New Gauteng port planned

RESULTS: AIMS TO REVITALISE RAIL AND REMOVE 30% OF TRUCKS FROM THE N3

- Ciaran Ryan

LOSING IT. Transnet has lost billions annually on the Durban-Gauteng corridor, ceding market share to trucking.

(Bloomberg)

The Port of Gauteng may be one of the first fruits of government's decision to place Transnet's rail infrastructure under independent management and open it up to private operators.

"We're creating Africa's most advanced inland trade gateway," said port developer Francois Nortjé of NT55 at the launch of a White Paper on Tuesday, outlining the inland port's potential to transform Gauteng's economy.

"This facility represents our commitment to solving SA's freight crisis, while generating massive economic returns. The new facility, expected to get underway in 2027, will create about 50 000 permanent jobs, leading to sustainable economic growth for the province," said Nortjé.

The Port of Gauteng should have been operational years ago, but Covid interrupted.

Located on 1 400 hectares south of Johannesburg, at the junction of the N3, N12 and N17 highways, the port envisages a radical reordering of transport between Gauteng and Durban.

For one thing, it aims to remove roughly a third of the trucks that currently clog the N3, by shifting millions of containers onto rail.