Durban plans ‘backdoor’ option to extend container handling

TERRY HUTSON
THE NATIONAL Ports Authority is seriously considering excavating a chunk of land within Durban harbour that will extend the Island View Channel and create a ‘backdoor’ to the two Durban container terminals. According to port manager Basil Ndlovu, this is one of the options under consideration to increase container capacity at the port. Others involve digging out the Bayhead area or creating a new port at the airport site south of Durban. He said the major challenge facing Durban lay with its container growth. “Durban is experiencing double the international growth rate for containers – 16% in Durban for several years – and the NPA wants to be proactive, not reactive in meeting these challenges. Therefore we are exploring all options.” Ndlovu disclosed that one of these was to allow Coega and Richards Bay to take some of the pressure off Durban, which meant that a container facility was on the cards at Richards Bay. Another is a dry port facility at Cato Ridge. “We will hand over a completed Pier One Container Terminal to Sapo by 2008 and by that time we will have completed our studies into the various options, including a new port at the existing Durban International Airport site, or a new container and car terminal dug out of the Bayhead area at the head of Durban Bay. “The problem is that by 2010 we’ll have also run out of capacity at Durban, so therefore Richards Bay is going to have to grow concurrently while Coega will come into service by 2009.” Ndlovu said that the six series berths (MPT) at Richards Bay would be used for container handling. “It’s true that market forces will determine where our future container growth is going to be. We’re also very aware that by 2010 the airport site becomes available and that is another option.” He hinted that the airport site was not very high on NPA’s agenda – the thinking being that it could however be utilised more for ‘back of port’ functions rather than as a dig out port option. This was something that would be determined by growth volumes and also whether Richards Bay and Coega can absorb some of this from Durban. “NPA would probably be interested in securing the airport land for possible future use in the long term,” said Ndlovu.