Transnet’s spokesman surely has glossed over in his reply

WHILE I appreciate Transnet spokesman Mboniso Sigonyela’s response (Friday, August 21) to my letter, I find the most interesting part of it lies in what he does not say rather than what he says.

It has never been my contention that Transnet, as a logistics state-owned enterprise, does not have an overarching logistics strategy. My concern is that the National Port Authority (NPA) does not have a specific container or ship repair strategy and that this has cost the economy dearly. This seems to be glossed over in Transnet’s reply.

I agree with Sigonyela that ports play a critical role in the freight system, but it is the role it plays in driving economic growth that is most important to South Africa and the Transnet shareholders, the citizens of this country. It is this concern that prompted me to write in the first place. The fact that the Ngqura container terminal has been built as a transshipment hub is not disputed, but it would be interesting if Sigonyela could provide the public with the figures to show the growth of transshipments at Ngqura.

Monthly statistics provided to the shipping industry by the NPA appear not to support Transnet’s contention, unless these figures are incorrect.

It is important to note that there is also no comment on the loss of container trade to ports in neighbouring countries.

There is also no reaction to the issue of cross subsidisation within the Transnet group. Nor any comment on approaches from foreign investors to build ship repair facilities. I am sure I need not remind him of the ill-fated Richards Bay dry dock saga for which a tender was first published in 2002 and to date there is no facility. In my book this counts as thirteen wasted years, but I digress.

If the NPA hypothetically had a container strategy, then how does this account for the numerous delays in building the Durban dig-out port (DDOP)? Are the DDOP delays, now scheduled to only start construction in 2021, part of the strategy? I think not.

There is also no comment on the loss of container trade to ports in neighbouring countries.

Transnet’s contention that it should not be competing with ports in neighbouring countries sounds like a very noble political statement, but the reality is that they are competing with you – and you are losing trade to them.

While I appreciate the personal invitation extended to me, I would respectfully decline in favour of the NPA general manager for strategy making good on his promise and hold a public briefing to explain to the shipping industry what and where the long-lost container and shipbuilding strategies are.