CT reefer plug points meet demand

AS THE citrus season tapers down and a new deciduous season prepares to get under way, Oscar Borchards, business unit executive at Cape Town Container Terminal, is satisfied that planned reefer plug point capacity has stood the test. Certainly, he is not aware of any complaints about capacity constraints and emphasises once again the need to plan ahead. The terminal currently has 2 250 reefer plug points and Borchards says provision has been made for a further 750 to be added, stressing that this will only come about if the need arises. “Citrus is going well and exports are still running, hence the extended season, but it is now starting to tone down and we are preparing for deciduous which kicks in between October and November.” Borchards says trucking turnabout time stands at around 30 minutes “in and out”, not an assessment with which all in the freight industry will agree. “There are peaks and valleys in truck arrivals but we are making progress, managing them.” He says there has been more of a focus on trucking arrivals and drop-offs from Transnet Port Terminals’ perspective, given the terminal’s R4.2 billion expansion project, which should be complete by 2010. While it’s early days to forecast how deciduous will perform, citrus has by all accounts fared well, lemons in particular, the FOB of total fruit expected to be around R7.2 billion. Statistics compiled by the Perishable Products Export Control Board reveal a growth of 5.3% in South Africa’s overall fruit volumes (from all ports) for this year – a high of 318 286 pallets in June – of which 84% was shipped containerised and 16% by SRS.