Vu la isango! Open the gate.That is the call from the African Rail Industry Association (Aria) to the government as it continues to lobby for third-party access to the country’s rail infrastructure.According to Aria CEO Mesela Nhlapo, third party access has the potential to create thousands of jobs in the railway sector while driving massive economic benefits. “In addition, it will create much-needed rail capacity and move goods far more efficiently than is currently the case.”Speaking during a recent online conference, Nhlapo said Transnet had shown it was simply not able to keep up with the growing demands of its customers. “In the case of Exxaro, it has been reported that Transnet contributed to a loss of nine million tons of coal. Transnet, however, is not alone in this challenge. Many African countries face similar problems with state-owned transport entities.”She said if South Africa and the continent wanted to improve intra-Africa trade, reduce the cost of logistics, and create efficient transport systems, railway networks needed to be opened up to third-party users.Nhlapo said no economy could survive or grow without a significant logistics plan that was not only efficient but also affordable.“Countries that cannot get their logistics costs in place are simply not able to compete and can therefore not grow their economies.”Experts agree that structural change is long overdue and third-party access to state-owned freight utility Transnet’s rail network is now imperative for a significant boost to the economy.Nhlapo pointed out that third-party access was very different from privatisation which required the selling of state assets.“Third-party access simply enables private operators to use the state railway network to transport goods. This will have no impact on the government budget; we will be giving government money while improving logistics ef f icienc y.”It is not only Aria that has recognised the immense potential of the public and private sector working together. In October last year, President Cyril Ramaphosa presented a multi-faceted Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan which included granting third-party operators access to Transnet rail network infrastructure under a vertically integrated operating model.It is commonly accepted that if implemented correctly, it could be a complete game changer for the railway industry and logistics in the country.According to Dr Sean Phillips of the National Treasury, who works on Operation Vulindlela, a government-wide approach to implement structural reform, while there is broad consensus within the public sector regarding the broad policy thrusts of third-party access, there is still some contention around the detail of implementation.Speaking during the same online conference, Phillips said finalising and implementing a white paper on national rail policy was aimed at speaking directly to this.“Whilst the white paper talks of vertical separation between infrastructure and operations for freight rail, Transnet favours a vertically integrated rail operating model. We , however, believe the differences are not an insurmountable challenge in achieving third-party access to the rail network.”Phillips said a bill for the establishment of a transport economic regulator was currently before Parliament and also aimed to address some of the issues around infrastructure access.“We also don’t believe third-party access on freight rail needs to wait for the bill or the white paper – or even national rail policy – to be finalised before it can be granted,” he said, indicating efforts were being expedited to ensure private access to the rail network sooner rather than later.Nhlapo said the access granted to operators in Tanzania and Zambia was already proving the huge benefit of such an approach.“The two countries recently signed an open access agreement and have already reported a 90% increase in terms of freight f lows from the last financial year to date. This has been achieved despite the global economic slump due to Covid-19. Freight volumes have increased significantly following the signing of the open-access agreement, while revenue is expected to increase by at least 25%.”She said it was therefore a no-brainer for South Africa to follow suit and open up its rail infrastructure. Third-party access is very different from privatisation which requires the selling of state assets.– Mesela Nhlapo“A bill for the establishment of a transport economic regulator is currently before Parliament and aims to address some of the issues around infrastructure access.– Dr Sean Phillips“Growing call for third-party access to the country's rail infrastructure.
