Hapag-Lloyd doubles down on African port capacity

Hapag-Lloyd doubles down on African port capacity: The German carrier is expanding its partnership with DP World to secure long-term terminal capacity in Dakar, Luanda and Dar es Salaam, while supporting new and expanded infrastructure at Banana in the DRC and Maputo in Mozambique, according to a press release. The move comes as Hapag-Lloyd expects African transport volumes to top 1 mn TEU in 2026, prompting the carrier to lock in capacity ahead of the growth.

DP World has already started building out the network: In Dar es Salaam, DP World took over operations under a 30-year concession in 2023, initially committing USD 250 mn to upgrades, with total investment potentially reaching USD 1 bn, and is currently redeveloping seven cargo and handling yards spanning 90k sqm. In DRC, the first phase of Banana port will be able to handle 450k TEU a year, while in Mozambique, DP World is also backing a USD 2 bn expansion of Maputo port that is expected to raise annual container capacity to around 1 mn TEU.