Ehoala: A multi-purpose harbor

The harbor of Ehoala inaugurated its second season of welcoming cruise ship this year by receiving two ships, including “The World” and “Hanseatic”. Both ships called at Ehoala for the first time on December 9 and 10 and could benefit from the harbor’s infrastructure made available to them.

For the second consecutive year after its first opening in July 2009, the Ehoala harbor whose main purpose is to load ilmenite produced by Rio Tinto-QMM, also plays its role as a public service by hosting other types of ships and tourists delighted to discover Taolagnaro and its surrounding region.
At the same time as the two cruise ships, a French military ship, La Grandiere, a light transport ship, has passed at the harbor for a technical stop, after a monitoring mission in the Indian Ocean.

In terms of results of activities, the first million tonnes of handled cargo (import / export) will soon be reached since the opening of the harbor. The transformation of the harbor of Ehoala into a Freeport should significantly increase the volume of activities. The year 2012 will see the challenge of exploiting for commercial purpose the harbor’s 400 acres of raw land which is supplied with water and electricity by the company Rio Tinto-QMM.