The alleged bungling of the old Durban International airport’s redevelopment plan by Transnet has cost the province the second airport and R20 billion investment.
In 2012 during the official handing over of the old airport land by the then Public Enterprise Minister Malusi Gigaba to then Transport Minister Bern Martins.
Gigaba announced that as a response to the growing demand for container capacity, Transnet would build a dig out port in the old airport, adding that the container capacity estimated to grow from 2.5 million to 12 million over the 30 year-period.
He said once completed, the dig out port would drive industrialization through investment in the port and related sectors. The port was expected to become 16 container berths, five automotive berths and four liquid bulk berths which was going to result in the creation of 20 000 direct and 47 000 indirect job opportunities.
Responding to that government announcement, a property company, Amabhubesi Property Holdings from Umlazi proposed a R20 billion logistics hub investment which was turned down by Transnet and instead accepted the one that proposed to revive the airport to serve as a second to the king Shaka International Airport from Seaworld Aviation, however both proposals have not seen the light of the day as the airport is still not developed.
Seaworld Aviation’s new airport proposal was awarded in 2017 and was subsequently cancelled by Transnet the following year. Seaworld Aviation challenged the cancellation in court and the matter has not yet been resolved since then.
.Amabhubesi managing director, Kwazi Mbili said that till today he still does not understand Transnet’s rationale in going against the government’s strategic objectives, that of creating a dig out port which was in line with his company proposal.
“Until today we have not received a clear explanation how our bid failed and how the aviation company which did not bid for the logistics hub was awarded work we bid for. Our view is that Transnet used our proposal to award a white owned aviation company work to create a logistics hub. The company did not rebuild the airport and instead leased the space to trucks which is something we proposed to Transnet,” said Mbili.
Seaworld Aviation official, Aaron Stanger said his company is still committed to reviving the Durban old airport, adding that there is a demand for the second airport in the province. He said the moving of the airport to the far north of Durban left residents on the south of City with no alternative travelling means.
“We are still committed to our initial proposal. There are two airports in Gauteng and Cape Town is in the process of building the second one so why not in KwaZulu-Natal but we can’t get into details of what actually transpired there because the matter is in court,” said Stanger.
He confirmed that currently some of the tenants that are operating in the airport are illegal.
Weighing in on the matter, Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chief Executive Officer Palesa Phili said port users appreciate Transnet's efforts to increase container capacity, however, the reality is that the country lacks financial resources to invest in the dig out port which is estimated to cost that exceeds R100 billion, making the development unfeasible in the short term. She said collaboration between public and private stakeholders is essential to ensure that the Durban port infrastructure evolves to meet the future demands while considering the fiscal realities and operational efficiencies.
In a written response, Transnet Property spokesperson Mandisi Mzizi said the state entity is aware of the matters raised by Amabhubesi Property Holdings (Pty) Ltd (APH) and has responded to them accordingly.
She said the current lease and tenancy of the Old Durban Airport is a subject of legal process, and thereby sub-judice, and Transnet is not in a position to comment further until the conclusion of the court case. However, she said the internal discussions are underway regarding the future development plans of Old Durban Airport and such plans will be made known to the public at the conclusion of the court case.