Mozambique withdraws Maputo Port offer

Mozambique had offered some space at Maputo Port for Botswana's coal exports but later withdrew the offer because of its own rising coal exports.Speaking at the Coal Pitso in Gaborone this week, Transport Hub coordinator Thapelo Leareng said the five million tonne per annum Maputo Port was no longer available to Botswana because of limited capacity.

"The offer to use Maputo Port is no longer there," Leareng said. "However, we have been promised some space at the port once they expand it to a capacity of 15 mtpa, but work has not started yet. That has left us with only the two options of looking for our own ports." Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Botswana last year signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the construction of a deepwater port at Techobanine in the Matutu'ne district of Mozambique's Maputo province and a 1,100 kilometre railway line to link that southern region of Mozambique to Botswana through Zimbabwe.