The Durban Chamber of Commerce has called for the axing of Transnet’s executives, including CEO Portia Derby, citing the continued deterioration of port and rail services, which has had adverse effects on revenue for not only Transnet but also its clients.
In a letter dated September 12, which Business Day has seen, the chamber, which represents 2,900 members comprising small, medium and large business in the city, said the worsening conditions require urgent action. This includes the firing of Derby, Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) CEO Siza Mzimela and Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) CEO Pepi Silinga.
“Businesses are collapsing and losing revenue daily due to the port challenges, we cannot allow this to continue any longer,” the letter reads.
“Transnet requires an executive team that is suitable, accountable, transparent and a team that will give this matter the urgency that it needs.”
The letter is addressed to Transnet board chair Andile Sangqu and public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan who recently directed the board to produce a financial turnaround performance plan.
This is after the company reported a loss of R5.7bn for the year ending March 31. This was due to TFR’s worsening performance. Rail volumes dropped 13.6% from 173Mt in 2021/22 to 149Mt in the period under review
The company also has a debt pile of R130bn and is paying R1bn a month in interest.
In response, Transnet said Derby had met with the Chamber's CEO, Palesa Phili and Durban mayor Mxolisi Kaunda on Friday where the issues raised in the letter were discussed.
“A meeting will be held as a matter of urgency to discuss the critical issues which cause frustration to the members of the chamber,” Transnet said in a statement.
The letter from the Durban Chamber comes as Transnet pushes ahead with the partial privatisation of the its flagship Durban container terminal (DCT 2). In August, Transnet announced Philippines-based International Container Terminal Services Inc (ICTSI) as the preferred private partner to run the port for the next 25 years.
The deal is the first port privatisation for Transnet, which has faced criticism for the poor performance of its ports, which rank among the worst in the world in terms of efficiency and reliability. In a 2021 World Bank index of container port performance, Durban ranked 364th out of 370 and two other Transnet ports were in the bottom 10.
The letter from the chamber echoes one sent to former Transnet chair Popo Molefe by the Minerals Council in December 2022, where the industry body called for the sacking of Derby because of Transnet’s increasingly poor performance.
However, after the letter landed on Molefe’s desk, Transnet’s board and leaders of the Minerals Council issued a joint statement saying they had agreed to set up collaborative structures to help stabilise and improve the throughput of SA’s rail and ports systems.
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