Construction of a new private wharf and boat ramp in Port Moresby will be completed by the end of the year, according to Karthik Pajjala, General Manager of Avenell Engineering Systems Ltd, the builders of the wharf.

Ravuvu wharf under construction

Work began in 2012 on the 180-metre berth at the Ravuvu Industrial Park, 20 kilometres west of central Port Moresby.

The new wharf will help ease traffic at Port Moresby’s main port, as well as boost employment and trade in the capital.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) this week provided Avenell (AES) with a US$4 million (K8.9 million) loan to help the company complete the project.

‘IFC’s support provides us with the certainty of stable, long-term financing and advice,’ said Dominic Avenell, a director of AES.

‘IFC will also help us establish a comprehensive environmental and social management system for our entire operation, which will boost our competitiveness when we seek contracts with international and local firms that demand global best practices in this area.’

AES has interests in housing construction, wharf and port operations, storage, and other services that support the mining sector.

Pajjala told Business Advantage PNG the new wharf would service smaller vessels with a draught of less than six metres. The company would concentrate on servicing the oil and gas industry.

The former chief operating officer of PNG Ports, Michael Nye, is preparing a marketing plan for the park’s wharf, he said.

The AES wharf is the latest edition to a growing number of private port facilities surrounding the nation’s capital. As well as the massive facilities built to facilitate the shipping of gas from the ExxonMobil-led PNG LNG project, Curtain Brothers’ Motukea Island wharf was completed at the end of 2010, while Steamships has its own wharf for coastal shipping adjacent to Port Moresby’s main port facility.