RB expansion marks critical milestone

LEONARD NEILL AS WATER breached a high wall and began flooding a huge specially excavated basin in Richards Bay harbour last week, port manager Thami Ntshingila gave one of his rare broad smiles of delight. It marked a critical phase in the construction of the R250m quay expansion for the Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT). It also marked the 30th anniversary of the opening of the port in 1976. “The port made a profit of R509m last year. Now, when all of this work has been completed, Richards Bay will take its place as one of the major foreign exchange earners in the country,” he said. Eleven huge concrete caissons were built and stand in the basin that is currently being flooded. Each stands as high as an eight-storey building. They will eventually be towed across the harbour to the RBCT, where they will be placed, interlocked and capped to form the 320-metre long new berth.The entire project is due for completion by next February. The port is already acknowledged as the worlds’s major coal exporting facility. When the entire development programme is completed – current schedule 2008 – export capacity will reach 92m tons per annum.