Transnet calls for bids to develop new Richards Bay container terminal

Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) wants to partner with the private sector to expand its container facility capacity at the Port of Richards Bay in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).

On Wednesday, the division of the state-owned rail, port and pipeline company Transnet called on interested parties to respond to its request for proposals (RFP) to fund, design, develop, operate, maintain and transfer a container handling facility for a 25-year term.

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International Container Terminal Services

This comes just two days after Transnet confirmed the selection of Philippines-headquartered International Container Terminal Services Inc as the preferred bidder and partner to develop and manage Durban Container Terminal Pier 2.

Commencement of the RFP process comes after TNPA successfully concluded the request for information (RFI) process that began in November last year. According to the entity, the RFI process revealed sufficient appetite from private sector players to invest in the project, which remains a critical driver for the local economy.

The new facility, to be developed on a greenfield site expected to have a total footprint of 675 000m2, is expected to take some pressure off the 600-series multipurpose handling facility (MPT) that is currently handling containerised cargo.

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The MPT has an installed capacity of 50 000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), and TNPA says the new facility has the potential to quadruple this capacity.

“The RFI process has enabled TNPA to positively assess the market appetite for such a facility in Richards Bay, and the responses have revealed that there is potential to grow the current capacity to an estimated 200 000 TEUs,” Moshe Motlohi, TNPA managing executive for Eastern Region ports, said in a statement.

“The outcome of the RFI also gives TNPA the confidence that industry players are keen to invest in the development, and hence we are able to proceed to the next step of requesting proposals.”

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Long time coming

For Moses Tembe of the KZN Growth Coalition, the latest update by TNPA is welcomed as businesses have long called for additional container capacity at the port.

“If it makes sense and the numbers justify it, [then] it’s a good [and] welcomed development,” he told Moneyweb.

He added that private sector support will be critical in assisting Transnet with its turnaround strategy.

“Private sector partnerships actually complement Transnet’s balance sheet; it doesn’t always have to be a SOE [state-owned enterprise] that brings money to the table,” Tembe said.

The facility, set to be located in the Bayvue Precinct of the port, has been earmarked to serve the northern parts of KZN that are closer to the inland markets relative to the Durban Port. It is expected to reduce logistic costs and travel time.

Transnet is looking to attract bidders with the requisite experience and capacity to take on such a project, but said the bidding process will make room for new entrants and smaller enterprises within the container handling industry to participate in the RFP process and construction phase.

This article originally appeared on Moneyweb and was republished with permission.
Read the original article here.

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