Transnet strike: Cable theft increased by 22% due to wage disputes

Transnet Freight Rail’s (TFR) post-strike recovery has revealed that due to wage disputes, there was a 22% cable theft spike, further staggering a service which has already cost exporters billions of rands.

The two-week strike made it more vulnerable and accessible as Transnet executives stated the latest cable thefts resulted from low numbers of security staff, who were concentrated in areas of protest.

It had a shocking toll on the economy, with the embattled freight rail company vital to South Africa’s export and import industry.

The state-owned rail operator experienced a great loss in volume which also resulted in 257 trains being stranded, or “staged”, across the network, although 234 of these were then cleared.

Cable replacement expected to cost R24 million

With replacement cable expected to cost as much as R24 million on one key corridor alone, managing executive of the container corridor Rudzani Ligege said security had been beefed up, as theft occurred in Ladysmith and Pietermaritzburg, which were major hot spots for cable thieves.

The remaining 23 staged trains were on this corridor, a key logistics enabler linking the Port of Durban with the Gauteng economic hub.

“The theft occurred between Ladysmith and Pietermaritzburg,” he said.

“We lost 12 kilometres of cable during the strike time with an estimated replacement cost of R24 million.”

Expert view

Chief economist at Efficient Group Dawie Roodt said although Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana allocated a lot of money to Transnet, the capital expenditure on Transnet would actually be used to fix a lot of infrastructure which had been damaged.

Roodt said the infrastructure was not only damaged because of the floods, but due to theft as well, which caused more capital expenditure.

Roodt said the eventual outcome of Transnet would be the same as of the South African Airways, where the private sector would take over in the end.

“It might not be part of government’s policy but gradually government was accepting the reality where certain services required the private sector to provide because government is not good at doing it,” he said.

“They need to accept the inevitability, which is getting the private sector more involved.”

Roodt said government should take the obvious step in allowing the private sector to be the main provider of many of these services.

“We need to put a plan in place to get there,” he said.

“The government likes taking small steps in that direction and every time they only take a step once they are forced to do so.

“It is not optimal. They need to accept and put a plan to move into that direction instead of getting pushed all the time.”

Roodt said the damage to the economy was terrible and he did expect the economy to grow.

“I am afraid it is an expensive process to eventually end up where we have to,” he said.

KZN floods also delayed services

While the latest theft adds to the long list of reported incidents, including those which occurred when Transnet was heavily impacted by the KwaZulu-Natal floods, delaying services and exposing it to more crime, Transnet’s head of safety and security, Marius Bennett, said this was not just a Transnet issue, and relevant authorities needed to step in.

Bennett said the company suspected there would be an escalation of theft and vandalism during the strike and increased security resources in response.

Authorities need to play their role

“We have put in an additional task team in observation posts and we have engaged the South African Police Service,” he said.

“With almost every incident happening in that area, we are making arrests. So it’s not that these guys are just going in there, cutting the cable and getting away with it.”

Bennett said security initiatives at TFR saw cable theft incidents drop 18% in the year to date, with the length of cable stolen reduced by 32%.

“There is still huge room for improvement.

“We are not saying it is under control, but we are working closely with law enforcement and beefing up security measures,” he said.

“It is improving, and it will continue to improve.”

The Minerals Council of South Africa said last week the strike had cost the mining sector R6 billion a day, compounded on top of the R50 billion already lost by previous failings.

– lungas@citizen.co.za

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