Durban Bulk aims for new Richards Bay coal terminal

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30 Jan 2009

South Africa's Durban Bulk Connections (DBC) hopes to build a new three-million tons a year export facility at the Richards Bay port, MD Iain Geldart told Reuters. DBC handles around 2,5-million tons a year of various bulk commodities from its Durban facility including 1,8-million tons of coal types. Much of the coal and anthracite exported from Durban could shift to the new Richards Bay facility, if it is built, Geldart said.
"We think there is a strong need for a small, independent bulk terminal facility to handle the boutique type of commodities like anthracite or sized coal which do not go through Richards Bay and which you don't want to mix with the coal being handled at Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT)," he said.
Despite the planned expansion of the privately-owned RBCT to 91-million tons a year, which is due to begin ramping up in July, and proposed port expansions in Maputo and elsewhere in Richards Bay, there is insufficient thermal coal export capacity to meet demand, South African industry sources said.
The National Ports Authority, which leases land to private operators, issued a tender late last year for new developments at Richards Bay.
NPA will choose between DBC's proposal for a commodities terminal on the same side of Richards Bay as the Richards Bay Dry Bulk Terminal and a separate proposal from a consortium which wants to build a 10-million tons a year coal terminal adjacent to RBCT on the other side of the Bay, industry sources said.
"We have been trying to put operations into many other ports for many years," he said, adding that the he had no news on that front at present.
South Africa exports around 65-million tons a year of thermal coal from RBCT and a few million tons of anthracite and sized coal from smaller ports.
Anthracite is a low-volatile content hard coal mostly used in metallurgical applications. Sized coal consists of lumps of fairly homogenous-sized thermal coal usually burned as a domestic fuel. Most sized coal from South Africa is exported to Turkey, much of it from Durban's terminals.
Only one anthracite exporter is currently using Richards Bay Dry Bulk Terminal to ship from at present, industry sources said.
Shifting anthracite exports away from Durban would enable more steam coal to be moved from there. Some traders and exporters are already rushing to obtain steam coal export capacity at all of the proposed port expansions outside of RBCT, industry sources said.

Source: Reuters