Algeria Awards Port Dredging Contract to China Harbour Engineering Co

Chinese state-owned contractor China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) has won a contract to develop Algeria’s ports, the latest in a series of deals between China and the North African country.

CHEC signed the contract in the capital Algiers with the Algerian state-owned maritime works group GTM.

CHEC will establish a joint venture in Algeria to execute the project, which covers ports across the country, the ministry of public works and infrastructure said.

“The agreement includes the establishment of a joint Algerian-Chinese company tasked with carrying out dredging works at national ports and all related projects,” it said.

Minister of public works and infrastructure Abdelkader Djellaoui said the work involves restoring standard depths at quays, port basins, access channels and port entrances.

“This will ensure the optimal utilization of these vital facilities, improve their performance and increase their economic efficiency,” he said without mentioning project cost or duration.

During the past three years, Chinese companies have won contracts in Algeria involving infrastructure, energy and manufacturing.

One of the largest deals went to China Railway Construction Corporation in 2023 for the construction of more than 1,000 kilometres of railway linking Algeria’s largest iron mine with export terminals.