Ships’ agents doing
business at South African
ports are battling berthing
delays due to a shortage
of tugs, a scarcity of
pilots and an inconsistent
helicopter pilot service that
seems to be more fragile
than ever, according to
industry leaders.
In addition, said CEO
of the South African
Association of Ship
Operators and Agents
(Saasoa), Peter Besnard,
dredging has posed a
problem that has resulted
in the berth draughts being
reduced and under-keel
clearance increased. This
has meant that limitations
have had to be imposed,
bringing about a marked
drop in vessel liftings and
throughput through the
Port of Durban. According
to Besnard, this is a
worrying trend that is sure
to drive up the cost of
doing business.
SDV South Africa’s
shipping manager, Vernon
Pillay, told FTW that the
Port of Cape Town needed
a helicopter pilot service
as well. ”During winter
months, vessels often
have to wait days to enter
the port until the swell
subsides. A helicopter drop
could save quite a bit of
time,” he said.
In his opinion, the Port
of Cape Town has shown
the most improvement
recently in terms of
infrastructure development
and taking steps to
improve efficiency. “The
new ship-to-shore gantries
at the container terminal
and the mobile cranes at
the multipurpose terminal
have certainly made a
difference to productivity,”
commented Pillay.
Besnard agreed that
presently Cape Town
remained the best terminal
in South Africa but added
that the ports of Durban and
Ngqura had made the most
improvements over the past
two years.
“Ngqura has increased
gantry crane capacity,
stacking space as well as
extended the quay length.
Furthermore, it has installed
the MoorMaster berthing/
secure system as well as new
rubber tyre gantries,” he
said.
Durban’s installation of
the rail gantry cranes, mobile
cranes for the multipurpose
terminals, as well as some
new straddle carriers, also
put it in the lead in terms of
improvements, he said. The
issues around productivity
and capacity however
mean that a lot still needs
to be done to get Durban
operating the way it should,
according to Besnard.
CAPTION
Industry leaders say the Port of Cape Town is currently the best terminal in South Africa.
