Major plans to eradicate Cape Town port delays

Transnet will implement measures to deal with shipping delays at the Cape Town port. Picture: Leon Lestrade African News Agency/ANA.

Transnet will implement measures to deal with shipping delays at the Cape Town port. Picture: Leon Lestrade African News Agency/ANA.

Published Feb 20, 2022

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Transnet is ramping up plans to improve operations and equipment efficiency at the Cape Town port which is grappling with shipping backlogs and congestion.

Over the past 14 months the port experienced serious challenges to the economy and trade.

Exporters said in January the financial impact could run into billions of rands.

The standing committee on finance, economic opportunities and tourism was told this week that moves were being made to address the challenges and mitigate further losses.

The measures included using other ports in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.

Engineering expertise was also sent from other terminals nationally to Cape Town on secondment to assist with equipment performance and efficiency.

An operational team would also be deployed soon, the committee was told.

Plans included improving the operational equipment on both the land and water and negotiations were held to improve turnaround times and the availability of spares.

The Cape Town Container Terminal said despite the challenges it experienced a volume increase of 6% year on year.

Managing executive at the Cape Terminals Wandisa Vazi said in addition to equipment breakdown and delays in repairs, inclement weather played a big role in the delays experienced.

Challenges and the knock-on effect of the delays were laid bare at the standing committee meeting.

Port acting manager Nqobile Ndlovu said last year the port lost two months of productivity, mainly due to inclement weather.

Since the start of the year, about 1 622 hours or 67 days of productivity were lost already, and the figure exceeded the total lost last year.

Ndlovu said in January alone the port managed to work fully, without disruption, for seven days only.

“On January 25, we lost the entire day and on average we’re losing about 12 hours a day of productivity.

“Wind brings the terminal to a complete halt.

“It creates a knock-on effect and causes frustrations,” Ndlovu told the committee.

Other challenges included vessels bypassing the port due to the weather as well as delays in West Africa, Far East and Europe and other South African ports.

One of the measures introduced to improve the truck turnaround time was the introduction of a booking system.

However this was also often hampered by the weather conditions.

“The impact wind has during this season, especially, now that we are in the peak – cannot be undermined.

“We are currently handling over 1 000 trucks from late yesterday and today’s bookings because the terminal was wind bound.

“Once the wind subsides, we review our planning by the hour to ensure a reduction of truck queues at the gate,” said Vazi.

Transnet group executive for strategy and planning, Dr Andrew Shaw, said while the company was addressing capacity challenges it was doing so in the context of a constrained balance sheet.

“We are in the process of identifying partners in each of the value chains.

“We are not creating privatisation but in a way that they can help us drive value, volume and improve our sustainability,” said Shaw.

Transnet National Ports Authority managing executive for the Western Region: Phyllis Difeto said port development plans included establishing a temporary truck holding stage while a permanent one was expected to be completed in the 2023/24 financial year.

The provincial Department of Economic Development and Tourism (DEDAT) said it was concerned about the number of breakdowns in equipment and vessel waiting time.

Chief director at the department John Peters said on the positive side a process of synchronising systems among the three big exporters was done to reduce backlogs and value of cargo.

“We need to expand on the synchronisation to warehouses and storages, and we are with the University of Stellenbosch on this project,” he said.

A project on the cost of doing business at the Port of Cape Town was also under way, Peters said.

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