Port Moresby

Work begins on new waterfront complex for Port Moresby

By Brian Tobia

THE biggest commercial cold store is under con struction in Port Moresby - a facility that will directly enable Papua New guinea to expand on its export seafood market base.

The cold store will be component of a multi-mil lion kina harbourside marina and commercial complex one of the biggest and most innovative developments in Port Moresby in recent years. It is taking shape at the waterfront site.

It is anticipated that the cold store would provide an outlet for local fishermen and at the same time boost the export drive for PNG’s diverse and excellent seafood. The harbourside marina and commercial complex is being developed by a PNG-based company : called Provex Limited that 1 deals with frozen food.

Several businesses in J Townsville, Australia are I providing professional ser vices for the project.

Provex managing director Sam Chang said the idea to construct such a large com mercial cold store developed from his visits to Townsville, in Queensland, Australia which is Port Moresby’s sis ter city.

He said Townsville has a I similar facility at the water- I front that was beneficial to I

several businesses. “One of the key com ponents of the development if a large cold store facility which is a model of a Harbourside cold store in Townsville... as a regular visitor to Townsville, the idea developed from a similar develop ment there,” he said.

Townsville/Port Moresby sister-city

committee chair and principal of Harbourside Coldstores (Townsville), Geoff Plante, was commissioned as architect and project manager through his company Plante and Associates of Townsville.

According to Plante, the harbourside marina and commercial complex would include PNG’s first commercial cold store tuna export facility, warehouses and ships’ chandlery. It would also have a large supermarket, 38 town houses, a commercial bank and other offices, ser vice stations, three high-rise apartments and a hotel.

Plante added: “The complex would not have been developed without busi ness linkages of sister-city relations between Port Moresby and Townsville.”

This concept developed because of years of business dealings and trust

between people who have been supporting the sister city relationships on a per sonal level.

This view is shared by Chang who saw a need for a cold store and took advantage of this relationship by tapping into the professional services of Townsville.

Plante said: “A project of this magnitude is not approved overnight and we must acknowledge the cooperation offered by Skate and the pos itive role played by the new Governor Philip Taku and his staff.”

He said the development (which is already underway) would bring obvious benefits to Port Moresby and Papua New Guinea. As project manager, he was pleased that all the planning and develop ment approvals were handled in a very professional man ner by authorities in Port Moresby.

The reclamation for the development site, which is near the Port Moresby Yacht Club, is complete and the fill came from the Poreporena Highway built by Curtain Bros, (another Townsville company). ■