Cape Town - Mayco member for economic growth James Vos has written to Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Ebrahim Patel asking him to convene talks between the Ministry and the City to discuss movement towards privatising the Transnet-owned Cape Town Port.
In his letter, which the minister has acknowledged receiving, Vos said that there was a need to privatise so as to iron out the inefficiencies at the port which hamper both the City’s and the Province’s economic and employment growth.
He told Minister Patel the City and Provincial investment facilitation teams have gathered considerable solution-oriented research which they would present to him if he accepted a meeting.
Vos welcomed the recent decision of the Port Regulator to limit tariff increases which had been requested by Transnet National Ports Authority, which manages all eight commercial ports in the country.
Transnet had requested permission to increase tariffs by up to 24% in the 2022/2023 financial year.
However, acting Ports Regulator chairperson Tshisikhawe Munyama told Transnet they would have to settle for much lower tariffs and imposed a settlement averaging 4.8% for 2022-23.
“Though there’s still a long journey ahead, the Ports Regulator remains committed to reducing the cost of doing business through fair pricing within the ports system.”
Munyama said he considered the tariff decision the most prudent course of action for the 2022/23 financial year.
Last year, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the Transnet National Ports Authority would be converted into an independent commercial company and established as an independent subsidiary of Transnet with its own board of directors.
Ramaphosa said this move would mean that revenues generated by ports would now be invested back into port infrastructure.
Following up on that announcement in his State of the Nation address in February, Ramaphosa said that from April, Transnet would be requesting proposals from private partners for the Durban and Ngqura container terminals.
He said that the intention was for these private partnerships to be in place by October this year.
Earlier this week, Finance and Economic Opportunities MEC David Maynier also called for the privatisation of the Port of Cape Town.
Speaking in the legislature, Maynier described the port as a “disaster zone” and said he would be meeting with Transnet group chief executive Portia Derby to discuss the port’s operations.