Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has sold its 35% equity investment in Atlantic Terminal Services Limited (ATSL), the concessionaire for the expansion of Ghana’s Takoradi Port, to global ports and container terminals operator Yilport Holding.

In 2019 AFC, a pan-African multilateral development financial institution headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, committed to invest up to US$138 million in equity and debt in the Takoradi Port expansion project.

The project, which is approaching the operational phase, seeks to reduce the cost of imports and exports to and from the western and central regions of Ghana, and neighbouring landlocked countries, by modernizing a container and multi-purpose terminal under a 25-year concession for its design, engineering, financing and construction.

Following AFC's exit, Ibistek and Ghana Ports & Harbours Authority remain as shareholders in the project. AFC will continue to be a lender to the project.

Yilport Holding, a subsidiary of Amsterdam and Istanbul-based Yildirim Group, has been building multipurpose port facilities since 2004, with a target to become a top ten global port operator by 2030.

The company says its investment in Takoradi represents an ideal entry point into Africa. It plans to transform the port and its adjacent area into a logistics and trading hub, ensuring high volumes of traffic.

Takoradi offers shorter and less-congested links to west and central Ghana, including the Takoradi region, which boasts substantial agricultural activity, including 50% of the country’s cocoa production, as well as manufacturing, industrial and business parks, and a growing natural resources sector. The port is also well suited to provide linkages to neighbouring landlocked countries.

“This exit marks a significant milestone for AFC’s impact on the continent and we take pride in our pivotal role in driving the implementation and de-risking of the Takoradi Port Expansion," says AFC president and chief executive officer Samaila Zubairu. "The project is reshaping West Africa’s economic landscape and partnering with a reputable investor like Yilport Holding aligns with our mandate to catalyze the inflow of global investment into Africa to transform supply chains, create local jobs, and enable resource beneficiation.”

In the past year, AFC has completed the construction of two new ports, Terminal a Conteneurs De Nouakchott (TCN) and the Multipurpose Industrial Terminal of San Pedro (TIPSP)  in Cote d’Ivoire