Flailing Transnet forces Botswana to consider new rail route
Botswana has received bids from investors to build a rail line to a Namibian port to circumvent SA’s disintegrating logistics network.
The 1 500 kilometre Trans-Kalahari Railway project is gathering momentum as Transnet – the state rail and ports monopoly in South Africa – struggles to ship goods, according to Botswana’s Transport and Public Works Minister Eric Molale.
“We learned in June that the waiting period at all South Africa ports to offload and load can be a minimum of two weeks, floating on the sea for that period,” he said.
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“The UAEs, the Qataris, China and India have also come to say that this [the new proposed route] is not a long line for them and it is in fact, a comparatively short one that they can do very quickly.”
TRANSNET A MAJOR DRAG
Transnet has become one of the biggest drags on South Africa’s economy and, along with power outages, resulted in a surprising contraction in growth in the third quarter.
Disarrayed transportation also might hinder expansion in neighbouring countries, including landlocked Botswana – one of the world’s biggest diamond producers and a major beef exporter that relies on South Africa for most of its trade.
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An alternative route may also attract companies in South Africa, offering shorter travel than to the nation’s own ports, Molale said.
Shipments of coal on the Transnet freight-rail network have dropped to the lowest levels in 30 years, while iron-ore railings are currently at their lowest point in a decade.
Port congestion has resulted in significant delays in both the loading and unloading of ships, prompting certain fashion retailers to resort to air transportation for their apparel.
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“We see ourselves as best placed especially for companies in the Johannesburg, Pretoria area of Gauteng because either way, going west or east, they cover the same distance and some of them, like vehicle manufacturers, have come to us,” the minister said.
FAST-DEVELOPING KALAHARI COPPERBELT
The Trans-Kalahari Railway project, initiated in 2010 between Botswana and Namibia, has faced delays and a shift in focus to exporting coal from the Kalahari Copperbelt.
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The railway would run from Gaborone to Gobabis in Namibia and Walvis Bay. Regionally, other countries like the US and China are pursuing similar rail projects for improved global market access, emphasising the significance of copper and cobalt in the transition to cleaner fuels.
Botswana and Namibia established a bi-national project office in 2015, with 12 companies expressing interest recently. The request for proposals is set for March, and construction is planned to begin in January 2025.
“There is a lot of money out there in the world and unsolicited bids have been coming in,” Molale added