Rand's fall impacts on profitability of TransKalahari route

THE DECLINE in the value of the South African rand against many international currencies is taking its toll on the transport of containers from Namibia to South Africa when the faster TransKalahari Highway is used.
It's the stronger Botswana pula that is causing the damage, says E P van Rooyen, managing director of Wesbank Transport. The rand - to which Namibia's dollar is pegged - has fallen steadily against the Botswana currency during the past year, but it is in that country's money that travel through the Botswana section of the highway must be paid.
"In fact, transporting containers on cross-border routes from Walvis Bay is proving uneconomical," he says. "We collect most of the containers delivered to Walvis Bay harbour for road transportation and have five dedicated units for that purpose. These rising costs are making this operation extremely expensive, and it hits us hardest when container vehicles travel all the way to Gauteng and then have no back-load to help pay for their return journey."
The developments which took place in Walvis Bay harbour last year have seen a marked increase in the number of containers arriving, he says, but unless these are for Namibian destinations, they represent loads that are essential but certainly not profitable.