Chetty to clear bottlenecks in port system

Captain Neil Chetty, who
has been acting manager
of the port of Ngqura for
the past three years, will
be tasked with improving
operations and performance
in all three Eastern Cape
ports.
He hands over
management of the port
to Mpumi Dweba on
October 1.
According to Herbert
Msagala, general manager
operations of the Transnet
National Ports Authority
(TNPA), continuous
improvement managers
have been appointed for all
the harbours under TNPA
control.
Their task is to “deal
with bottlenecks in the port
system”, in order to reduce
the cost of shipping in and
out of South Africa.
This includes rail and
road links in and out of the
port where they impact on
vessel turnaround times and
port efficiencies.
“Shipping lines want
Transnet to reduce the costs
of doing business with
South Africa. The only way
we can do that is through
greater efficiency,” he says.
Vessel turnaround times
will be measured from when
they enter the port limits,
rather than when they dock
in order to determine the
true turnaround time.
Similarly, the time taken
for rail and road trucks
to pass in and out of the
port gates rather than the
terminal entrance will be
measured.