Mozambique ports to get big injection

Grindrod and the Maputo Port Development Company (MPDC) plan to invest $1.7 billion (R15.2bn) over the next five years to upgrade ports in Mozambique as demand grows. Annual capacity at the Maputo and Matola ports would be tripled to 50 million tons by 2020 from 15 million tons, the MPDC said on Friday. The company had approved investment of $355 million in 2013 and 2014 to boost capacity at the Matola port terminal. The coal terminal would be handling 7.2 million tons by next year from 6 million tons. Exxaro Resources and Coal of Africa are among companies to have used Maputo to compensate for a lack of rail capacity to Richards Bay Coal Terminal. The MPDC is a joint venture between Mozambique Railways, Grindrod and DP World. Grindrod rose 0.5 percent to close at R19.95 on Friday. – Bloomberg