Fast turn-around times driving ore volumes through Matola port

A 65-hour turnaround time for rail exports of magnetite from Phalaborwa to the Matola terminal outside Maputo is helping drive volumes ahead of target, says Sarel Ceronio, chief executive of Grindrod Terminals Matola. According to Grindrod chief executive officer, Alan Olivier, the company’s Maputo terminals are expected to handle around 18€million tons of cargo this year, up from 15€million tons last year, and 12€million tons in 2011. The original plan was to take the port to 50€million tons a year by 2025, but this can now be achieved by 2020, Olivier said. Grindrod operates Maputo port in partnership with Dubai Ports World and the Mozambique Ports & Railways Company (CFM) through the Sociedade de Desenvolvimento do Porto de Maputo (MPDC). The MPDC was founded in 2003 and its shareholders are state port and rail company Portos e Caminhos de Ferro de Moçambique (CFM), with 49% of the consortium and South Africa’s Grindrod and Dubai Ports World, with 51%. Grindrod operates the Matola Coal Terminal which is run separately from the port of Maputo. According to Ceronio, the growth through Matola comes mainly from magnetite, which is a form of iron ore. Palabora Copper is exporting roughly five million tons of magnetite a year. Ceronio says Grindrod worked closely with the rail authorities during a closure of the rail link following a derailment on the Ressano Garcia line on February 18. The fleet of wagons used for magnetite was “ring fenced” until the line reopened on April 19. “We have learnt from previous experience that rail authorities usually reallocate their wagons when there is a major disruption, and it is hard to get them back when the line reopens. Transnet Freight Rail maintained the fleet size, which meant that shipments could commence as soon as the line opened,” he told FTW. The Mozambican rail authorities took advantage of the shut-down to carry out maintenance on the line and to upgrade the bridge, which was damaged, to handle 26 tons per axle. Work is under way on another two bridges and the line itself to bring the whole route up to the same capacity. Coal volumes have been affected by a drop in world demand, but the terminal is ready to handle any growth in volumes. In July, a “Phase 3.5” expansion project was completed, bringing the capacity to 7.3 million tons a year. Feasibility studies for Phase 4 are continuing. INSERT & CAPTION The growth through Matola comes mainly from magnetite. – Sarel Ceronio