Port construction to begin in June, writes Ed Richardson
WORK HAS started on the construction of a haul road which will be used to carry rock for the breakwaters and quays for the Port of Ngqura, which will serve the Coega Industrial Development Zone bordering on Port Elizabeth.
Construction on port and IDZ infrastructure is due to begin in June, with the port being commissioned in the first quarter of 2004, according to Portnet port authority division CEO Siyabonga Gama.
Speaking at the official sod-turning ceremony recently he said Portnet had budgeted R25-million for the haul road and preparatory work, which includes site clearance and the erection of a security fence.
To date the state utility has invested R51-million in feasibility studies for the port.
By 2004 the parastatal will have spent R1,65-million on the port infrastructure.
Another R3-billion is budgeted for subsequent phases as demand for the facilities grows. We hope to see investors committing to the project, he says.
Gama says the port authority and the Coega Development Corporation (CDC) will be co-operating on the technical roll-out of the port and IDZ to ensure a seamless integration of the marine and land-side infrastructure and so service the requirements of investors locating in the IDZ.
P&O Nedlloyd is a strategic partner of the CDC. The association with the shipping line has put greater emphasis on container terminals at the Ngqura deep-water port.
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