• DRC awards $600 million, 23-year dry-port concession at Kasumbalesa to Yellowstone

• Project includes warehouses, container zones, fuel storage and parking for 1,800 trucks

• Strategic hub links major regional corridors serving Zambia’s Copperbelt and Katanga mines

The Democratic Republic of Congo signed a $600 million concession contract on Monday with South Africa’s Yellowstone Consortium to build and operate a dry port in Kasumbalesa.

The agreement was signed by the Office for Multimodal Freight Management (Ogefrem) and witnessed by Transport Minister Jean-Pierre Bemba. It follows a year-long process to select a private operator to finance and deliver the strategic project.

Kasumbalesa lies at the crossroads of several transport corridors connecting seven African seaports, including Dar es Salaam, Beira, Durban and Lobito. Linked to National Road No. 1, the town serves as an interface between Zambia’s Copperbelt and the former Congolese province of Katanga, two of the region’s major mining areas.

Bemba said the contract covers a total investment of $600 million and grants the private partner a 23-year concession.

Under the prequalification notice, the operator must finance, build and equip 13,500 square meters of warehouses, expandable to 34,000 square meters; two container zones; a fuel storage area; truck parking for about 1,800 vehicles along with parking for smaller vehicles; two administrative buildings; access roads; an electricity delivery point; a water pumping station with a tower; a fire station; and housing and rest facilities.

The concessionaire must also develop a land parcel at the site entrance for a fuel station, commercial activities and vehicle servicing and washing facilities. In return, the operator will manage the infrastructure throughout the concession and hand it back to the state at the end of the contract.

Yellowstone is a South African consortium specializing in the design, financing, construction and operation of logistics assets, including dry ports, transit hubs, truck parks and industrial zones. The company says it applies modern construction standards and integrated engineering, management and financial expertise to improve regional transport efficiency.

Boaz Kabeya, Bankable