Lome Container Terminal: Facility positioning Togo as strategic logistics hub for West Africa, beyond.

The feat is the fruit of the Lome Container Terminal, LCT, a state-of-the-art infrastructure built and operated by global logistics giant, the Mediterranean Shipping Company, MSC.

Reputed for its speed, efficiency and safe management of cargo, the intercontinentally competing ultramodern facility, experts attest, and rightly so, embodies modernity in the maritime sector on the continent. 

Perched on the edge of the Atlantic, the Lome Container Terminal now serves as a transshipment hub for the West African coast and gateway to landlocked countries of Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso and beyond.

Ideally positioned as the gateway to the world for the sub-region, LCT has made the Autonomous Port of Lomé one of the most modern in Africa, enabling it to compete among other leading maritime facilities across the globe, officials at the terminal have disclosed.  

LCT officials have revealed that nearly 93% of the goods handled in the port are re-routed to other destinations in the sub-region or beyond. This, added to it being at the crossroads of major shipping routes, officials noted, makes the terminal to optimise delivery times.

They said it further positions LCT as a logistics hub and gives Lomé a strategic role in facilitating trade between Europe, Asia and the other ports of West and Central Africa, symbolising Africa's growing role in world maritime trade. 

Once considered a secondary port, the LCT has risen to become a key hub thanks to a clear vision. 

“The days of dilapidated African ports are over,” an LCT official remarked. 

With targeted investment and performance-oriented management through public-private partnerships, the LCT is among leading terminals on the continent.

"Today, Lomé has a world-class terminal, one of the most efficient in the MSC network. This is not a marketing formula: the figures speak for themselves," the official stated. 

LCT competing globally 

The LCT, according to management officials, is among the five leading ports in the MSC network in Africa and stands out among the 75 terminals operated by global logistics giant across the world. 

Based on findings from LCT officials, the facility has now exceeded some of the historic European ports such as Le Havre in France and Antwerp in Belgium in terms of productivity.

Its world-class infrastructure, it was also revealed, enabled the port of Lomé to, in the month of April 2025, become the first in West Africa to welcome some of the world's largest container ships. 

The feat, officials noted, was thanks to its natural draught, optimum quay depth and very high-tech handling of equipment.

Lome Container Terminal, we further gathered, also plays a central role in the MSC Group's transshipment strategy in Africa. The facility, we gleaned, received 651 ships in 2024.

Attractive logistics platform

Aside its high-quality equipment, the LCT benefits from a major administrative advantage, its status as a free zone, which is also a major attraction to customers.

Port operations, we gathered, are carried out without customs control inside LCT. This, officials said, allows speedy processing of cargo and contributes to the port's reputation for speed and efficiency.

The terminal, officials also revealed, directly employs more than 1,000 Togolese, with significant economic spin-offs for the entire national logistics chain. With a policy of sustainability, the facility also operates an inhouse training to hone the skills of staff and beef up its local manpower.

By Doh Bertrand on special assignment in Lome, Togo