Transnet Seeks Bids to Develop New Container Terminal in Richards Bay

Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) is collaborating with the private sector to increase container facility capacity at the Port of Richards Bay in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa.

Transnet recently requested proposals from interested parties to fund, design, develop, operate, maintain, and transfer a container handling facility over a 25-year period. This decision follows Transnet’s selection of International Container Terminal Services Inc, based in the Philippines, as the preferred bidder and partner to manage Durban Container Terminal Pier 2.

The request for proposals (RFP) follows the successful completion of the request for information (RFI) process, which began in November of the previous year. According to TNPA, the RFI process sparked significant interest from private sector players eager to invest in the project, which has enormous potential to drive local economic growth.

The new facility will be built on a greenfield site and will cover an estimated total area of 675,000 square metres. Its primary function will be to relieve strain on the 600-series multipurpose handling facility (MPT), which currently handles containerized cargo.

The MPT currently has an installed capacity of 50,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). The new container terminal, on the other hand, is expected to quadruple this capacity, potentially accommodating up to 200,000 TEUs.

Moshe Motlohi, TNPA’s managing executive for Eastern Region ports, emphasised the importance of the RFI process in assessing market demand for the Richards Bay facility. He expressed confidence in the industry’s willingness to invest in the project, paving the way for the next phase of soliciting proposals.

This is a long-awaited development for local businesses, who have long advocated for increased container capacity at the port. The KZN Growth Coalition’s Moses Tembe welcomed the update, seeing private sector support as critical to Transnet’s turnaround strategy.

Tembe stated that private-sector partnerships could supplement Transnet’s balance sheet, emphasising that funding does not always have to come from a state-owned enterprise.

The new facility, located in the port’s Bayvue Precinct, is strategically located to serve the northern regions of KZN, closer to inland markets than the Durban Port. This positioning is expected to reduce logistical costs and travel time, giving local businesses a competitive advantage.

Transnet seeks bidders with relevant experience and capacity to carry out such a project. However, the bidding process will also allow new entrants and smaller enterprises in the container handling industry to participate in the RFP process and subsequent construction phase.

As Transnet moves forward with plans to expand container terminal capacity in Richards Bay, the collaboration between the public and private sectors has the potential to drive economic growth, foster innovation, and open up new opportunities for trade and commerce in the region.