‘Back-staging area should be considered to solve Durban’s capacity woes’

Although Transnet Port Terminals (TPT) has publicly stated that Durban’s Maydon Wharf and Point RORO terminals will handle the overflow of containers from Durban container terminal (DCT) Pier 2 as the berths at the north quay are refurbished over the next six years, the figures “just don’t add up”, according to Kevin Martin, MD of short-haul container carrier, Freightliner Transport, and chairman of the Durban Harbour Carriers’ Association (DHCA). Talking about the Point/ MW upgrade to assist the DCT, he said: “I would like to place on record that TPT executive, Zeph Ndlovu, and his team have done a super job in getting ready for handling the overflow. “But my problem is that – from figures that have been revealed to me in meetings with TPT – the sums do not add up, so I cannot see the Point/MW upgrade solving the problems over the entire six-year-plus period of the DCT refurbishment.” The problem is that the DCT upgrade will result in 400 000 TEUs a year without a DCT home to go to. And the Point/MW alternatives in themselves don’t appear to have the capacity to handle this sort of number on their own, according to Martin. “Point already does approximately 100 000 TEUs a year,” he said, “and the upgrade will allow them to handle an additional 130 000 TEUs of DCT traffic. Maydon Wharf will account for approximately an additional 70 000 TEUs of DCT traffic once it comes on-line early next year. This leaves a shortfall of 200 000 TEUs per annum – or 50% of the problem.” And this massive shortfall is at present-day volumes of containers passing through the port. But with the anticipated growth trend in the number of boxes passing through Durban, the problem gets even bigger. “If a 5% growth in containers is experienced over the next six years,” said Martin, “this will add onto the shortfall over 456 000 extra TEUs over the period – and throw even more stress on the whole of Durban’s container handling capacity. “Whilst I believe we have bought some time with these endeavours – 18 months to two years, I’d say on a thumb suck – where to for the remaining four years?” There is one other possible answer, Martin added. “Suggestions to move container to a back-staging area – the former Parcel Express (PX) depot two kilometres from DCT – have been on the table since 2007. This would free up land at the waterside at DCT, and – with more cranes working per vessel – could be the answer to the problem. “To achieve this would require a lot of management planning, and an investment in extra equipment – but only a relatively small amount in terms of the benefits that could be achieved.” And he felt that it could also form a long-term solution to the space shortage that has afflicted DCT for some years. “I firmly believe that once the berths have been deepened in 74 months’ time – this back-staging area will have to be implemented anyway, as I have been informed that DCT already operates on one third to half the land requirements of comparable terminals internationally. So why not start to implement now?”