Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) and Mnambithi Liquid Bulk Terminals have signed a terminal operation agreement for a new R1.1 billion liquid bulk terminal that will be built at the Port of Durban.
Speaking at the signing ceremony and sod-turning event for the project at the port on Thursday, Transnet chief executive, Michelle Phillips, said the state-owned freight and rail entity was proud to partner with Mnambithi as a 100% black-owned company. She said the project’s environmental impact assessment had been approved two years ago, which had paved the way for the signing of the agreement.
“We are very proud we can have a 100% black-owned company operating in the port and officially partnering with Transnet. From the start it has been a very ambitious project, but it has also been very much attainable,” she said.
“We applaud the fact we have been able to empower a black-owned enterprise to once again propel the participation of black-owned organisations in this sector. This is how we are going to continue in the future to try to remove barriers. We have to allow new entrants into our space. We have to transform the industry.
“It has been a journey, it hasn’t been easy, but it is worth it and as we move forward with the lessons, we have learned we need to try and compress the timelines to allow people access into our business and into this industry,” said Phillips.
TNPA chairperson, Tshokolo Nchocho, said the project represented a “most significant and transformative” investment in the port system and the country.
“This project we are rejoicing about today between Mnambithi and TNPA is a remarkable achievement that demonstrates what can be achieved when the govt and private sector engage in cooperation,” Nchocho said.
He said TNPA and Mnambithi’s management had engaged in intense planning and development for the project over the past 2.5 years.
“A lot of that hard work has successfully concluded in the terminal operation agreement we are celebrating today. We look forward to this very substantive transformation initiative in the liquid bulk industry in this part of the world and in South Africa as a whole,” he said.
Mnambithi chairman, Vusi Mazibuko, said the project had taken ten years of negotiating with Transnet, from concept to the signing of the operating agreement.
“But it is the beginning of the real journey now, building a state-of-the-art terminal. Building up the operating team is another challenge facing us, but we hope to get all the partners and stakeholders on board with us to make this journey a success,” he said.
The terminal will have capacity to store 100 000 cubic metres of liquid bulk cargo including edible oils, caustic soda and phosphoric acid.
He said about 1 000 jobs would be created during construction, which would be completed in one phase, while more than 200 jobs would be created once the terminal was operating. Construction is expected to start in the next three months, with completion expected in around mid to late 2026.
