Business lobby groups are piling pressure on South Africa\u2019s government to act against the management of state ports and rail operator Transnet for failures they say are hobbling economic growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Pietermaritzburg & Midlands Chamber of Business wrote to Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan last week, calling for action to \u201caddress the failures of Transnet\u2019s top brass.\u201d The appeal came days after the South African Association of Freight Forwarders detailed a litany of failings by the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The criticism adds to a letter to Gordhan by the business chamber of Durban, home to Africa\u2019s biggest port, demanding the removal of Transnet\u2019s top management. A similar call was made by the Minerals Council South Africa, which represents mining companies, in December 2022. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTransnet\u2019s current failures are crippling the country\u2019s economy,\u201d Melanie Veness, the chief executive officer of the Pietermaritzburg chamber, said in the letter. \u201cPoor and ineffective leadership are the root cause.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Transnet\u2019s inability to effectively manage key South African infrastructure is raising costs in Africa\u2019s most industrialised economy, according to the nation\u2019s central bank. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Disruptions caused by chronic theft and vandalism of railways and locomotives have disrupted the company\u2019s operations, costing miners tens of billions of dollars because they\u2019ve struggled to ship coal and other products to export harbours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In 2022, the tonnage of coal railed to the Richards Bay Coal Terminal fell to a 30-year low. A 2021 World Bank index of container port performance ranked Durban 364th out of 370, and two other Transnet ports were also in the bottom 10.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In her letter, Veness added that Transnet CEO Portia Derby displayed \u201cindifference\u201d to attempts by businesses to help resolve the inefficiency at the port of Durban. The poor performance of a rail line between Durban and the industrial hub of Gauteng is costing private industry R800 million a month, she said, citing a municipal estimate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Transnet didn\u2019t respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The freight forwarders association, in a weekly report on the cargo industry, bemoaned the \u201cdesperately low\u201d handling of containers by Transnet\u2019s ports and detailed problems currently bedevilling them. Some of the problems it identified include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe ongoing equipment shortages and other shortcomings in our ports are critically important and partly explain why throughput continues to lag and deteriorate,\u201d the association said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Department of Public Enterprises didn\u2019t respond to an emailed request for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n