Magnetite boosts Swazi rail volumes

Magnetite is a recovered byproduct from copper mining used in iron production, but for Swaziland Railway it is an ore key to this year’s profitability. 26% more of the product will be shipped to Richard’s Bay from Phalaborwa through the landlocked country whose rail system earns most of its revenue from transhipment of SA goods. “The 2010 financial year starts in April for us, and it is going to be a good year because of the growth of magnetite traffic. The volumes for other commodities we move will probably remain the same, but because of magnetite we will have real growth in freight traffic this year,” Gideon Mahlalela, CEO of Swaziland Railway, told FTW. Swaziland Railway does mount occasional tourist excursions with special trains, partnering with Rovos Rail and others, but its core business remains as it has been since the first trains rolled in the 1960s – freight, specifically mined ores. And the output of mining firms would further boost company business if the Swazi government would grant licences for new operations. There is a backlog of applications seeking to excavate iron ore, diamonds, coal and other minerals in the country. Until these are approved, the rail system looks to other local commodities and transhipment opportunities. “I just met with our counterparts in Mozambique in anticipation of the sugar export season. We inspected all 226 kilometres of line in Swaziland, and they are inspecting on their side of the border,” said Mahlalela, who noted that the old citrus clients they once served to bring fruit to Maputo have shifted to sugar production, though the output is still shipped to Maputo. All coal mined in Swaziland is used in SA, whether shipped by road to Mpumalanga or via Swaziland Railway to Richards Bay. As for the textile industry, which uses rail to import inputs to Swazi garment firms and export finished products to Durban port, the sector’s declining fortunes in recent years has meant less business for the railway. So it is in the transport of minerals that the rail system sees potential for new business, until orders again pick up for the Swazi manufacturing sector.