The Government of Mauritania has officially announced its intention to transfer the management of the multifunctional port of N’Diago to international operators. The Minister of Fisheries and Maritime Infrastructure, Mokhtar Ahmed Bouceif, confirmed this week that the objective is to professionalize the operation of an infrastructure in which the State has already invested nearly 352 million dollars. The port of N’Diago is not just any infrastructure. Its strategic location in the south of the country positions it as the natural logistical base for the gas fields shared with Senegal. The roadmap of the Mauritanian government is clear: The port is expected to manage about 600,000 tons annually, alleviating the chronic congestion suffered by the ports of Nouakchott (PANPA) and Nouadhibou. The intention is to transform the southern region into an economic node that facilitates exports and directly supports the extractive industry. Currently, the government is working on completing the technical equipment and connecting the port to basic energy and transport services. The decision to rely on international companies responds to the need to amortize the initial investment and, above all, to import the technical expertise necessary to operate a multifunctional port (fishing, trade, and energy support). Mauritania is looking for a partner with financial muscle capable of turning N’Diago into a benchmark port in West Africa. The emergence of international managers in N’Diago raises concerns in the port sector of Las Palmas and Tenerife. If a large multinational (such as Maersk, DP World, or Asian terminals) takes control, N’Diago could capture a large portion of the offshore services and supplies traffic currently managed from the islands. However, Minister Bouceif has emphasized that the immediate priority is to integrate the port into the network of basic services so that it can start operating at full capacity ‘as soon as possible,’ opening a window of opportunity for engineering and consulting companies already operating in the Canary Islands-Mauritania axis.
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