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.
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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.