Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) is actively looking at implementing a barge system at the Port of Durban.According to port manager Moshe Motlohi, feeder barges are not a new concept and have proved very effective in Europe. “It offers an alternative, but also a very viable solution for the movement of containers, taking trucks off the road. Of course, not all the road transport challenges at the port can be addressed by a feeder barge, but we believe the introduction of a barge system can bring about some relief.”He said as long as trade continued to grow, so would congestion at South Africa’s main port. And while it is not easy to come up with solutions for the port, he believes feeder barges can play a major role.“If one looks at a self-propelled 160-TEU vessel with double-ended configuration and its own 40-tonne capacity container crane, then one understands why the barge concept makes sense. It will avoid double handling, which is always the case with trucks. Such a barge, with its own crane, will also reduce the need for ship-to-shore cranes as it can come up alongside a vessel to work without interrupting port operations.”He said the system had been tried and tested in the Port of Hamburg, where barges had been successfully implemented. “We have to consider the benefit barges can bring to our port operations.”The port was in the process of procuring the necessary equipment, while they had also already identified berths that would be used for the barges, he added.Motlohi said they were also not ruling out the use of private barges. “Any barge used would have to be self-contained with its own crane and not require any tugs or towing.”
