Timor Port, Biodiversity Action Plan at Tibar Bay Port
Tibar Bay Port lies in the Bay of Tibar, 12 km from Dili (Timor Port, n.d.a). It is Timor-Leste's first public-private partnership, with a total investment of USD 490 million over 30 years (Timor Port, n.d.a). The port sits next to mangroves, seagrass beds and sea turtle habitat. Africa Global Logistics, the port's private partner, carried out an environmental impact study. Its follow-up is meant to drive an action plan to reduce the port's ecological footprint (Timor Port, n.d.b). Timor Port's Biodiversity Action Plan focuses on sea turtles, mangroves and seagrass habitats (Timor Port, 2026).
Approach
Link biodiversity actions to the impact study. The action plan follows up the environmental impact study, so commitments are tied to the impacts identified for the port (Timor Port, n.d.b).
Set measurable area targets. Timor Port committed to plant 3.5 hectares of mangroves, about 18,000 trees, and to protect 20 hectares of existing mangroves near the port (Timor Port, n.d.b).
Work with a local conservation partner. In April 2022 the port launched a mangrove conservation area in Tibar Bay with the local NGO Konservasaun Flora no Fauna (KFF). They planted the first 500 trees together (Timor Port, n.d.b).
Protect seagrass and turtles. The port is finalizing a program to rehabilitate and conserve seagrass beds and create a sea turtle protection zone. In total, nearly 23 hectares of seabed will be protected (Timor Port, n.d.b).
Track outputs and involve regulators and communities. The port runs a sea turtle aquarium for hatchlings before release and reports release numbers. Releases involve the Kaitehu community, and the June 2026 release was attended by the Directorate-General for the Environment (Timor Port, 2026).
Results
Since 25 October 2022, Timor Port reports releasing about 6,000 baby sea turtles into the ocean (Timor Port, 2026). The first 500 mangrove trees were planted in the Tibar Bay conservation area in April 2022 (Timor Port, n.d.b). Published information reports outputs such as trees planted, hectares protected and turtles released. It does not yet report survey based trends in habitat condition or species populations.
Transferability
For DMC ports, the case shows how a new PPP port can turn impact study follow-up into a biodiversity action plan with area and output targets, a local NGO partner, and regular public reporting of numbers.
It also shows the next step many ports still need: adding repeat habitat and species surveys so that outcomes, not only outputs, can be tracked.
Sources
All information used for this case study was based on publicly available resources.