# Assab (ER ASA)

**UN/LOCODE:** ER ASA  
**Country:** Eritrea  
**Water Body:** Red Sea; Indian Ocean  
**Harbor Size:** Small  
**Harbor Type:** Coastal (Natural)  
**GPS:** 13.0000, 42.7500

Roughly 11 m alongside its cargo piers and anchorage depths to about 14 m give Assab (UN/LOCODE ER ASA), on Eritrea's southern Red Sea coast, the physical capacity for breakbulk, dry bulk and modest container vessels — yet the natural harbour has stood largely idle commercially since the 1998–2000 border war severed Ethiopia's transit traffic. Present throughput is low and no regular liner service is confirmed, with much of the infrastructure considered in need of rehabilitation. In late 2025 Egypt concluded an agreement to develop and upgrade Assab with an explicitly military dimension: plans include berths for warships and fuelling facilities for the Egyptian navy. A formal bilateral maritime transport agreement between Cairo and Asmara followed in May 2026. For forwarders the critical caveat is that, as of mid-2026, no project budget, engineering consortium, implementation timetable or cargo forecast has been publicly disclosed — the commercial realisation remains uncertain. Ethiopia continues to press openly for access to Assab without any formal cargo agreement, against a backdrop of strained Asmara–Addis relations. Inland connections run by road toward Addis Ababa; there is no rail link. For dependable container moves forwarders currently rely on Djibouti, while Massawa is Eritrea's better-equipped port for domestic freight.

---

*Freight Academy — Seaport Profile: [https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/seaports/assab-port-er-asa](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/seaports/assab-port-er-asa)*

*Markdown mirror: [https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/seaports/en/assab-port-er-asa](https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/seaports/en/assab-port-er-asa)*

*LLM-Summary (JSON): https://www.freight-academy.com/api/v1/seaports/assab-port-er-asa/llm-summary?lang=en*