Doraleh Container Terminal
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The Port of Doraleh is an extension of the
Port of Djibouti The Port of Djibouti is a port in Djibouti, the capital of Djibouti. It is strategically located at the crossroads of one of the busiest shipping routes in the world, linking Europe, the Far East, the Horn of Africa and the Persian Gulf. The por ...
, located 5 km west of Djibouti City. The multipurpose port has terminals for handling oil, bulk cargo, containers and livestock. It was partially owned and operated by
DP World DP World is an Emirati multinational logistics company based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It specialises in cargo logistics, port terminal operations, maritime services and free trade zones. Formed in 2005 by the merger of Dubai Ports Auth ...
and China Merchants Holdings, until its container facility was seized by the government of Djibouti in February 2018. There is a Chinese naval base directly adjacent to the port. China’s first overseas military base is in close proximity to the port.


Operations


Doraleh Multipurpose Port

The ''Doraleh Multipurpose Port (DMP)'' has a total of 15 berths over a 4 km long
quay A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths ( mooring locatio ...
. One of the berths is reserved for the use of the Chinese Navy, which has a base on the western edge of the port. All of the terminals have direct access to the
Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railway The Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railway (; , , ) is a new standard gauge international railway that serves as the backbone of the new Ethiopian National Railway Network. The railway was inaugurated by Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn on January ...
, which provides landlocked Ethiopia with railroad access to the sea. The port is called by major shipping services in the region, including: * OCEAN Alliance Red Sea Express 2 * Maersk Line Horn of Africa * Maersk Line MECL * MSC Australia Express * CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd EPIC1/IPAK * CMA CGM Mona Express * CMA CGM and Emirates Swahili Express * CMA CGM and COSCO India Middle East Mediterranean Express * PIL Red Sea Gulf Service * COSCO and Yang Ming Red Sea Express


Livestock terminal

The
livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to ani ...
terminal at Doraleh Multipurpose Port was inaugurated in January 2021 in partnership with Ethiopia. The facility has a capacity to handle 2.5 million animals per year, or 1,000 heads of camel, 500 heads of cattle and 4,270 heads of goat or sheep per day. The terminal also includes resting areas and
quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...
services for the livestock before being shipped on.


Container terminal

The ''Société De Gestion Du Terminal A Conteneur De Doraleh (SGTD; formerly Doraleh Container Terminal (DCT))'' was built in 2009 by the Dubai shipping company
DP World DP World is an Emirati multinational logistics company based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It specialises in cargo logistics, port terminal operations, maritime services and free trade zones. Formed in 2005 by the merger of Dubai Ports Auth ...
after securing a 30-year contract by Djibouti in 2006. The contract was one of a number of others won by DP World in the region, including one in Berbera, Somaliland. The SGTD's quay is 1050 meters with 18 meters depth, and can hold 1.25 million TEU. The facility also operates eight Super-post-Panamax container cranes. An ENOC petroeum terminal is located adjacent to the SGTD. The terminal is the largest employer in Djibouti and its largest source of revenue. In March 2011, the American National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) installed radiation detection equipment at the Port of Djibouti, including the container terminal, which allows scanning cargo containers for dangerous nuclear and other radioactive materials. The equipment was part of a joint project between the NNSA and the Djiboutian Ministry of Equipment and Transport that started in 2009. As of 2015, the SGTD was described as the most technologically advanced container terminal on the African continent. In 2016, 914,300 containers passed through the port of Doraleh.


Djibouti-DP World conflict

In 2014, the Djibouti government accused DP World of bribing the port authority Abdourahman Boreh, and stated the operating contract was unfair. A London commercial court cleared Boreh of misconduct in 2016. In November 2017, Djibouti passed legislation allowing it to renegotiate contracts related to strategic infrastructure. In February 2018, on the order of president
Ismaïl Omar Guelleh Ismaïl Omar Guelleh ( so, Ismaaciil Cumar Geelle ar, إسماعيل عمر جليه) (born 27 November 1947) is the current President of Djibouti. He has been in office since 1999, making him one of the longest-serving rulers in Africa. He is ...
, the Djibouti government seized the facility and placed it under the control of the government-owned Doraleh Container Terminal Management Company, arguing that the DP World contract violated Djibouti's sovereignty. In response, DP world began a new arbitration case in London against the termination of their 30 year contract to manage the port to secure "compensation for their breach or expropriation." The Djibouti government stated it would engage in "normal compensation procedures" to pay for the nationalization. The nationalization has occurred as the
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...
expanded its influence around the Red Sea and East Africa. At the intersection of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and located next to the Bab el-Mandeb strait, Djibouti occupies a strategic position, and hosts US, Chinese, French and Italian military bases. According to Al-Jazeera, relations between the UAE-based company and Djibouti were strained after Djibouti denied the UAE permission to build a military base on its territory. After seizing the port from DP World, Djibouti’s government offered China Merchants Ports Holdings (via its subsidiary
China Merchants Group China Merchants Group Limited () is an international state-owned corporation (SOE) of the People's Republic of China. The company is operating under the auspices of the Chinese Ministry of Transport. Founded in 1872 China Merchants Steam Navig ...
) a quarter of the port's stake, in what some analysts have suggested "could represent a payment in-kind on debt owed to China and affiliated state firms." In 2017, a tribunal at the
London Court of International Arbitration The London Court of International Arbitration is a British private company limited by guarantee with a head office in London. It offers dispute resolution through arbitration and mediation. History The City of London Chamber of Arbitration w ...
ruled against the Djibouti government claim that DP World's agreement was unfair, and ordered the government to pay DP World damages. In 2018 the London High Court prohibited Djibouti government's port company from interfering with the management of DCT. As per the ruling, the Djibouti government "shall not act as if the joint venture agreement with DP World has been terminated". As of January 2021, seven legal rulings by London courts were won by DP World, with a ruling in July that year "confirming the unlawfulness of Djibouti’s move to terminate its joint venture agreement and transfer its shares to the state." A previous ruling in January 2020 had demanded of Djibouti to pay $533 million in compensation to DP World. An independent analysis has estimated DP World losses to be more than $1 billion. According to DP World, all rulings have been ignored by Djibouti despite the original contract for the concession being governed by
English law English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures. Principal elements of English law Although the common law has, historically, b ...
.


Oil terminal

The oil complex is designed to accommodate vessels with a
draft Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vesse ...
of 20 metres. It has a storage capacity of 370,000 m³. It is managed by the company Horizon Djibouti Terminal Limited (HDTL), which is positioned as a major economic player in Djibouti. It wants to create a local supply centre for regional and international hydrocarbons. Djibouti, at the southern outlet of the
Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
, is located on a wide shipping lane for oil, and as such provides access to the markets of other countries in the
Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004 ...
. Originally designed for 12 annual rotations, the port is now severely overloaded with 28 rotations due to the high demand of oil from
Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
, which is forcing tankers to wait their turn out at sea. An extension of the oil terminal to add an extra 100,000 cubic metres of capacity to the current 370,000 cubic meters is in the works.


See also

*
Railway stations in Djibouti Railway stations in Djibouti are served by standard gauge railways of the ''Djiboutian Railway Company''. Metre gauge railway The metre gauge Ethio-Djibouti Railway once connected Addis Ababa to the port city of Djibouti. The operating com ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Doraleh, Port of Ports and harbours of Djibouti Transport in the Arab League