Congo Terminal has completed the structural works for a new refrigerated-container yard at the East Mole platform of the Port of Pointe-Noire.
It added 1,680 reefer power connections, lifting the operator’s total reefer capacity from 1,869 to 3,549 connections. The milestone, announced on October 21, marks a major strengthening of the Republic of the Congo’s cold-chain infrastructure, according to Maritim Africa.
The new facility comprises 24 reefer gantries, each providing power connections for refrigerated containers carrying frozen, chilled and other temperature-sensitive cargo. Once fully operational, the installation will nearly double Congo Terminal’s reefer capacity, supporting growing volumes of perishable goods moving through Pointe-Noire.
Refrigerated containers require a continuous power supply during storage and transit to prevent temperature fluctuations that can compromise food safety and product quality. The expanded yard is therefore intended to preserve cargo integrity from arrival at the terminal through to onward transport.
“This increase in capacity responds directly to the changing needs of the sub-region,” said Emmanuel Addo, Operations Director at Congo Terminal. “The new facility will allow Congo Terminal to handle growing volumes of frozen and perishable goods while providing infrastructure that supports the cold chain.”
The reefer yard forms part of the broader East Mole expansion at Pointe-Noire, a project designed to position the port as a leading logistics gateway for Central Africa. Congo Terminal, a subsidiary of Africa Global Logistics (AGL), is developing the platform under a public-private partnership with the Autonomous Port of Pointe-Noire.
The wider project includes a 750-metre quay with a depth of 17 meters, a 27-hectare embankment and equipment for handling some of the world’s largest container vessels. AGL has said the development represents an investment of more than €400 million and is scheduled for commissioning in early 2027.
The East Mole is also being developed as an electric terminal, with five ship-to-shore gantry cranes, 15 electric rubber-tyred gantry cranes and 30 electric terminal tractors planned. The 1,680 reefer sockets were included in the original project design, alongside 4,000 square meters of buildings.
The additional capacity comes as demand rises for reliable cold-chain logistics across Central Africa, particularly for imported food products, seafood, pharmaceuticals and agricultural exports. Improved reefer handling could reinforce Pointe-Noire’s role as a transshipment and distribution hub for landlocked and coastal markets in the sub-region.
Congo Terminal is the exclusive operator of container and roll-on/roll-off vessel handling at Pointe-Noire. The company employs nearly 900 Congolese staff and has handled more than one million twenty-foot equivalent units annually since 2022.
The completion of the structural works is a key step before equipment installation and commissioning. If the wider East Mole platform enters service as planned in 2027, the expanded reefer capacity is expected to give shippers, importers and exporters greater flexibility in managing perishable and frozen cargo through Central Africa’s Atlantic gateway.
