MUR enters into BEE joint venture

TERRY HUTSON INCREASING PRESSURE to ship locally-produced cargo on South African ships received further impetus last week when shipping group MUR (Metall und Rohstoff) announced the formation of a joint venture involving black economic empowerment (BEE) group Ndonsa Investments. The launch of Southern Chartering coincided with the official launch of the maritime transport and service industry BEE Charter, held in Durban on October 31. MUR, which operates a fleet of about 50 ships both owned and chartered, is jointly owned by steel manufacturer Mittal Steel and steel trading group Macsteel (part of the global Macsteel Holdings Group). Chairman of Southern Chartering Mathews Phosa said that the new venture would help reduce the dependency of local companies on foreign-owned shipping. According to Southern’s MD Neil Lepine-Williams, Southern Chartering currently has an annual contract to carry 1.5 million tonnes of cargo which he says can be increased to 5mt by the end of 2006. The cargo consists of steels, pipes, ferro alloys, manganese, mineral sands, timber and project cargo. Southern Chartering will initially focus on shipping cargoes from South Africa to the Far East.