Walvis Bay Corridor Group woos Gauteng shippers with strong value proposition

From the start the Walvis Bay Corridor Group has had a good value proposition for Gauteng shippers. But WBCG CEO Johny Smith admitted yesterday that changing the mindset of shippers has been a lot more challenging than anticipated. The Group has however launched another aggressive marketing campaign to drive its message home. “Ships from Europe and the Americas have to pass Walvis Bay – and from Walvis Bay to Durban takes 5-7 days by sea. If you offload in Walvis Bay it takes two days to Johannesburg so you save at least three days’ shipping time,” Smith told FTW Online. “Ten years ago when we started this initiative we had no direct callers - now we have connections to all major trade lanes. “Add to this the benefits of competitive rates, a congestion-free port and zero pilferage and the advantages of using the port are clear.” In addition, several new initiatives are currently on track, said Smith, with the Namibian and Botswana governments having recently put out expressions of interest for the extension of the missing rail links on the Trans Kalahari Corridor.