South Africa's Minister of Transport, Barbara Creecy, said on Thursday, 13 August, that Transnet, the state-owned company responsible for the country's ports and rail network, intends to obtain up to $2.2 billion from the National Treasury to finance projects through 2030.
"We will be submitting applications to the National Treasury Infrastructure Financing Mechanism to the value of approximately $2.2 billion, for projects up to 2030," Creecy told Bloomberg.
The request will be in addition to the $803.9 million that Transnet has already received through the Infrastructure Financing Mechanism, including $692.6 million earmarked for the recovery of iron ore and coal rail corridors and for improving the efficiency of the Durban Container Terminal.
"The resources will be used to fund modernisation works and equipment orders that Transnet needs to turn the company around, after years of underperformance and corruption," the minister added.
The turnaround of the company is critical to the recovery of an economy that has grown at an average of less than 1% per year for more than a decade, with constraints in the transport sector repeatedly cited as an obstacle to faster growth.
Transnet recently concluded network access agreements with eleven new rail freight operators, which have been allocated time slots to operate on its main network.
The inclusion of private operators is expected to add 24 million tonnes of freight capacity to the network, an outcome that could be achieved within the next 18 months, Creecy said.
"Transnet will probably need to spend around $2.2 billion to upgrade the rail lines so that the new operators have the conditions to work," Creecy said. "They will have to acquire rolling stock. So I expect the increase of 24 million tonnes could happen in about 18 months," she added.
Among other measures the state-owned entity is taking to improve its performance are plans to introduce a privately operated floating dry dock at the Port of Cape Town, with the aim of increasing ship repair capacity, as well as a "port community system", Creecy noted.
The system will involve shipping agents and ship owners in port operations rooms, enhancing coordination, she explained. "This would be really useful for the citrus sector, which typically needs to dispatch containers during a potentially very windy season."
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/?p=530559
