“The MoU opens up collaboration on matters of common interest in areas of infrastructure development, engineering, training and marine services. Contrary to popular belief TNPA and the MPDC are not competitors and the agreement will open up opportunities for a closer working relationship and sharing of knowledge,” said TNPA’s Chief Executive Tau Morwe.

“I am ecstatic about the signing of the MoU today which, through co-operation has the intention of fostering competitiveness and growth and the realisation of the MPDC’s vision of propelling the region forward,” said Osorio Lucas, Chief Executive: MPDC.

“It is an important step toward fostering greater intra-regional co-operation which is a key priority of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa).”

Regional integration is in line with Transnet’s Market Demand Strategy that among its imperatives calls for a review of the state owned entity’s role in the development of the North-South logistics corridor.

“We believe that in a spirit of co-operation we can be exponentially more efficient and play a key role in lifting intra-regional trade within the SADC region from its current level of 12%.  What we can achieve remains to be seen, but we should aspire to achieve the figures of other leading regional economic communities such as those of Asia and Europe where intra-regional trade is in the region of 60%,” said Morwe.

The signing of the MoU is the formalisation of discussions that have been developed through extensive bilateral talks and visits over an extended period of time.

Other areas of collaboration include assistance with the unbundling of the MPDC into Port Authority and Port Operations, the transition of cargo from road to rail, nautical matters.

“In reality it means that the MPDC can access the capacity and expertise of TNPA at a lower cost than that of European or Eastern ports.  For example the TNPA dredging services are ready to provide maintenance and capital dredging of the Port of Maputo.  The Maritime School of Excellence, a leader in marine training on the continent, is available for technical and maritime training as is our port planning and engineering expertise and Safety, Health and Quality (SHEQ) expertise,” said Morwe.

It also means that TNPA can access the expertise of the MPDC which it can apply to its ports. An example is that of ore dust control at the Port of Maputo which TNPA is looking to implement at the Port of Saldanha.

The vessel was inaugurated by His Excellency the Minister of Transport and Communications, Paulo Francisco Zucula, on the 9th of May. Valued in 1.2 million dollars, this boat was named Chiuta and joined the old pilot’s boat.

The Chiuta will strengthen the marine services that, since November,are under the responsibility of P&O, bringing more value on security and technology.

Unlike the old pilot boat thathas a radio and operates on a navy radio-locator, the new boat has two radios and two electronic charts. In terms of safety, it has a structure that plunges into the water to hoist injured in case of accidents and the pilot has an armband that, in case of accident, sends a signal with your exact location, allowing for aneasy rescue.

Moreover, Chiuta possesses 12 seats, 6 of which are luxury seats (with reclining chairs and shock-absorbers to decrease the impact of the waves) and a bathroom with shower.

The old pilot boat will be used as a backup and it has been refurbished with two new engines,making it operational for at least the next 10 years.

This was the first of a series of investments which P&O Maritime will be doing until the end of this year, including one more mooring boat and tug boat. The contract signed in October between MPDC and this internationalentity, has the duration of 10 years, but may be extended for anequal period. The acquisition of a new fleet of vessels and training for all staff which belonged to MPDC, are also covered under this contract

The following standards will be applied withing this area:

1. Mandatory wearing of personal protective equipment(PPE) i.e high visibility jacket on entry to this area, even whilst traveling in vehicles. For persons working in operational areas where cargo is handled and heavy equipment deployed, the following PPE is required:
   • High visibility vest with reflective strips;
   • Hard hat;
   • Safety shoes.
2. Prohibition on walking on the main road – make use of the bus service and walking is only permitted to and from place of work to bus stop by using the shortest route. Employers are to ensure employees are conveyed by vehicle from work place to work place if the internal transport does not meet specific needs;
3. Prohibition of motor cycles and three wheeled scooters;
4. Prohibition of passengers on open pick-ups. The minimum standard required is that pick-ups are fitted with benches, facing inwards.
5. Switch on head lights when entering the operational area;
6. Mandatory use of rotating /strobe amber lights in operational areas i.e. berths and stock pile areas, off the main road.

All personnel and visitors should be suitably equipped if entry to and/or through the operational area is required.

MPDC Management, Supervisors and Security guards will enforce these standards and any person not in compliance will be refused entry.

“The loaders are our bread and butter” explained Gerhard Botha, Operations Manager. “In early 2012 we only had a fleet of 8 loaders and two of them were dismantled, leaving us with only 6 and thus with little availability”. “With the growth in volume, we almost always had to resort to local renting”, he added. The new fleet of loaders guarantees at least minimum availability to service the operational requirements.

This is one of the largest investments in equipment replacement in the entire history of the MPDC. The machines were acquired through Choice Diesel Lda., a Mozambican distributor and agent for Liebherr Africa, to whom the contract was awarded through public tender. This order includes a full maintenance contract, spare parts supply and a warranty extension.

The assessment and training of operators will ensure the competent operation of this new equipment. In addition to this strategic equipment replacement program, MPDC currently counts with 12 new operators who have recently completed their certification and that are now able to operate a variety of operating equipment.

In addition, additional investment is planned in strategic equipment for 2013, such as grabs, conveyor belt systems, RAM loading systems and forklifts.

Additionally, the installation of booths (similar to toll-gates) will improve the process for handling the documentation at the gate and, thus reduce the waiting time in both directions.

The main road from Gate 1 servicing the port is also being fully rehabilitated to enable a more efficient traffic flow. Paulo Mata, Port Authority Director, says that “the road works, in conjuntion to the interruption in the Ressano Garcia line, are causing a heavy congestion outside the Port”. “We are conscient about the inconvenience all this cause to the port user and we are trying to improve the traffic flow interruption and to improve the traffic management. We ask for the understanding of all because we are working to improve the efficiency of the port”, he adds.

The project is scheduled to be completed in August at an approximate total cost of 2 million dollars.

For this year, MPDC is expected to launch another 10 tenders, mostly related to the rehabilitation and maintenance of port infrastructure, including roads, railways and berths, which will generate additional opportunities for national small and medium enterprises.

The tenders were launched last year were related to the provision of stevedoring services, catering and internal transport, all directed to Mozambican companies with proven ability and capable of meeting the required quality standards.

As part of the implementation of the Strategic Plan of the Port, and in order to meet the growing demand for services from the Port of Maputo, the MPDC commissioned at the end of last year, a total of 12 payloaders to increase handling capacity cargo at the port. The prospect is that the new equipment will allow the reduction of the waiting time for trucks delivering transit cargo, as well as increased productivity of ships calling at the port.

In the last two years the Port of Maputo doubled the amount of cargo handled, going from ten million tons handled in 2010 to 15 million in 2012. MPDC expects to grow in 2013 to 17 million tons and to reach 40 million tonnes in 2020.

The main changes are that bonds are now calculated based on the 35 % of Customs revenues risk, bulk mineral cargos are bond exempted as well as transshipments.

MSC Opera is a classic and imponent cruise ship. One of its highlights it is a seven-course dinner meal which ends with a great show at the Teatro dell’Opera.

Two cruises of the MSC cruise fleet are scheduled to call Maputo Port until April 2013: MSC Opera and MSC Sinfonia.

On 11 November a 34-wagon train loaded with 1600 tonnes of coal arrived at Grindrod’s coal terminal in Maputo Port, having covered the 1300 km from Francistown in Botswana in three days, travelling via Bulawayo in Zimbabwe.

The trial was sponsored by African Energy Resources, Morupule Coal Mine in Botswana, Vitol Coal South Africa (energy and raw commodities trader in which Grindrod has an interest) and Grindrod Mozambique.  It involved the collaboration of three railway operations – Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

A statement released by African Energy said, “Botswana Railways undertook assembly of the 400m long train at Francistown Station. A Botswana Railways (BR) crew and locomotive then took the train to the Zimbabwean border, where a National Railways of Zimbabwe crew and locomotive took over. A further crew and locomotive change to Caminhos de Ferro de Mocambique was made at Chicualacuala in Mozambique to take the train to the Matola Coal Terminal which is operated by port operator Grindrod Terminals and Vitol. African Energy, Morupule, Grindrod and Vitol shared the costs for the export trial.

“This trial not only proved conclusively that bulk export of coal from collieries in Botswana via the Maputo corridor is feasible, but also provided invaluable technical information on the operation of rail services to assist African Energy’s feasibility study into coal exports from Botswana which is due to be discussed with the government of Botswana and other parties in early 2013.

“Pay loaders are our bread and butter machines”, explained Gerhard Botha, Chief Operations Officer. “In the beggining of 2012 we had only a fleet of 8 payloaders and two of them were scrapped, leaving us with a balance of 6 and, hence, low availability”. “With the growth in volume, we always had to hire from local suppliers”, he added. The new fleet of pay loaders guarantees a minimum availability to serve operations requirements.

This is one of the biggest investments in equipment replacement in all of MPDC’s history. The machines are being acquired from Choice Diesel Lda., a locally appointed distributor and service dealer for Liebherr Africa, who was awarded the contract by a public tender. The order includes a full maintenance contract inclusive of spares supply and an extended warranty.

Full evaluation and training of operators will ensure competent operation of these new machines. In addition to this strategic equipment replacement program, MPDC has hired 20 new operators who are currently being trained and who will be certified to operate diverse operational equipment.

Furthermore, additional investment in strategic equipment is planned for 2013, such as grabs, conveyor-belt systems, RAM revolver loading systems and forklifts.