Posted on August 12, 2026
Transnet National Ports Authority has launched a tender for a private operator to develop and run a new floating dry dock at the Port of Cape Town under a 25-year concession.
The successful bidder will be responsible for designing, financing and building the facility before operating, maintaining and eventually decommissioning the dock. The project is part of TNPA’s wider effort to bring private capital into South Africa’s ship repair and marine manufacturing sector.
TNPA has not prescribed a fixed size for the new dock. Tender documents leave bidders to propose the vessel classes, dimensions and lifting capacity they intend to serve, while requiring modern docking and ballast systems and scope for future expansion.
The floating dock will add capacity alongside Cape Town’s existing Sturrock and Robinson graving docks and Syncrolift. Sturrock, the largest of the three, measures 359 m by 45 m and handles panamax vessels, offshore support ships, bulkers and other commercial tonnage. Robinson measures 153 m by 27 m, while the 61 m Syncrolift has a lifting capacity of 1,778 tonnes.
Once operational, the new facility is expected to handle hull work, machinery and equipment overhauls, steel inspections and other specialist maintenance. TNPA said additional capacity was needed to respond to rising regional and international demand for repair services.
The tender comes amid heavier ship traffic around southern Africa during the prolonged disruption to Red Sea routes. Splash reported last month that TNPA has also been investing in its Durban ship repair facilities, including an R200m ($12m) upgrade to the Prince Edward Graving Dock, which recently handled the 228 m tanker Troy.
Cape Town is becoming a wider focus of Transnet’s private-sector participation drive. TNPA last month launched a separate 25-year concession for the port’s multi-purpose terminal at B, C and D berths, requiring the successful operator to finance and carry out infrastructure improvements.
