Trial run to pit Maputo against Durban

THE STAGE is being set for the launch of a comparative study that will pit the cost and efficiency claims of the Port of Maputo against Durban. Driven by the Automotive Industry Development Centre, it will be run along similar lines to a 2005 study which compared Walvis Bay, Durban and Port Elizabeth in terms of lead-time, warehouse-toport transit time, port-to-port transit time, total transit time and total cost comparison. For the Maputo trial shipment, the AIDC has partnered with a service provider who is currently putting together a proposal. “They have sent a delegation to Maputo to look at the entire logistics chain from shipping rates and harbour charges to border control and inland haulage costs," says Dineshan Moodley, the AIDC’s senior project manager. “Once we have their proposal we will discuss the details with a client who currently ships via Durban and who has expressed an interest in the project.” The plan is to ship two containers from Italy through the Suez Canal to Durban and then on to Maputo. “The problem is that no ships go directly to Maputo – the only shipping line serving Maputo stops in Durban first so there is an extra leg and additional time involved,” said Moodley. One container will then be railed from Maputo to Rosslyn while a second will move by road. “At this stage we need a proposal as the first step. If the project is feasible we’ll move ahead from there.”