A TOTAL of 15 fuel storage tanks are to be built at the port of Dar es Salaam to boost capacity and ensure adequate supply of petroleum products.

Prof Makame Mbarawa, the Transport minister, said this yesterday when visiting the Tanzania Port Authority (TPA) oil terminal project at Tundwi in Kigamboni District in the city.

Building storage tanks is part of government plans to expand port infrastructure and positioning Tanzania as a regional fuel hub, he said, noting that upon completion the new facilities will be able to hold 378,000 litres of petroleum products at any moment.

The tank farm construction will take two years, significantly improving efficiency at the port, reducing vessel turnaround time and diminishing retail fuel prices, he said.

Oil tankers that overstay at the port are subjected to demurrage charges of up to 50m/- per day, costs that are habitually passed on to consumers, he said.

The waiting can at times extend to more than a week, now set to end with the new storage facilities, enabling ships to spend only a few hours at the port, he said.

The government is committed to making the port of Dar es Salaam one of the most competitive globally, he declared, hailing the start of the project’s implementation.

The TPA management and board worked hard to arrive here, he stated, while TPA project manager Hamis Mbutu assured the minister that the project will be completed on schedule.

The management is fully aligned with the government’s goal to enhance port efficiency, he said, with TPA deputy director Juma Kijavara earlier stating that the project is billed to take up 678.6bn/-.

It was formally inked on February 26, with the contractor, China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group, already paid 9.9bn/- to begin the work, he explained.

Wen Hongyuan, a China Railway executive, told the minister that five percent of the project has been completed, citing office construction and site clearing.

Construction work will involve six tanks for storing diesel, five for petrol and three for jet fuel, he added.