Port of Algiers: 28% increase in export containers during 1st quarter of 2023, 14% increase in maritime traffic

BY: Hana Saada

ALGIERS- 2023 will be the year of Algeria’s exports to Africa. The number of full containers destined for export in the port of Algiers recorded a remarkable increase of 28% in the first three months of the current year, compared to the same period last year, thanks to the facilitation measures that have been applied in favor of exporters, the official agency reported on Monday, citing a report by Epal Company.

The containerization rate increased in the first three months of the current year, reaching 95%, compared to 92% in the first three months of 2022, according to the same media.

In addition to this improvement, there is another positive indicator linked to the performance of the Société du Port d’Alger, since the average waiting time for ships in the port has decreased from January to March 2023, compared to the same period last year, from 0.88 days in 2022 to 0.58 days in 2023.

14% increase in maritime traffic

Maritime traffic in the port of Algiers experienced during the first quarter of this year an increase of more than 14% on an annual basis, according to the same source.

The data indicates that during the period from January to March 2023, 377 ships berthed, including 304 in operation, in the port of Algiers, compared to 329 ships at berth in the same period last year, which represents an increase of 14.6%.

In particular, the increase included tankers by 33%, cement carriers by 33% and container ships by 16%, while passenger ships registered a drop of 31%, in addition to Ro-Ro vessels. » (used for transporting cars) by 71% and butan carriers by 6%.

In the same positive effort recorded by the company, the total weight of incoming commercial vessels increased by 4.34%, from 4.2 million barrels in the first quarter of 2022 to 4.3 million barrels in the first quarter of 2023, reaching 99 percent of the 4.5 million barrel target.

The target set for the total movement of goods at 2.2 million tonnes for the first quarter of 2023 was also met by 85% to reach 1.8 million tonnes, marking a decrease of 5.37% compared to the same period in 2022.