China's CCCC wins $398 million contract to build Mombasa oil terminal

NAIROBI (Reuters) - China Communications Construction Co has won a $398 million contract to build a new oil terminal at Kenya's main port of Mombasa, the acting head of the Kenya Ports Authority said on Thursday.

Daniel Manduku said the new terminal, whose construction will take 18 months, will raise the port's oil handling capacity to 100,000 dead weight tonnes from 20,000 tonnes currently.

"It's going to take four ships at a time and it will also handle gas and liquefied petroleum (gas)," he told Reuters by phone. "It will have LPG, oil and petroleum, both refined and unrefined."

The East African nation is upgrading its energy importation and distribution facilities to keep up with growing demand.

CCCC, through its subsidiary CRBC, had previously won a contract in Kenya to build a 327 billion shilling ($3.23 billion) rail line between Mombasa and Nairobi, and secured another deal to operate services on that line when it was completed last year.

($1 = 101.1000 Kenyan shillings)

(Reporting by John Ndiso; Writing by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Jan Harvey)