Poor weather, frequent equipment failures and shortages, staff engagement, and traffic jams were all factors that affected port operations. They nevertheless found time to arrange labor engagements despite the bad weather and subpar operational performance at the Port of Cape Town, ensuring that at least seven operating hours were wasted on Wednesday. Pier 1 and Pier 2 both faced operational delays of up to 13 hours between Wednesday and Thursday owing to severe winds. As one of the tugs at NCT broke down this week, the Ports of PE and Ngqura are once again sharing marine resources. Challenges like cable theft, vandalism, and overhead power outages on the line over the weekend are to blame for one of the main reasons there are more ConCor units on standby in Durban this week. Furthermore, TNPA has released a request for information (RFI) for the design, funding, construction, operation, and maintenance of the proposed Culemborg Intermodal Logistics Precinct in Cape Town, or a portion of it, as well as associated infrastructure.
Key Notes:
- An average of ~6 301 containers was handled per day, with ~8 129 containers projected for next week.
- Rail cargo handled out of Durban amounted to 2 302 containers per day, ↓3% compared to last week.
- Cross-border queue times were unchanged from last week, with transit times ↑1,3 hours (w/w); SA borders increased by ~80 minutes, averaging ~11,4 hours (↑12%); Other SADC borders averaged ~9,4 hours (↑16%).
- Maersk’s capacity is ↓3% less than in 2022, as Zim (↑33%) and MSC (↑24%) have grown considerably.
- Global freight rates decreased by ↓7,1% (or $119) to $1 561 per 40-ft container – YTD now at ~$1 763.
- Global air cargo is unchanged from last week, as capacity is slightly down ↓1% since early August.
Port operations – General:
- Port operations were characterised by inclement weather conditions, frequent equipment breakdowns and shortages, employee engagements, and congestion.
- Despite the adverse weather and poor operational performance at the Port of Cape Town, they still found time to facilitate labour engagements, ensuring that at least seven operational hours were lost on Wednesday.
- In the 24 hours between Wednesday and Thursday, both Pier 1 and Pier 2 experienced operational delays of up to ~13 hours due to strong winds.
- The Ports of PE and Ngqura are sharing marine resources once more as one of the tugs at NCT went out of commission this week.
- One of the main reasons for the increased number of ConCor units on hand in Durban this week can be attributed to challenges such as cable theft, vandalism, and overhead power failures on the line over the weekend.
- Additionally, TNPA has published an RFI for the design, financing, construction, operation and
maintenance of the proposed Culemborg Intermodal Logistics Precinct or part thereof and
related facilities in Cape Town.