PORTNET'S STRANGLEHOLD on South Africa's harbours is causing artificially high wharfage charges on imported goods and should be broken, says Wynand Pretorius, head of Rand Afrikaans University department of transport.
Portnet's role as both a regulator and operator of ports is untenable, he says, and the government should act to change the situation.
The present situation, he says, is hobbling the country's competitive edge, pushing prices far above the world average. What is needed is a new regulatory authority, set up by the state, to allow competitive pricing.
Addressing the National Union of Metal Workers of South Africa conference in Johannesburg recently, he said: South African ports are among the most expensive in the world because Portnet is both regulator and operator. It tends to use the proceeds from the high wharfage charges to subsidise other Transnet subsidiaries.
He pointed out that Durban port was among the most expensive in the world, charging far more than the world average.
At the same time he praised the government's transport department for its restructuring policy which will cut staff by 75% this year and save the country more than R200 million.
By Leonard Neill
