SA government seeks R100 bn investment from private parties for Port of Durban

August 18, 2021: The department of public enterprises has announced a master plan for the Port of Durban which will seek potential private investment of R100 billion into the port over at least the next ten years, as per a release from South African government.

Public Enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan said that the master plan is currently undergoing consultation processes.

“The Port Master Plan will serve as a basis for investment in the port both in respect of the port infrastructure – now governed by the Transnet National Ports Authority but also in respect of the terminals and the freight infrastructure that services these ports as well,” Gordhan said.

According to Gordhan, the first reform to establish TNPA as an independent subsidiary is moving ahead.

“Significant progress has been made in establishing the infrastructure of the subsidiary and the kind of role it would play in relation to investments in each of the ports, in order to facilitate the efficiency of the ports themselves.

“It is hoped that by October this year, a further request for information would be issued by TNPA to establish market appetite for the building of the point terminal at the Durban port - and that will be a huge infrastructure investment,” Gordhan said.

The second reform is to explore the potential for investment in the Port of Durban and the Port of Ngqura in the Eastern Cape.

He added that the requests for information from private business would allow government to create partnerships with both local and international business, which would bring the expertise and cash investment required for the upgrading of infrastructure and equipment at the country’s ports.

The first round of requests for information kicked off in July and is ongoing.

Further engagements with interested businesses will see a round of requests for quotations open between August and September.

Following that process, requests for proposals will be entertained between November and January 2022. Bid evaluation processes will be held in February 2022. Finally, the finalisation and approval of bids will be done between March and June 2022.