GAC has announced it has opened a new office in the city of Pointe Noire in the Republic of Congo.

The company said that it will provide ship agency, husbandry and freight forwarding services for customers operating in Congo. It will also provide support for GAC's customers in Angola.

The new office has been opened in response to a growing number of port calls in the waters of the Republic of Congo.

Mr Erland Ebbersten GAC Group Vice President of Africa, Russia and Central America said that "Having a frontline presence in the Republic of Congo is very important to our customers operating across the region."

He added that "Our 13 years of experience in neighboring Angola and our highly experienced staff and strong synergies there, put us in a good position to extend our global network to the Republic of Congo. The country is becoming increasingly important as a location for shipping and logistics operations, as we witness a shift in the patterns of global trade and increased infrastructure investment across Africa."

The team in Congo will be led by Mr Rene Vila, a well known figure in the country's shipping and logistics industry and Mr Gerrit Laubscher, GM at GAC Congo and Angola.

Mr Laubscher said that "The port of Pointe Noire plays a very important role in facilitating trade both to the Congo and to the Angolan province of Cabinda. As it lacks port facilities for large vessels, Cabinda relies on Pointe Noire for the handling of cargoes required by the burgeoning Angolan oil, gas and construction industries. As such, not only will the new GAC office benefit our customers in the Congo, we will also deliver enhanced shipping and logistics services in Angola."