Growing vehicle volumes demonstrate Maputo Corridor growth

KEVIN MAYHEW
THE MAIN road to Maputo that forms the backbone of the Maputo Corridor is growing in importance and handling greater volumes of traffic almost by the month.
The owner of International Logistics Management (ILM), David Lane, says ILM and its Komatipoort-based sister company Corridor Clearing have seen an increase of over 100% in the number of vehicles they handle per month.
“In March 2003 we handled
415 vehicles and this year it jumped to 885 for the same
month, despite a few problems
at the border. On the whole the route is proving to be a spectacular success,” says Lane.
ILM was formed as a result of experience gained during the construction of phase one of the Mozal aluminium smelter in Maputo. On that foundation a professional service for moving cargo from South Africa to Mozambique and onward through the Mozambique ports to overseas destinations was established, Lane says.
ILM and Corridor Clearing concentrate mainly on direct port cargo and project work. Ensuring that all eventualities are covered to combat potential disruptions, its clearing facility has generator capacity to keep the wheels turning in the event of power cuts.
It handles container and breakbulk loads including ferrochrome, sugar, timber, ferrovanadium, steel and materials for the SASOL gas pipeline project. Lane believes that improvements to the Port of Maputo will have a major impact on its activities.
“The port has two channels, the Xefina and the Polana, that have been dredged to their operating depth of 9,4 meters with two new tugs, pilot vessels, road and rail improvements.”