Govan clears up confusion over CT upgrade completion

Watching Transnet’s ‘pennies’ lies at the heart of a delay to 2013 in completing the last of four upgraded berths at Cape Town Container Terminal. Despite claims at a Transnet Port Terminals briefing on March 4 that completion of the project was set for 2012, Sanjay Govan, Cape Town’s NPA port manager, told FTW: “To ease the cash flow, the project will now be completed in 2013.” This was in line with his comments to FTW in January that the terminal project would be delayed for up to a year in light of ongoing negotiations for better project-related rates. He says the berth upgrade at 601 is complete, work on 602 is under way, berth 603 will be finalised by April 2012 and berth 604 completed by around March 2013. Although he would not go on record at the time as to the nature of the costsaving negotiations, it can be revealed they include further dredging. “What would benefit Transnet is that dredging costs are down internationally and this will assist us as there are still a few spots that need to be addressed in the container terminal and as a totally separate project, Duncan Dock itself.”