makeover the country has launched to ensure its oil- and gas-fuelled
bonanza, which began in
the mid 1990s, is not followed by a sharp downturn when resources run out.
According to Port Director
Alberto Ndong Obiang Lima “We want to double the volume to 1,200 ships
that come in [to Malabo] each
year. We are looking at a capacity of about 40,000 containers.’’ The
port project and associated
infrastructure will cost around US$4.5 billion and is due to be completed in
2011 and would compete with
Abidjan in Ivory Coast and Douala in Cameroon, he said.
Workers in Malabo and on the island of Boiko are reclaiming
land to extend and build new quays to turn the
port into a container hub big enough to accommodate Panamax vessels. The
5-year project in Bata, on the
mainland, is due to start this June and will be carried out by the China
Road and Bridge Corporation [CRBC
www.crbc.com.hk]. Lima did not give a cost for the Bata project, which will
centre on a 2-km jetty into the
sea. [RT 27/03/09]
Malabo Port Initial Works Inaugurated - 13/03/09
The President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo has inaugurated
the first phase works of the new Port of Malabo. The construction, which
commenced in 2007, was undertaken by Moroccan firm Somagec [www.somagec.ma].
To see a pictorial account of construction works please view
You Tube:
When completely finished, the new
port will offer a 485m dock, a 6,000m operating area, 2 storages areas with
8,400 cubic meters capacity and a passenger terminal
with a 1,200 m linear platform. [CIDGE 10/02/09]
Bata and Malabo - Import of Containerised Vehicles Forbidden
- 23/06/08
Please note the government of Equatorial Guinea has banned the import
of containerised vehicles. Initially implemented in March 2008, this ruling
applies to all vehicles: cars, vans, lorries until further notice. Although
a temporary measure, no
end date has been specified. We therefore regret with immediate effect we are
unable to accept all bookings of this nature to Bata and Malabo. If you have
any enquiries please do not hesitate to contact your local OTAL agent.
Custom Agent List
For an up to date list of viable custom agents please click
here.
Export Promotion Council Embarks On New Registration
Of Exporters - 10/06/08
The Ghana Export Promotion Council [GEPC] is compiling a new register of non-traditional
exporters in the
various product categories to enable it to build an accurate data on all members.
As part of the registration
process, a geographic information system will be used to map out the office
locations of the exporters. [GNA 10/06/08]
Equatorial Guinea Re-Opens Border With Cameroon-
16/05/08
The government of Equatorial Guinea has re-opened its boarder with
Cameroon following its closure for over
a month. Equatorial Guinean President, Theodoro Obiang Nguema, reopened
the borders prior to recent
parliamentary and council elections on 04/05/08. [TP 16/05/08]
Vehicle Import Ban - 07/04/08
The Government of Equatorial Guinea has temporarily forbidden the importation of used vehicles, to include cars, vans, trucks, machinery. The ban will be implemented from 14/03/08, and will remain in force until further notice. Please click here for the official notice.
Infrastructural Projects - 01/04/08
The principal infrastructure projects currently in progress in Equatorial
Guinea relate to the ports of Malabo and Bata as well as the airports
of Malabo, Bata and Mongomeyen as follows:
· Port of Malabo - the construction of a new port has been
entrusted to Somagec of Morocco. The building, which began in March
2006 and which should be completed during 2009, envisages the construction
of a 760m linear quay with a depth of 14 m, a 350m linear quay of depth
9 m and a 27ha stacking area.
·
Bata Port - construction of a defence dam entrusted to Somagec of Morocco.
·
Malabo Aéroport - extension of car parks and the construction
of the taxi aprons have been entrusted to Bouygues.
·
Bata Aéroport - extension of the existing track and the construction
of a second track.
·
Mongomeyen Aéroport - airport construction by Diwidag [Germany].
Angolan Government Assesses Accords -
28/03/07
The Governments of Equatorial Guinea and Angola have signed numerous
accords after an official visit by Angolan Head of State, José Eduardo
dos Santos. [APA 28/03/07]
Revitalising Sub-Regional Ties - 02/04/07
The President of Equatorial Guinea, Téodoro Obiang Ngeuma Mbasogo
and his Cameroonian counterpart, Paul Biya have reviewed cooperation
ties between their countries and the CEMAC sub-region. Discussions
centred on bilateral and multilateral cooperation. Minor consular problems
between the countries had been cleared namely the unilateral closure
of the Cameroon - Equatorial Guinea border around Ebebiying in the
South Province of Cameroon by Equatorial Guinean officials. [CT 02/04/07]
