Announcement of the Opening of the New Port of Guayaquil, Ecuador, Built with the Assistance of a World Bank Loan, on January 31, 1963

i1 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE . . ' • INTERNATIONAL BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT 1 81 8 H ST RE l;::T, N. W., WASHINGTON 2 5, D. C. TELEPHONE: EXECUTIVE 3-6360 UJ.J 9 /.2Yti =+ Janua17 31, 1963 SUBJECT: New Port for Ecuador The new port of Guayaquil, Ecuador, built with the assistance of a World Bank loan of $13 million, was officially opened today by the President of Ecuador, Senor Carlos Arosem&nao The new port will make Guayaqpil,, Ecua- dor's largest city and commercial cehter, accessible for the first time to large ships. The new port lies at,the head of the Estero Salado, a salt-water channel which runs 60 miles inland from the sea and provides one of the best natural • harbors on the west coast of the Americas. Fiv:e ocean-going sh:ips can be ac-- commodated along the 3,000-foot wharf, which rests on more than 3,500 pre- stressed concrete piles driven into the channel bedo The piles and concrete decking were fabricated on the site by the main contractors, Compania Raymond, S.A., a subsidiary of Raymond International Inc. of New York. The port and its installations were planned and sup(!rvised by Palmer and Baker Engin- eering Incorporated, Mobile, Alabama, and are of modern design, including transit sheds which reduce cargo handling to a minimum, and mechanized cruf go 1 handling equipment purchased from firms in Britain and the,United States. Dredging work was carried out by a partnership of British and Dutch companies-- Richard Costain Ltd., and Dredge & Reclaim Ltd. The need for a new port at Guayaquil became urgent as a result of the recent economic development of Ecuador, including the opening up of the fer- • tile coastal plain by new highways financed by an earlier World Bank loan of  • - 2 - $35 million. The old river por.t of Guayaquil, now the busiest banana port in the world, will continue to handle a large part of the country's b?.4lana exports, which come down the Guayas River on barges from the plantations. But ships drawing more than 23 feet were unable to use the river port and had to be loaded an~ unloaded by means of expensive lighterage operations 60 miles downstream at the mouth of the river. The old port and the new are connected by a barge canal to facilitate movement of freight between them • • I)