GPA Explains Limits of Banjul Channel, Outlines Emergency Dredging Plan

By Adama Njie

The Gambia Ports Authority (GPA) has acknowledged longstanding capacity constraints at the Banjul Port access channel and outlined emergency measures aimed at improving vessel access amid rising demand.

In a statement, the Authority said the access channel has never undergone full dredging and has remained “largely self-maintaining” for decades. A 1997 study estimated that deepening the channel to 10.5 metres over a 16-nautical-mile stretch would require removing around 4.6 million cubic metres of material at a cost of about €35 million.

The GPA said that due to limited funding, only partial works were carried out in 2018, when a critical section between buoy numbers 2 and 3 was deepened from 8.5 metres to 9 metres to expand port capacity.

With larger, deeper-draft vessels now calling at Banjul, the Authority has launched a restricted emergency tender to further deepen the same section from 9 metres to 11 metres. Bids are due by 19 December 2025, with dredging expected to finish by the end of January 2026, provided the selected contractor can mobilise quickly.

The GPA also confirmed that one of the major cement importers has adopted temporary logistics measures to ease congestion, including the use of smaller coastal vessels to lighten mother ships at anchorage. Weather conditions permitting, one of two waiting mother vessels is expected to berth on Thursday, 11 December.

The importer has further committed to deploying 42,000-tonne vessels going forward, which require only a single lightening operation before berthing, a shift the GPA says will improve efficiency until dredging work is complete.

Reaffirming its commitment to expanding capacity, the Authority said it is working to secure a competent dredging contractor capable of responding rapidly to the current emergency.