Strong wind experienced at the Port of Durban last week eroded gains made by the Decongestion Task Team, dampening recovery results that the port was beginning to witness.
In statement released over the weekend, Moshe Motlohi, general manager for the port, said the low light for the week had been the loss of operational time due to strong winds.
Additional information released by the Transnet National Ports Authority said that container volumes were below budget by -28%.
“Two vessels were delayed as a result of weather delays and were not handled.”
The inclement weather meant Pier 1 and Pier 2 had to go on standby for wind for 10 hours, 45 minutes, and 34 hours and 25 minutes respectively.
Coming at a time when the country’s primary port is working hard to weather storms both literally and figuratively speaking, “recovery from the impact of the pandemic and lockdown has been very slow, with imports below target by 13% and exports by 15% for the week”, the statement said.
“Only transhipment cargo performed well and exceeded target by 14%.”