• Two STS cranes from China’s ZPMC are set to arrive at Abidjan port in October.

• The move follows a July delivery of 2 quay cranes and 9 fully electric RTGs.

• Container traffic at Abidjan doubled to 1.6m TEUs in 2024, driving new investment.

Chinese equipment maker Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industry Co., Ltd (ZPMC) has announced the shipment of two ship-to-shore (STS) cranes to Abidjan port in Côte d’Ivoire. The cranes, dedicated to container handling, are expected to arrive in October. They add to a July delivery of two quay cranes (STS) and nine fully electric rubber-tired gantry cranes (RTGs).

According to authorities, these acquisitions aim to speed up port services and meet rising traffic. They are expected to cut vessel turnaround times, streamline logistics, and ultimately attract major shipping lines.

Container traffic at Abidjan port has doubled in recent years, climbing from 840,926 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2022 to 1.6 million TEUs in 2024. This growth lifted overall traffic to 40 million tons in 2024, up from 34.7 million the previous year.

The new equipment forms part of a wider investment plan to position Abidjan as a regional hub and strengthen competitiveness against Lomé, Tema, and Cotonou. These rival ports are also carrying out major expansion programs to increase their capacity.