Iron ore terminal bounces back into action

RAY SMUTS
THE UNCUSTOMARY silence was shattered at Saldanha’s iron ore terminal this week when loading operations got underway once again (October 19) after equipment failure more than three weeks ago. The breakdown of one of a pair of ore loaders on September 26 while the other was shut down for maintenance resulted in a build-up of around 1.6 million export tons worth R1.2 billion. The reason for the breakdown is still unknown. A Transnet statement said that a project team consisting of engineers from Thyssen Krupp, manufacturer of the equipment, Transnet Capital Projects and the Hatch Mott McDonald Gobo joint venture, made good progress toward restoring operations by re-commissioning the loader that had been under maintenance. Structures related to the failed loader are being reviewed and the manufacture of a new supporting structure is under investigation by Thyssen Krupp, according to the statement. The parastatal makes clear repairs to the broken-down loader will not adversely affect operations in the mid-term as only one unit is customarily in operation at any given time. It does however concede that having one loader out of operation will “impact” on the flexibility of ship loader maintenance and general operating schedules.