Port Overview 

The Port of Beira is the second largest port in Mozambique. It is located at the mouth of the Púngue River, 20 km from the open sea and about 1,200 km north of Maputo. 

Served by extensive rail and road network systems, Beira is the main port for exports and imports from the Mozambique provinces of Sofala, Manica and Tete, and a strategic gateway for the landlocked countries in southeast Africa. It provides a short and quick access route for transit cargoes to/from Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana and DRC. A fuel pipeline also links the port with Zimbabwe. 

The port of Beira has 11 berths stretching over a total length of 1,994 m. This excludes berth nr. 1, which is reserved as a fishing harbour. ‘Cornelder de Moçambique’ (CdM), a joint venture between the state-owned Mozambique Ports and Railways (CFM) and Cornelder Holding from the Netherlands, has operated it since 1998 with concession for CT and GC excluding Oil terminal and Coal Terminal (TCC8) which are operated by CFM. 

Beira is a tidal port – pilotage and tug assistance is always therefore compulsory. Access to the port is made through the 135 m wide dredged Macuti Channel (17 nautical miles from the Macuti lighthouse), with an actual minimum depth of 8 m below the chart datum in the Macuti curve. Systematic dredging is required to maintain the channel depths and width. The maximum accepted draft is obtained by adding 6.8 m to the height of the tide at that moment. This includes a safety margin of 1.2 m of the keel clearance. 

The Terminals operated by Cornelder de Moçambique can receive ships with a maximum tonnage of 40,000 tons, 24 hours a day. Vessels awaiting berth must anchor at the pilot station. 

Port of Beira has benefited of some investments by Cornelder. The Container terminal benefitted from an investment to increase the capacity of its container storage space to an area of 3 ha, as well as the building of a new five lane access road, with the option to add a further two lanes in the future. There has been investment in equipment such as in terminal tractors, reachstackers, RoRo tugmasters, forklifts, weighbridges. With the projection expansion of storage yard, in addition to using Rubber Tyred Gantry Cranes (RTG´s) the port will be able to handle 700,000.00 TEU. 

The Container Port Performance Index (CPPI) is produced by the World Bank and ranks ports based on a statistical approach, which is based on ship waiting time in port. Port of Beira achieved the highest ranking of all container terminals in southern Africa, ahead of Ports such as Durban, Cape Town, Dar Es Salaam and Walvis Bay. 

Port website: Cornelder || Port of Beira - Mozambique 

Key port information may also be found at: Port of Beira MZBEW map, contact details and vessel arrivals by Maritime Database (maritime-database.com) 

 

Port Location and Contact
Country	Mozambique
Province or District	Sofala
Nearest Town or City  with Distance from Port	Beira Port in town
Port's Complete Name	Port of Beira
Latitude	-19.8461
Longitude	34.8576
Managing Company or Port Authority	Cornelder de Mozambique
Management Contact Person	Leticia Ferreira (Comercial Director) – +258828732724, +25823322735
Nearest Airport and Airlines with Frequent International Arrivals/Departures	Beira International Airport  LAM and SAA

Port Picture 

 

 

Description and Contacts of Key Companies 

Cornelder Mozambique is the managing company for Port of Beira. 

For more information on port contacts, please see the following link:  

4.4 Port and Waterways Companies Contact List  

Port Performance 

Beira is a tidal port – pilotage and tug assistance is always therefore compulsory. Access to the port is made through the 135 m wide dredged Macuti Channel, with an actual minimum depth of 8 m below the chart datum in the Macuti curve. 

The port of Beira is not congested. It is able to receive ships with a maximum tonnage of 40,000 tons, 24 hours a day. Berth occupancy in 2017 was 59 percent at the container terminal and 80 percent at general cargo berths. Despite the increased tonnage handled, the container terminal is not congested. Container dwelling time is less than ten days. Regarding bulk cargo (e.g., maize, wheat), productivity is around 150 mt/gang/hour, and bagged cargo averages 30 mt/gang/hour. 

Restricted road access to the port (roads are very narrow) and bureaucratic delays in the documentation process constitute the main constraints. 

There is an established priority for humanitarian cargo at the Port of Beira, particularly during times of crisis or natural disasters. The port has played a crucial role in supporting humanitarian operations during cyclones and other emergencies. 

Seasonal Constraints
	Occurs	Time Frame
Rainy Season	Yes	From November to March
Major Import Campaigns	Yes, Fertilizer	From August to January
Other Comments	There was a total of ten days without navigation in 2022 due to a declared bad weather condition.

 

Handling Figures for 2022
Vessel Calls	CT: 139  GC: 168
Container Traffic (TEUs)	258,570

 

Handling Figures Bulk and Break Bulk for 2022
Bulk (mt)	2,575,990
Break bulk (mt)	766,159

Discharge Rates and Terminal Handling Charges 

For information on port rates and charges, please see the following link: 

Cornelder || Port of Beira - Mozambique 

CdM Tariff Book 2012 -CdM_Tariff_2012 (cornelder.co.mz) 

Cornelder Tariff Book includes all tariffs except maritime services, which are included in the CFM Port Tariffs. 

 

Berthing Specifications 

Type of Berth	Quantity	Length  (m)	Maximum  Draft (m)	Comments
Conventional Berth (6)	1	170	10	General cargo
Conventional Berth (7)	1	165.5	10	General cargo
Conventional Berth (8)	1	187.9	10	Coal terminal berth
Conventional Berth (9)	1	167.3	10	General cargo/Silo berth
Conventional Berth (10)	1	167.3	10	General cargo/Silo berth
Container Berths (2 to 5)	4	645	12	Container/General cargo
Silo Berth (9 and 10)	2	167.3	10	General cargo/Silo berth
Berthing Tugs	2	n/a	n/a	n/a
Water Barges	n/a

General Cargo Handling Berths 

Cargo Type	Berth Identification
Imports - Bagged Cargo	Nr. 6 to 10
Exports - Bagged Cargo	Nr. 6 to 10
Imports and Exports - RoRo	Nr. 6 to 10
Other Imports	Nr. 6 to 10

Port Handling Equipment 

Cornelder, a joint venture between CFM, Cornelder Holland and current concessionaires, manages the port equipment. 

Over the year 2022, gantry crane availability was 93 percent, reach stacker availability was 69 percent and terminal tractor availability was 72 percent. 

Equipment	Available	Total Quantity and Capacity Available	Comments on Current Condition and Actual Usage
Dockside Crane	No
Container Gantries	Yes	2 x 50 tons  2 x 60 tons	STS Gantry cranes are fully operational.
Mobile Cranes	Yes	3 material handlers  1 mobile crane 28 tons
Reachstacker	Yes	31 Sany	All operational
RoRo Tugmaster (with Trailer)	Yes	15 x 40 tons  15 x 60 tons  21 X 70 tons	All operational
Grain Elevator with Bagging Machines	Yes	6 mobile bagging units, including hoppers  14 Bulk hoppers
Transtainer	No
Forklifts	Yes	2 x 3 tons  6x2.5 tons  6 x 16 tons  5 x 30 tons  2x46 tons  2 x 50 tons  3 x empty handler
Weighbridges	Yes	6
Terminal Tractors	Yes	45

Container Facilities 

The terminal has been working with Navis N4 Version 3.6 since 2016. The control of the yard, the truck flow and vessel operations has improved and container traffic has increased. The average yard utilisation was 6,000 TEU and the truck turnaround time is less than one hour. Crane productivity is in average 20 GMPH, 20 containers moved over the quay wall per hour.   

Facilities	20 ft
Container Facilities Available	n/a
Container Freight Station (CFS)	No
Refrigerated Container Stations	144
Other Capacity Details	Storage for 10,000 TEU  Dwell time less than 10 days  Railside Gantry 40 tons
Daily Take Off Capacity   (Containers per Day)	1,500 TEU
Number of Reefer Stations   (Connection Points)	148
Emergency Take-off Capacity	n/a
Off take Capacity of Gang Shift   (Containers per Shift)	n/a

Customs Guidance 

Guidance from the manual “Rules and Procedures for Customs clearance of Goods donated for Humanitarian Assistance”, prepared by INGD, Mitigation Division, Customs clearance Sector - Ver12December 22: 

VI. CUSTOMS CLEARANCE PROCESS FOR THE HEALTH AND EMERGENCY AND HUMANITARIAN GOODS SECTOR 

6.1. Conditions for Customs Clearance 

25. Advance shipment (after shipment and before arrival in the national territory) by the exporter/Donor of the following documents: 

1. Commercial Invoice; 

2. PackList; 

3. Certificate of Analysis (Drugs and vaccines) or Quality (Consumables and other medical products); 

4. Bill of Lading (Bill of lading) for sea and Waybill for air; 

5. Processing schedule for the Pharmaceutical Specialty Inspection Bulletin (BIEF), in accordance with Annex 2.

26. Immediate Issuance (within no more than 2 days) of the Accounting Note, in cases of lack of financial coverage, an early exit authorization would be issued for products subject to Customs Charges (most consumables). If the Accounting Note is not issued within 2 days, the products destined for the MISAU (medicines, medical products, equipment and vehicles) will enjoy early departure without any restrictions. 

27. Existence of financial availability within the limit communicated in the State Budget for the payment of MCNet Fee up to the maximum amount equivalent to sixty-four American dollars (USD 64) in accordance with paragraph 30, and expenses of Private agents of cargo handling (airport tax, storage, parking, deposit and Kudumba) upon arrival of the Goods.

28. For perishable products such as vaccines and reagents, the request for Exit Authorization must be made at the respective customs office, with a maximum of two (2) days in advance, under the responsibility of the Manager or his Representative. Clearance of vehicles and other vehicles.

6.2. Clearance of vehicles and other vehicles 

29. The attribution of license plates for vehicles and other vehicles must be made before issuing the Accounting Notes, through Early Departure, in case of delay in this process. 

6.3 Payment of the MCNet Fee 

30. Bearing in mind that MISAU imports goods with high values, you must pay an MCNet fee up to a maximum amount equivalent to sixty-four American dollars (USD 64), regardless of the FOB value of the goods. 

6.4 Payment of port fees 

31. Private operator agents must allow the collection of goods intended for Health under a Term of Commitment, with the guarantee that the amounts due are paid within a period to be agreed between this agent and any Ministry authorized to receive or import emergency goods or humanitarians. 

32. If the above conditions are met, the time for withdrawing the goods from the port area may be between: 

1. Maximum 2 days for air and land cargo; 

2. Maximum 7 days for sea cargo. 

For more information on customs in Mozambique, please see the following link:  

1.3 Customs Information   

Terminal Information 

MULTIPURPOSE TERMINAL 

The container and multi-purpose terminal has a 645 m long quay with a 12 m depth alongside. The terminal has a 300,000 m² container yard, accommodating 10,000 TEUs and 148 electricity connection points for refrigerated containers. The container storage yard was recently expanded and covers now an area of 8,400 m² secure bonded transit warehouse and 3,650 m² covered storage. The road access was also improved and has now five lanes with an option for further extension. Currently the terminal uses the NAVIS N4 terminal operating system and can handle 300,000 TEU per year. With the projection expansion of storage yard, in addition to using Rubber Tyred Gantry Cranes (RTG´s) the port will be able to handle 700,000.00 TEUs. 

GRAIN AND BULK HANDLING 

CdM does not manage this terminal. It can handle 4,000 to 5,000 tons per day and has a silo storage capacity of 50,000 tons. Main commodities include fertilizer, clinker, sulphur and ore chrome + ferrochrome. 

MAIN STORAGE TERMINAL 

Storage Type	Number of Storage Facilities	Area (m2)
Bagged Cargo	5 covered warehouses	15,000
Refrigerated Cargo	n/a	n/a
General Cargo	Paved open air storage	15,000 (paved) + 150,000
Bulk Silo Storage	For cereals	50,000 tons

Stevedoring 

The following companies perform stevedoring activities in the port of Beira: 

• Chele Serviços e Consultoria – Home • CSC | Chele Services and Consulting, Lda. 

• BMP 

• Chigolo 

• Marperita – Marperita | About Us (marperita-mozambique.com) 

• Mozport Beira – Beira - Supermaritime Group 

• Naval Serviços à Navegação 

Hinterland Information 

The port is served by two railway lines: one to Zimbabwe via Machipanda/Mutare (317 km to the border) operated by CFM, and Sena line to Moatize, Tete Province, (575 km) operated by CFM with a partial concession to ICVL and Jindal for the transport of coal from Moatize. Discussions are underway between the governments of Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia, to extend the line to Mozambique’s neighbours, which could provide a significant boost to the trading potential of all the countries involved. 

The road network serving the port is in reasonably good condition and enables the movement of trucks and international trade to/from Zimbabwe, Botswana (via Zimbabwe), Malawi and Zambia (via Zimbabwe, Malawi or directly via Tete Province). It also provides an easy route to access markets in Mozambique provinces of Sofala, Manica, Tete and Zambézia. The EN6 highway has benefitted from a USD 410 million upgrade to ensure it can continue to meet traffic demand. The work done to avoid flooding by the Pungue river showed foresight given the damages caused by Cyclone Idai.  

The shortest, quickest and safest route to the sea for the southern Africa hinterland: 

Port Security 

The port has a 6 km long electro-welded security fencing and a CCTV surveillance system, which complies with international security standards. 

Adequate safety procedures during cargo handling are in place. 

Security
ISPS Compliant	Yes
Current ISPS Level   (Level 1 = Normal, Level 2 = Heightened, Level 3 = Exceptional)	1
Police Boats	No
Fire Engines	Yes (3)

 

 

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