JOHANNESBURG, Nov 4 – South African logistics company Grindrod will begin transporting coal from South African mines to Mozambique in 2027 under an agreement granting private train operators access to the freight rail network of state-owned Transnet.
The arrangement forms part of South Africa’s efforts to reform its freight rail sector by allowing private companies to operate trains on Transnet’s infrastructure. The state-owned logistics company has faced capacity constraints and struggled to accommodate growing freight demand, limiting the movement of commodities and other goods across the country.
Transnet’s rail infrastructure unit has signed access agreements with 11 private train operating companies, including Grindrod, as the government seeks to increase freight volumes and improve the utilisation of the national rail network.
Grindrod plans to transport approximately 288,000 metric tons of coal from Mpumalanga province to its Matola Terminal in Mozambique during its first year of operations on Transnet’s North-East corridor.
The company said it successfully completed a test train round trip on the route on November 2, marking a step towards the start of commercial operations.
The expansion of private-sector participation is central to the government’s broader strategy to restore rail capacity and shift more freight from roads to rail. South Africa expects private train operators to contribute an additional 20 million tons of freight annually.
The initiative supports the government’s target of transporting 250 million tons of freight by rail each year by 2029.
Transnet reported freight rail volumes of 167.9 million tons in the financial year ended March 2026, representing a 5% increase from the previous year.
For Grindrod, access to the North-East corridor provides an additional route for moving South African coal to regional export infrastructure in Mozambique. The Matola Terminal offers a connection to international markets, while the broader rail reform programme could create opportunities for private logistics companies to expand their operations across South Africa’s freight network.
