Plans afoot for R15-m cold store in Durban
Currently, SAFT's Cape Town operation comprises the 100%-owned CFT Cold Store, (capacity 1 400 pallets), specialising in containerising sub-tropical fruit as well as the newly-approved containerised special shipments of sterilised fruit to Japan and the United States. It leases Maitland Cold Store (capacity 5 000 pallets), handling both containerised shipments as well as supply of cargo to E-berth.
In Durban, SAFT has leased for this season three facilities with a total capacity of 14 000 pallets and has an ambient storage facility for 2 300 pallets at the port's L and M berth shed.
Janssen, whose career background includes the Perishable Products Export Control Board (PPCEB) and Capespan, says plans are afoot to build a R15 million, 3 600-pallet, cold store in Durban - when it comes about depends entirely on Portnet - and a R30 million, non-quayside, store of the same capacity at Baakens River, Port Elizabeth, the latter hopefully in time for the coming citrus season.
All the groundwork has been completed for a new R35 million. 6 000-pallet, facility at Maputo but the project, though still very much on the cards, has ben put on hold pending the firming up of relations between new port operators Mersey Docks and current port authority CFM, and Spoornet taking up the tender for servicing the rail infrastructure.
Looking to first year results, McLoughlin says the projection of R50 million turnover is unlikely to be realised. Durban is in a mess over its inability to cope with citrus volumes for the fourth year running so we are only likely to do R12 million there rather than the R22 million anticipated while Cape Town will contribute R28 million.
Once the Port Elizabeth facility comes on line by December this year it
will contribute another
R15 million and Maputo between R18 million and R20 million.
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