Following a violent crackdown on post-election protesters, South Africa has temporarily closed the main border with its northeastern neighbour due to safety concerns, prompting logistics giant Grindrod to cease port and terminal operations in Mozambique, the company announced on Thursday.
As underfunded state-owned port and rail businesses struggle to offer appropriate services, the suspension will impact the movement of commodities and goods in an area already facing logistical difficulties.
As opposition supporters protest what they claim is a rigged election victory by Frelimo, the party that has controlled Mozambique since 1975, at least 18 people have been killed in the protests, according to human rights organisations.
Following reports of cars being set on fire on the Mozambican side, South Africa’s border authorities announced on Wednesday that it had closed the Lebombo border. Following the border closure and rail service suspension, Grindrod stated it has halted port and terminal operations in Maputo and Matola.
Along with DP World, the Mozambican Railway Corporation, and Gestores, a private Mozambican corporation, the company is a member of a consortium that was given a concession to run the Maputo port.
Due in part to higher coal and chrome export volumes that were diverted from South Africa, where state-owned Transnet is unable to offer sufficient rail and port capacity, Maputo port had record volume increases in 2023.
A record 31.2 million metric tonnes of cargo, primarily minerals including coal, copper, chrome, and ferrochrome, were handled by Maputo port in 2023, a 16% increase over the previous year.
