Buoyed by record cargo volumes, growing investor interest and the development of Special Economic Zones, the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) is expanding and digitising the Port of Mombasa to improve efficiency and prepare for rising demand.
The Port of Mombasa has 22 berths serving conventional cargo and container terminals, as well as a modern cruise terminal. Cargo volumes have been on an upward trajectory since 2024.
In 2025, cargo handled at the port hit a record 45.45 million metric tonnes, a 10 per cent increase from the 40.99 million metric tonnes recorded in 2024, an increase of 4.46 million tonnes.
Container traffic also grew, reaching 2.11 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), up from 2.00 million TEUs in 2024. This represented an increase of 109,797 TEUs, or 5.5 per cent. Transit cargo followed a similar trend, rising to 15.88 million metric tonnes from 13.29 million tonnes in 2024, an increase of 2.59 million tonnes, or 19.5 per cent.
To ensure the port can handle the projected surge in cargo, KPA is constructing berth 19B for Sh19 billion. The berth will be 240 metres long, with a 15-metre draft, and will accommodate vessels of up to 45,000 deadweight tonnes. It is expected to increase the port’s capacity by 300,000 TEUs.
“The progress is going very well. We are extending the berth and also creating additional capacity of 300,000 TEUs. At the moment, the progress is around 56 per cent, and we are on course,” said KPA CEO Capt. William Ruto during an interview with KNA.
He added: “We expect some of the sections that have been done to be released to the authority before the end of the year to support the influx of cargo during December, when volumes are normally high.”
Capt. Ruto said KPA was also preparing for the expected increase in cargo by training staff and acquiring additional cargo-handling equipment to ensure smooth operations.
“We are ready, our staff are ready, we have equipment, and we have also acquired more equipment that will be arriving before the Christmas season to handle the volumes of cargo that we are seeing now. It is going up,” he said.
In July, KPA unveiled a Sh1 billion Vessel Traffic Management and Information System (VTMIS) at the Port of Mombasa to improve vessel turnaround times.
The system is part of a wider programme of marine investments that includes a new search-and-rescue helicopter and three new tugboats valued at approximately Sh1.5 billion to Sh1.6 billion.
The VTMIS has been deployed across three interconnected sites: the Vessel Traffic Services Control Tower, the Ras Serani Signal Station and the Shimanzi Oil Terminal Radar Site. Together, the sites create an integrated operational environment for the port.
The system combines real-time vessel tracking, advanced radar surveillance, marine communications, meteorological monitoring, oil-spill detection and digital port-management functions. It is part of the digital transformation reshaping global trade, logistics and maritime operations.
To ease congestion around the port and speed up the movement of cargo in and out of the facility, KPA has completed construction of a smart gate at Gate 24.
“That smart gate initiative is what we learned from other ports, in terms of how to automate our ports and lessen the manual interfaces that we have always been doing,” Capt. Ruto said.
At the Mombasa Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Dongo Kundu, KPA is implementing the Sh41.1 billion port component of the project. The component includes the construction of seven berths and yards covering 1,300 acres of the 3,000-acre SEZ.
Construction of the first multi-purpose berth, measuring 300 metres in length, began in October 2025 and is scheduled for completion in December 2028. “Currently we are at around 23 per cent; in terms of the yard we are around 50 per cent, so that progress is on course,” Capt. Ruto said.
Another major infrastructure project, valued at Sh8.3 billion, is also taking shape at the port. It is expected to improve cargo movement, safety and operational efficiency at the country’s busiest seaport.
The project forms part of KPA’s long-term infrastructure modernisation programme, which aims to accommodate growing cargo volumes and improve connectivity between the port, Gates 18 and 20, Kipevu Road and the wider Northern Corridor.
“That roadwork infrastructure project is currently at 58 per cent, and we are on course. We expect to complete it by mid-next year. This will ease traffic congestion at the port and improve the flow of cargo,” Capt. Ruto said.
By Sadik Hassan
