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2005
2005, August 13: The Government of Trinidad
and Tobago plans to develop a new port at Sea Lots, Port-of-Spain, by 2008, to
cost some USD240 million, in addition to its USD80 million upgrade of the Port
of Port-of-Spain.
According to reports in both the Trinidad Express
and Guardian newspapers, Works and Transport Minister Colm Imbert, who announced
the plans for the new port on August 5, said it would ultimately replace the
Port-of-Spain port. The Sea Lots location being looked at is south of
National Petroleum.
The minister was quoted: "We are going to use the
most sophisticated technology and whatever mistakes currently exist here (at the
port of Port of Spain) we are going to make an effort not to repeat them there.”
This relocation of the port will make land
available at this location for a new terminus for a new rail system that is
being contemplated and will allow improvement in the highway network.
“We will be able to put eight lanes on Wrightson
Road for example," he said, adding: "We will be able to put a by-pass road
through Dock Road which is one of the plans at this point in time so that
persons who are travelling from east to west or vice versa will be able to
by-pass Wrightson Road and thereby avoid a lot of the traffic congestion that
currently exists."
As regards the Port of Port of Spain, Imbert
said: "We are proceeding with the contracting of a new management operator for
the port terminal. This is scheduled to be in place by October 2005. This
operator is required to bring international best practices and standards to Port
of Spain and this will certainly improve overall productivity and vessel
turnaround times."
The plans to build the new port did not mean that
the Port of Spain port upgrade was a waste of taxpayers’ money. The Minister
said businessmen would suffer if the Port of Spain port was closed before the
new port was opened. “It may take three years to establish this new port. It may
take another six months to a year to commission it,” Imbert said in a media
interview after the workshop.
“We must continue the (Port-of-Spain) port
operations in the next three to four years. The economy is booming. The
throughput is increasing significantly.”
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