Toyota Tsusho Corporation, a logistics and infrastructure company under Japan's Toyota Group, has placed orders for new vessels that will be handed over to the Angolan Ministry of Transport. The vessels will include two 28-metre ASD tugs, a 10-metre workboat, and a 19-metre pilot boat.
All four vessels are scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2025. Once in service, they will be operated in Angola in support of a port development project in Namibe province.
The port development project, which commenced in 2019 and is funded by the Japanese government, is Toyota Tsusho’s first such project in Angola. Hiroumi Ohara, General Manager Africa Power and Infrastructure Department of Toyota Tsusho, said the project will enable an increase in vessel traffic in Namibe.
The project includes the expansion of the Namibe container terminal and construction of a new terminal. This will allow larger vessels to call at the port, thereby diversifying the materials it is able to handle.