Operations at the Port of Lamu are set to go a notch higher when the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA), on Sunday, receives three state-of-the-art Ship-to-Shore gantry cranes (STS) to bolster the port’s performance.

KPA Managing Director (MD) Captain William Ruto said today during the handing over of food donation worth Sh1.5 million to vulnerable Muslim families that the Port of Lamu is also expecting a vessel with a huge consignment of bulk cargo.

Capt Ruto divulged that the Ethiopia Government has shown keen interest in using the Port of Lamu because of the emerging Red Sea upheaval.

He lauded the government for improving security in the LAPSSET corridor highway that will connect the Port of Lamu with Ethiopia and South Sudan with only a small section of the road still under construction. The Ethiopians, Capt Ruto noted, have surveyed the highway that will facilitate transportation of cargo from the port. 

“They have committed themselves that very soon they will start picking cargo in Lamu, with the new ship-to-shore crane arriving in Lamu. We expect to see a paradigm shift in terms of handling of transshipments,” said Capt Ruto.