Cash rather than volumes
is a good incentive measure,
say inland operators
LAST YEAR'S firefight surrounding the launch of Spoornet's new rates structure seems to have abated to a muted whisper.
But it led last June to accusations from rail users that Spoornet was favouring imports against exports (despite the government policy to encourage the export trade); that
the structure favoured the shipping lines at the exporters' expense; and that Spoornet's logic of cut prices increasing demand was flawed.
Little was repeated one year on, although Vishnu Reddy of Read Shipping,
a prime protagonist in
last year's skirmish, still questioned that cut-price strategy.
"The logic was that import rates lower than export rates attracted containers from the road. But it didn't work," he said.
Lawrie Bateman, m.d. of rail contract operator MSC Logistics, was however content that it had been a sound change in structure.
The change from estimated container volumes to cash throughput as a measure of a customer - and the rates incentive he will be allowed - is a "good thing", he told FTW.
"It moves away from false volumes being given in calculation of the rates," Bateman added. "The spending of the previous year now dictates what
discount you'll get.
"It's there in black and white."
It also makes things easier to control for the railways, said Isobel Louw, m.d. of road container distributors, Roadwing.
"As it is in cash terms, it's handled by the finance department and not operational staff, who have their minds on different things. That means much better control," she said.
"To us business people it makes sense."
