Once inside the huge vessel and opening all five of its holds, one can see hundreds of round white bags with the chemical.
The main indicator of its lethal potential is a fire truck parked on the embankment.
But when asked by the BBC why the goods had still not been unloaded despite the checks being carried out, the port’s spokesman, Abubakar Tota, said they were simply following protocol and waiting for the order to be carried out.
In a statement to the BBC, Paris-based environmental NGO Robin des Bois said the port of Abidjan was unsafe to use as a “storage site” and that the goods should be sent to the buyer without delay.
Meanwhile, Ivorian authorities say shipments of ammonium nitrate are routine and that more than 40,000 tons of the compound were unloaded at the same port in 2024 without incident.
Of the delivery currently pending at Zimrida, 7,600 tonnes of ammonium nitrate fertilizer is intended for use in Côte d’Ivoire.
After Zimrida eventually leaves Cote d’Ivoire, it will deliver the rest of the cargo to Luanda in Angola and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
