Reuters reported that companies from China, Canada and Europe have expressed interest in investing in the building of a USD 655 million multi purpose deep seaport in south Cameroon that will serve major mineral export projects. The plan for the port to be located at Grand Batanga is presented to potential investors at a two day meeting in the capital Yaounde.

The projected port facility, whose depth will allow the entry of much larger ships than those currently served by Cameroon's main port of Douala, would consist of four terminals namely for containers, oil products, iron ore and aluminum. This included a proposed 490 kilometer long railway line between the projected port and the Mbalam iron ore project of Cameroon Iron Ore Company, controlled by Australia's Sundance Resources. When completed, the projected port was also expected to serve as a major shipment point for tropical hard wood from south-eastern Cameroon, northern Gabon and Republic of Congo.

Mr Louis Paul Motaze Cameroon's economy, planning & regional development minister said that a Chinese company China Harbor Engineering Company had shown interest in taking on the entire project. Other companies from Canada, Europe and Africa were interested in buying stakes in the port project, whose initial cost was estimated at XAF 282 billion. He added that "We have been very encouraged by this enthusiastic response and from the way things are progressing I am now very certain construction work on the first phase will start in 2010 and the first traffic will flow through the port by 2013."

Mr Edward Xu a spokesman of China Harbor Engineering Company said that "We are very willing, ready and determined to invest in this project which I believe will be very beneficial to the people and the economy of Cameroon and the entire Central African sub region."

Mr Roger Bogne GM of CamIron said that his company is very keen to invest in the development of the new seaport, at least in the iron ore terminal, so as to have an export outlet for the ore it planned to deliver from Mbalam by 2011.