Port expansion plans.

French and Surinamese authorities are discussing the possibility of establishing jointly operated ports in Suriname, said John Defares, director of the Suriname Port Authority, reports Caribbean Net News (Feb. 13, 2008). Defares also announced an expansion plan that will cost some US$50 million.

Suriname's neighbor, French Guiana, a French overseas territory, is experiencing difficulties with its own port facilities due to the limited depth off its harbor and is opting to team up with Suriname to facilitate port operations here. The French, however, are requiring that Suriname re-asphalt a 135 kilometers stretch of the East-West Highway running from the border with French Guiana to the capital Paramaribo, to facilitate heavy freight transports. The Suriname government and the European Union are implementing a feasibility study regarding rehabilitation of the East-West Highway.