AKD/APN: 18 August 1998
KANAKY: NEPOUI PLANNED FOR NEW PORT
Building plans under way for a new deep water port at the mining town of Nepoui. Construction is expected to start next April
By JACQUES BOENGKIH
By October 2000, the small mining town of Nepoui will be the second deep water port of Kanaky-New Caledonia.
On August 11, the Northern Province government authorities presented to the Assembly members, mayors and heads of public administration the programme of building the deep water port of Nepoui that will open in October 2000.
The feasibility studies have been done and the building will begin in April 1999.
The overall cost of the project will be of 1,1 billion pacific francs and is already 400 million higher than the Provincial Government can afford.
The French Government representative to the Northern Province, Bernard Guerin, said the project should easily get support from France and from the New Caledonia Congress.
Leopold Joredie, president of the Northern Province, said that the project was one of the three main political priorities defined when the 1988 Matignon Accord was signed. The Tibaou Cultural Cente and the Kone-Tiwaka road across the mountain were the other two projects.
"With the port facilities, the power plant already available and the industrial zone to be built, Nepoui will attract investors and about 1000 jobs could be created", he said.
"At the end of the development prgramme, the total investment should reach four billions pacific francs."
Two foreign companies have already express some interests in investing in Nepoui - Orthogel a French fishing company, and Goodman Fielder, a frozen chicken company from Australia.
Orthongel, a conglomerate of three food companies, Saupiquet, Cobrecaf and Pêche & Froid. These companies are also the biggest French tuna fishing companies, and they are now moving from the heavily fished African waters for the still economically rewarding Pacific ocean waters.
Orthongel should start its fishing campaign in the Pacific ocean waters soon the fishing rights will be obtained following negotiations between France and the South Pacific Forum. The company said to start employing 200 part-time wharf workers and 30 permanent employees.
Goodman Fielder's plans are to farm chicken and supply yearly 5000 to 6000 tonnes of the local consummtion in chicken. The company will need the port facilities for stocking chicken food in silos.
Goodman Fielder said they would create 175 jobs and should increase their employment opportunities as the consummers should prefer fresh poultry to the frozen chicken imported from Europe of USA.
Nepoui, today a small enclave on the west coast of Kanaky with a small nickel-loading wharf, is to become the industrial centre of the Northern Province. Nepoui is part of the municipality of Poya, a small mining town of 2522 inhabitants, including 1474 Kanaks living in the six tribe areas around Poya.
On August 18, in Poya, a meeting took place between trade unions and the two mining companies, French Société Le Nickel and the Northern Province mining company S.M.S.P. The meeting was over the closing of a nickel mine being currrently exploited by S.M.S.P.
The closing of the exploitation means lost of jobs activities for the small transporters carrying the nickel ore from the mine to the shore and loading it on the ships.
The two mining companies are studying the possibilities to hire the transporters on other mining sites.
Most of these transporters are truck drivers that were able to buy their equipment with grants from the Northern Province and long term bank loans.
If they do not get new contracts, most of them will see their working tools joining the rusting truck cemeteries in Kanak villages.