Speed and costs will promote a shift to Namibia’s ports

As more SA shippers become acquainted with the speedy operations at Namibia’s lowcongestion ports of Walvis Bay and Luderitz, and border and infrastructure links continue to improve, the ports’ management company, the Namibian Ports Authority (Namport), foresees a shift in the region’s port use. “It’s a 48-hour trip from Gauteng to Walvis Bay. The saving in fuel is important because in transport fuel costs are becoming more of an issue, and they are likely to go up,” said Ellias Mwenyo, sales and services manager for Namport. Shortly, Botswana will operate a newly announced dry port facility covering 36 000m2 at Walvis Bay. “We expect a boost in Botswana cargo and traffic from South Africa using the ICD (inland container depot),” said Rosa Isaaks of Namport’s property division. The future will see more development of cargo facilities at Namport operations, following recent growth in cold storage capability. Earlier this year, a 9700m² reefer terminal capable of handling 256 reefer containers opened at Walvis Bay, giving the port a total cold storage capacity of 14 000m2. 520 reefer plug points are also on hand. Luderitz’s cold-storage capacity includes a privately owned and operated 2500m2 warehouse. The port’s reefer capacity stands at 72 reefer plug points. Container ships outnumber general cargo and other vessels at Namport facilities, and the ports are geared to swiftly handle boxes, whose numbers are likely to increase as more users come from SA, Zambia and points beyond like DRC, all funnelled through the Trans Caprivi Strip or the Trans Kalahari Corridor. Continued marketing of Namibia’s ports – the Walvis Bay Corridor Group opened a Jo’burg office in September – will publicise the lack of congestion and speed of operations at the Namport-run facilities. New customers like the SA automotive industry may join existing cargo movers. “Car manufacturers in South Africa operate on a ‘just in time’ management system, and they can use Namibia’s ports for speed,” said Mwenyo.