With just five months to go before its commercial launch, the new Ngqura container terminal is a hive of activity, and Transnet Port Terminals’ Divisional Executive Manager for the Container Sector says all parties are gearing up to ensure it brings value to the maritime industry.

“We are now obviously at a very critical stage in this project but have every reason to be highly confident, as we move closer to the experimental operations testing process planned for August and September, followed by our October go-live date,” said Siyabulela Mhlaluka.

Mhlaluka said the majority of the terminal’s infrastructure was in place, final recruitment and training programmes had kicked into high gear and customer engagement was now at an advanced stage. Transnet has invested in excess of R10 billion to date to develop the facility as a high-performance terminal.

“Our most significant progress - as far as world-class equipment is concerned - includes the assembly and commissioning of twelve rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGs) and four Megamax ship-to-shore cranes to date. Two additional ship-to-shores scheduled for delivery in May or June will complete the fleet of six such cranes, while the remainder of the 22 RTGs will be delivered as the programme progresses further,” he said.

The commissioned cranes are currently being used in the terminal’s intensive Operators of Lifting Equipment (OLE) training programme, which has produced 42 RTG operators and 18 ship-to-shore operators since January.

The 60 operators are now nearing the end of their rigorous training programme. This involves four weeks of classroom-based theoretical education, one week of simulation training via Transnet Port Terminals’ mobile advanced crane simulator and finally 12 weeks of practical application manoeuvring actual cranes and shipping containers.