New passenger terminal on Praslin fully operational |02 March 2023

‘ERO’, the new passenger terminal on Praslin, is open to the public since yesterday, which means that all operations and services from the former Baie Ste Anne jetty are now located at the new terminal, which was inaugurated last month on Kato Nwanr, Praslin.

The first ferry to depart the new terminal was Cat Rose bound for La Digue at 7am, followed by the arrival of Cat Cocos from La Digue at 7.45, before heading to Mahé.

According to the Seychelles Ports Authority, which is managing the new terminal, the building is also fully operational, with all tenants occupying their allocated offices.

Other than ferry operations, the new terminal also caters for destination management companies, (DMCs), ticketing officers, taxi operators, car hire operators and food outlets, money exchange, among others.

Construction of the new terminal started in October 2018 and was completed two years later at a cost of R18.4 million, while construction of the building housing the various services started in April last year and was completed last month at a cost of R16 million.

According to Dean Zelime, the deputy director for Projects and Infrastructure at the Seychelles Ports Authority, everything is set for operations, “although now as we start operation we might notice minor issues but this will be addressed promptly with the budget we have at hand to ensure everything runs smootlhy”.

Magdalena Cecile, speaking on behalf of the Cat Cocos management, said they managed to complete their relocation on Tuesday, and was all set for yesterday’s service.

“We did not have any issues regarding ticket sale and welcoming of clients, however there was a minor issue with queueing when embarking, but this can be easily rectified. We have already done our post-mortem and spoken to SPA following the first two trips, to see how this can pe improved such as putting up signages to make it easier and facilitate the flow of people,” she stated.

Meanwhile SPA said it will have one its officers on site to guide the public especially those who are not familiar with the new parking, to ensure services run smoothly.

The accompanying photos capture the atmosphere yesterday at the new passenger terminal.

Compiled by Patsy Canaya

Photos contributed by SPA