Sapo’s Chetty admits that R50bn investment is 'band-aid'

Work underway on 15- and 25-year plans RAY SMUTS SOME WILL be asking whether government’s resolve to commit R50 billion toward improving core ports and railroad facilities over five years is not too little, too late; certainly South African Port Operations’ Mervin Chetty views it essentially as a small sticking plaster. “The investment is nothing but a band-aid, basically to stop the bleeding we have because the country has experienced an investment backlog, what should have been committed five or ten years ago.” says Chetty, Sapo’s executive manager for strategy and continuous improvement. Sapo will invest R5,2 billion, including R1.6 billion on a second container terminal at Durban’s Pier No: 1, as part of its five-year plan but Chetty says work is already underway on 15 and 25-year plans in order to meet capacity before demand arises. “The government wants to grow the economy through development and reconstruction. It also wishes to increase the growth rate from the current 2.3% to between 4% and 6% and the only way you are going to achieve that is to drive it through capacity creation, hence the intention to build superstructure and infrastructure.” Turning to the lone appeal against Cape Town’s proposed container terminal extension, based to a large extent on ecological concerns, Chetty is clearly optimistic. “There certainly is some environmental stuff to take into account but if you look at a country like Germany, it went through certain environmental challenges which shows there are certain ways these things can be sorted out.” Chetty holds the view that given Cape Town’s positioning between the East and South America, it is well placed to foster strong future growth. “If we as a country decide to sign a trilateral agreement between South America and Singapore or any other South East Asian country, there will be a lot of spin-offs for Cape Town as a major trading hub.”