Transnet Group Chief Executive (GCE) Portia Derby and Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Nonkululeko Dlamini, have resigned from their positions at the state-owned freight and logistics company.

Derby’s last day at the company is expected to be at the end of this month (October) while Dlamini’s last day was at the end of September.

Transnet board chairperson Andile Sangqu said: “On behalf of the Board, I want to take this opportunity to convey to Portia and Nonkululeko our best wishes and to express our gratitude for their dedication, selflessness and hard work in serving the company during this critical time in its history”.

In a statement, Transet announced that Chief Executive of Transnet Pipelines, Michelle Phillips, is expected to be Acting GCE from 1 November while Hlengiwe Makhathini will act as Group CFO.

The statement reflected on Derby’s tenure as GCE since her appointment in February 2020 and the challenges that have beset it since.

“Ms Derby…has steered the company through an extremely challenging period, following on the setting aside of the 1064 locomotive contract which has created a significant binding constraint for Transnet that remains to this day.

“Furthermore, the period of the current executives’ tenure was impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic, immediately thereafter the looting, the hacking of the ICT system, the floods in KwaZulu-Natal and the strike towards the end of 2022, all of which have adversely impacted Transnet. The floods in particular required a significant capital outflow to return to service the critical Container Corridor between Johannesburg and Durban,” the statement read.

Transnet added that Derby has borne responsibility for “driving the introduction of restorative governance measures and stabilising the company following the years of State Capture”.

“During her tenure she worked with the team in Transnet to introduce a private partner for Transnet Port Terminals into the container terminal space, the first of its kind, including working with key stakeholders in introducing reforms, aligned with Government policy, which aim to turn the organisation around, restructure the rail sector particularly, and enable the growth of the freight logistics system,” the statement read.

Source: South African Government News Agency