A look inside Algeria’s largest port: How exports are fuelling the country’s economic growth

euronews (in English)

The Port of Djen Djen, in east Algeria, is the country’s largest working seaport. We take you inside the international trade hub as it undergoes a major extension.

Transcript

00:00A few years ago, Algeria was hit by an explosion of its exports,

00:20which included construction materials such as concrete, clinker and cement.

00:26And it is here at the heart of this port, the port of Djedjen,

00:29that a large majority of its exports are operated.

00:32A port that will experience a colossal expansion,

00:35and this is what I propose you to discover with us.

00:40Algeria is now the second world exporter of clinker,

00:44which is part of the cement composition.

00:47Cement exports amounted to 60 million dollars in 2019.

00:51Five years later, the country displays 746 million dollars on the counter.

00:56But environmental standards oblige,

00:59Algeria wants to reorient this production towards the export of a cement that we want more green.

01:05How? Well, by optimizing the manufacturing,

01:09loading, storage and loading processes,

01:12in order to move towards more durability.

01:16Here, in the Wilaya of Djijel, east of the country, 350 km from Algeria,

01:21in the port of Djedjen, the largest port in Algeria,

01:24the Olsim group has deployed automatic ship loaders,

01:28whose loading capacity is 18,000 tons per day.

01:32In 2023, of the 3.4 million tons of products exported by Olsim,

01:3740% were cement,

01:40and the respect for the environment has always been paramount.

01:45Durability is a main objective.

01:48That is why we have made a lot of investments.

01:51For example, everything that is filtration of dust emissions,

01:54everything that is management of industrial waters,

01:57everything that is management and management of waste.

02:00Among the sustainable projects, we have installed on the port of Djedjen,

02:03what we see behind us, an automatic ship loader, the ship loader.

02:07The ship loader allows to load much faster,

02:10so a shorter rotation time of the ships,

02:13and more efficient export operations.

02:16The loaders favor a multivalent loading.

02:19They adapt to different types of boats.

02:22In short, they allow the ships to dock, to be treated,

02:25and to leave the port quickly,

02:28thus reducing waiting times and immobilization costs.

02:32The port of Djedjen extends over an area of 210 hectares.

02:35It occupies a strategic location,

02:38located less than 50 miles from the maritime road

02:41connecting the Suez Canal to the Gibraltar District.

02:44This position gives it a privileged role,

02:47that of a hub of transcontinental traffic.

02:53All hydrocarbon materials are represented by the port of Djedjen.

02:57For hydrocarbon materials,

03:00it represents more than 60%

03:03compared to exports made at the Algerian ports,

03:06especially for construction materials.

03:12With the ambition to become a strong Mediterranean place.

03:15We were in the port management, we want to do port industry.

03:18The port industry now is to position itself,

03:21to offer services, not only for the national market,

03:24but also for other markets,

03:27especially for the enclaved African countries.

03:30We want to be an infrastructure

03:33that can make this link between Asia, Europe and Africa.

03:37Djedjen displays a deep tyrant.

03:40Its raft can therefore accommodate gigantic ships.

03:43A container terminal is in the process of completion.

03:46It will allow to absorb a large volume of traffic on a national scale,

03:49and it will play a primordial role in the Mediterranean.

03:52Especially since the exports of the port have exploded

03:55in the space of 5 years.

03:58A highway structure under construction

04:01will soon penetrate the very heart of the port,

04:04connecting it directly to the capital city of the high plateaus.

04:07The goal is to accelerate the flow of goods,

04:10and the forecasts until 2030 are ambitious.

04:13The goal is to double the volume in the next 5 years.

04:16In 2023, Algeria exported construction materials

04:20worth $1.2 billion.

04:23The country ranks third among the main exporters

04:26of construction materials to the African market

04:29with an estimated $680 million.

04:35We imported concrete at more than $1.2 billion.

04:38We imported cement at more than $800 million.

04:41We imported cement, ceramics, all the coatings,

04:44everything that is flat-plate,

04:48we export it.

04:51We export the cement, we export the plaster,

04:54and we have an objective to transform the plaster

04:57into a finished product.

05:00Because the objective is to take advantage of the assets that exist in Algeria.

05:03We have the asset of gas, we have the asset of electricity,

05:06we have the asset of manpower, we have the asset of raw materials,

05:09which is practically ranked among the best in the world.

05:12These assets, we are exploiting them conveniently.

05:16We exported more than $800 million last year

05:19in cement and plaster.

05:22And we have a triple objective because we have the capacity

05:25to produce 40 million tons per year.

05:28The national market needs 20 million tons

05:31and we can export the remaining 20 million.

05:34This means that we bring our needs to 100%.

05:37Currently, we export.

05:40Not only do we have self-sufficiency,

05:44but we also have a huge market.

05:47We export more than $1.2 billion per year.

05:50Other Algerian products are starting to gradually

05:53find their way to export.

05:56This is the case of carving, ceramics,

05:59coating materials and plaster decorations.

06:02And the national market is also exploding.

06:05Here, in this chain of carving and DIY

06:08on the outskirts of Algiers,

06:11there is a lot of demand for the construction

06:14or renovation of their individual houses.

06:17We have specific orders.

06:20We have a lot of orders.

06:23We have resellers and buyers.

06:26We work with villas.

06:29We work with entrepreneurs.

06:32They come directly to the showroom.

06:35They see the good quality, the quantity.

06:38His goal is to support exporters.

06:41These inciting measures aim to help

06:44large-scale Algerian companies

06:47penetrate foreign markets.

06:50Algeria is an essential place.

06:53It is a turning point, given its geographical position.

06:56International cooperation and solidarity

06:59will allow us to play our role

07:02as the largest country in Africa

07:05with extraordinary wealth.

07:08I think that by 2030,

07:11we will fully play our role,

07:14not only politically, but also economically.

07:17Diversifying the national economy

07:20and getting rid of its dependence on oil

07:23seems to be the major axis of the country's economic policy.

07:26The increase in investments,

07:29especially in large industrial projects,

07:32will stimulate economic activity

07:35and should continue to support growth in 2025.

07:38As such, the increase in Algeria's exports

07:41should support the creation of jobs

07:44that will be sustainable.

07:47This is how the chapter of this edition closes.

07:50See you soon in Algeria Tomorrow.

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