Portnet reveals dredging plans
BIGGER VESSELS will soon be able to steam into East London's harbour when it has been dredged to greater depths which is part of Portnet's future plans, says Siyabonga Gama, chief executive of Portnet's port authority division.
Speaking at the official opening of the port's car terminal last week he said: East London has taken the lead in service to the motor industry with the establishment of this facility, and such is our confidence in what has happened here and what the future holds that we are now preparing to accommodate bigger vessels.
Apart from that the grain elevator, which is underutilised, is to be marketed vigorously among the agricultural sector of the country, and more attention is to be given to the container terminal which was extended recently.
Three years ago this harbour was operating at 40% capacity. Today the change has seen it operating at 75% capacity. If this trend continues, which I am sure it will, we will be building a second container facility in the near future.
East London has changed almost overnight from being a quiet transhipment service port to a global player. When you drive over the bridge which has been built to take the new Mercedes vehicles from the assembly plant to the car terminal, and you see the ships anchored in the harbour, you get the impression that something is really happening here at last.
It is a situation we will be watching closely and planning for future developments.
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