June 27 2011 -- President James Michel yesterday visited Port Victoria and inspected the two new and modern tugs recently bought by the Seychelles Port Authority (SPA) for a total of 4.3 million euros.

President during his visit at the port

He sailed on one of them and commended the SPA for buying them, adding the port needs the tugs so it can match the country's rapid growth.

Mr Michel was accompanied by the Minister for Home Affairs, Environment and Natural Resources Joel Morgan, SPA's chief executive Lieutenant Colonel Andre Ciseau and senior port and ministry officials.

He said the tugs will also support proposed growth on Praslin and La Digue where jetties are being extended.

Mr Michel said modernising and increasing the port's capacity will help us further make the best of our favourable geographical position in the Indian Ocean, saying the new vessels are important when serving commercial traffic in the region.

"We see development everywhere in Seychelles and the ports sector also needs to match the dynamic growth," he said.

Mr Michel noted there are the many tankers, tuna fishing and container vessels which call at the port for bunkering, for example.

He therefore commended the SPA for investing in the two new tugs which he said will well serve our maritime industry.

There were minor hitches with work to expand Port Victoria, but they have been resolved, President Michel in the wheelhouse of one of the new tugsallowing the work to start soon at an accelerated pace, said the President.

Lt Col Ciseau later told Nation the visit boosted the morale of his 150 staff members, saying buying the tugs from the SPA's profits was a major achievement they were all proud of.

He said piracy has greatly cut the number of vessels coming to Seychelles, but compared with other ports in the region, Seychelles still gets a fair share.

"Working 24 hours a day with 20-year-old tugs posed the risk failure, but now that we have these modern ones, we are more reassured," said Lt Col Ciseau.

He said although the ships coming in are fewer, they are larger so extra power is necessary to handle them.

"Since we launched 24-hour service many ships prefer to call here because one can enter port at, say 10pm and be ready to leave at 2am, whereas in other ports they have to wait for as long as two weeks in some cases.

He said ships anchored outside the port either have mechanical problems or are awaiting a tuna vessel, but it is not that they cannot enter port and be served.

Three years ago the SPA bought two vessels worth US $600 and is now gearing to expand the jetties on Praslin and La Digue.

"We are now preparing to build 178 extra metres of jetty with a 40-metre ramp for landing craft at US $3.4 million and we are also dredging to create a safe passage and a small island costing 1.9 million euro in a joint venture with the Seychelles Petroleum Company," he said.

He said there are plans to rent out the plot of land that will be created and income, together with charges vessels using the jetty will pay, will help the SPA recoup its costs and allow the Praslin jetty to run in an economically more viable way.

He said a considerable amount of investment will later be made to develop the La Digue jetty.