Grindrod lines up five growth projects to deepen southern African corridors

Logistics group Grindrod has set out five growth projects it expects to deliver by 2028, spanning port expansion, dredging and its first entry into South Africa's newly opened rail network, chief executive Kwazi Mabaso said as the company reported interim results. The most advanced is a $40 million expansion of the Matola terminal at the Port of Maputo, targeting 12 million tonnes of annual capacity and expected to be complete by the first quarter of 2027.

Grindrod is also preparing to become one of the first private operators on South Africa's open-access rail network, deploying four locomotives and 50 wagons initially on a route between Belfast and Komatipoort, running two weekly slots rising to three. Test operations are due to begin before the end of 2026, with commercial services targeted for April 2027.

Dredging Maputo for bigger ships

A third project, dredging at the Port of Maputo expected to start later in 2026 and finish by the fourth quarter of 2027, would deepen the channel enough to accommodate Capesize vessels of up to 170,000 tonnes — a significant upgrade that would cut per-tonne shipping costs and strengthen Maputo's competitiveness against Durban and Richards Bay for coal, chrome and other bulk mineral exports from the region.

Looking further ahead to Richards Bay

The remaining two projects target Richards Bay: a container handling facility planned for 2028, and participation in Transnet's private sector partnership programme for a dry bulk terminal offering 27 million tonnes of annual capacity for chrome, magnetite and coal, for which requests for qualification close in October 2026. Grindrod reported a 19% rise in revenue to R2.8 billion for the six-month period, even as headline earnings per share held flat at 88.8 cents amid tough market conditions — underlining that the company is investing through a difficult trading environment in the belief that southern Africa's export corridors have further capacity growth ahead of them. Mabaso said the five projects were chosen because each addresses a capacity constraint Grindrod's mining and bulk-commodity customers have flagged directly, rather than being speculative additions to the group's terminal and rail footprint.

Sources

• Engineering News: Grindrod sets its sights on five growth projects from now to 2028, 25 Aug 2026

Photo: Maputo harbour in Mozambique, where Grindrod is expanding its Matola terminal. Julien Lagarde, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.5.