Decongesting the Port of Durban is at the top of the Transnet agenda. And the state-owned logistics giant is under no illusion about the importance of the task at hand.Moshe Motlohi, general manager at the Port of Durban, who also heads up a decongestion task team tackling some of the root causes of the congestion problem, has faced ongoing criticism over the port.
“Value is defined by the customer,” he says. “Criticism or compliments directed at the ports are informed by the experiences of the customers. I can never say the customer pain is exaggerated, in the same way that I do not take any of their compliments lightly. It is true that the Port of Durban is going through difficult times due to mostly landside congestion.”But, says Motlohi, a lot of work has also been done since last year and small green shoots are starting to emerge.
Speaking to Freight News, Motlohi is direct about the importance of the decongestion efforts.“If we fail to turn the corner, there is a real risk of the port losing its centrality insofar as being the gateway into SADC is concerned,” he says. “This would have a negative impact on our revenue and relevance. We must also take a closer look at the implications of the Belt & Road Initiative by China. I know they are targeting Ports in East Africa, specifically Kenya and Tanzania. That is why we must arrest the decline.”That includes dealing with the ongoing issues around weather. “Climate change is real and we have seen weather becoming more unfriendly to port operations. We have to work with research institutions to find innovative ways of mitigating weather-related disr uptions.”
Motlohi has big dreams for the Durban harbour. “I want it to be a full-service port. It must offer all the services that a modern port has to offer. We must move away from being seen as just a wharf or pier, we are more than that. We must have the best connectivity on road, rail and sea. We must have a modern logistics park with excellent connectivity to the port.”
With ships calling at the port only getting bigger, the current dry dock is no longer able to service those vessels. “It will be ideal to extend the Special Economic Zone – or equivalent – benefits to the ship building/repair businesses. This will assist them to compete with other international players. Point Precinct should develop into a community-friendly precinct with a world-class waterfront,” he says. “As we do that, we must bring new entrants into this space. Lastly, the port must be the leader in using technology to enable all the 4PL and 5PLs to trade with ease in the port environment.”
