The logistics crisis, which has resulted in severe congestion in Durban, is also having a concerning impact upon the sustainability of importers and exporters in Nelson Mandela Bay, says Denise van Huyssteen, chief executive of the Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber.
“This has resulted in Nelson Mandela Bay businesses having to implement emergency solutions such as transporting their cargo, at massive costs, via road through other country ports such as Windhoek and Maputo. Cargo coming from the Far East is being delayed up to six weeks, with vessels waiting to berth in Durban on both the import voyage as well as the coastal move,” says Van Huyssteen.
“This in turn is impacting upon production schedules, export order commitments as well as the meeting of local demand requirements.”
In addition to the Durban and Cape Town congestion challenges, last month Transnet rolled out a new booking system at the Port Elizabeth Port. As organised business, at the time, we asked them not to proceed until resolution was found to the system challenges already experienced in Durban and Cape Town. This has further exacerbated the issues, and is creating a poly-logistics crisis for local businesses. Also, it is vital that as the focus turns to addressing the equipment and maintenance issues at the Durban and Cape Town ports, that the Port Elizabeth and Ngqura ports are also included in the national logistics intervention plans.
Yesterday a workshop was held between Transnet and Nelson Mandela Bay businesses regarding the new booking system. “While it was a constructive meeting, our appeal is that the roll-out of the new booking system is suspended until the country-wide logistics crisis is resolved.”
“We continue to collaborate with Transnet in an attempt to find urgent solutions to improving the capacity to move cargo through the ports,” concludes Van Huyssteen.
