Durban – Transnet National Port Authority and South African Defence Force (SANDF) has embarked on a massive project to relocate the SA Naval base from Durban to Richards Bay, in the north of KwaZulu-Natal.
The project according to Transnet, is part of the expansion plan of the KZN ports, which are among the biggest in the continent.
The relocation will enhance the operating capabilities of the SA Navy and will see an amount of R9 billion investment on the KZN ports, Transnet said.
Bridgette Gasa-Toboti, portfolio director for the KwaZulu Natal-Logistics Hub programme which is overseeing the relocations, said the relocation project, modestly estimated at an investment of more than R9bn, was one of more than 30 mega projects that constituted the KZN Logistics Hub Programme.
“This milestone announcement came at an opportune time, as the SANDF launched the South African Armed Forces Day during the 2023 Multilateral Maritime Exercise in Richards Bay, taking place from 15 to 22 February 2023.
“The event shines the spotlight on the Port of Richards Bay as the new premier home of the SA Navy in the province of KwaZulu-Natal.
“The hosting of these multilateral maritime exercises has given an added impetus on the teams working on the SA Navy relocation to accelerate the processes necessary to move the project forward.
“We are quite pleased with the level of collaboration that we are observing from both TNPA and the SA Navy, which jointly chair the steering committee and other operational committees, in ensuring the achievement of project objectives within the stipulated time-frames,” said Gasa-Toboti.
She said that at the core of the programme there were town port masterplans which outline the expansion ambitions of the Durban Port’s container and automotive capacity and Richards Bay dry bulk capacity.
She further revealed that the Port of Richards Bay was also developing a Liquified Natural Gas terminal and other liquid bulk terminals within the South Dunes precinct.
“Projects of this nature are quite complex and require a lot of finesse and sensitivity in the delivery approach. Precisely because the SA Navy relocation project touches on the safety of our republic, we have had to ensure that all key and strategic partners are fully on board,” she said. .
Within the coming weeks, the TNPA and the SA Navy will enter into a memorandum of agreement which will be the last step before the actual project implementation starts.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE