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• South Africa Richards Bay
• Richards Bay South Africa Airport
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Richards Bay (Afrikaans: 56.400.01.300.29.200.) is a town in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is situated on a 30 square kilometre lagoon of the Mhlatuze River, which gives it one of the country's largest harbours. Richards Bay also has the deepest natural harbour in the continent.

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History[edit]

The town began as a makeshift harbour that was set up by Commodore of the Cape, Sir Frederick Richards during the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. In 1935 the Richards Bay Game Sanctuary was created to protect the ecology around the lagoon and later by 1943 it expanded into the Richards Bay Park. The town was laid out on the shores of the lagoon in 1954 and proclaimed a town in 1969. In 1976 Richards Bay harbour was converted into a deep water harbour with railway and an oil/gas pipeline linking the port to Johannesburg.

The South African Government under Minister of Transport Ben Schoeman decided in 1965 to build a deepsea harbour at Richards Bay, about 180 kilometres north of Durban. Construction work began in 1972 and four years later, on 1 April 1976, the new harbour was opened. The residential area of Richards Bay developed north of the harbour. Meerensee, started in 1970, was the first suburb. It was followed by Arboretum in 1975 and VeldenVlei in 1980.

All three suburbs catered exclusively for whites in accordance with the existing laws of apartheid. A township for blacks was developed at Esikhaweni, fifteen kilometres south of Richards Bay. Play planet moolah online free. Residential areas for Indians and coloureds were opened after 1985 west of VeldenVlei. All the suburbs of Richards Bay together (excluding the black township of Esikhaweni) had a population of about 20,000 in 1990.

Economy[edit]

The Port of Richards Bay contains what was once the largest coal export facility in the world, with a planned capacity of 91 million tons per year by the first half of 2009. In 2007 annual throughput was 66.12 million tons. The Australian port of Newcastle, New South Wales, is the largest coal exporting harbour in the world, exporting just over 161 million tonnes of coal in 2016.^[2]

Two aluminium smelters, Hillside Aluminum and Bayside Aluminium are operated by South32. A fertiliser plant operated by Foskor has been erected at the harbour. Iron ore, rutile (titanium oxide) and zircon are mined from the sand dunes close to the lagoon by Richards Bay Minerals, part of the Rio Tinto group. Local exports include coal, aluminium, titanium and other heavy minerals, granite, ferrochrome, paper pulp, wood chips and phosphoric acid. Richards Bay is, alongside Rustenburg, South Africa's fastest-developing city. It is a fast-growing industrial centre that has been able to maintain its ecological diversity.

However, like most of South Africa, the Richards Bay area is plagued by unemployment and poverty. Unemployment has been estimated at forty percent and an undefined number of people live below the poverty line. The local government have not made enough efforts to implement projects aimed at poverty reduction.

The 'John Ross Parkway' (P496) which links Richards Bay to Empangeni and the N2 highway is named after 'John Ross' (real name, Charles Rawden Maclean), who at the age of 15 walked from Port Natal to Maputo and back to procure medicine and supplies for the early settlers.^[3]

Apart from the mining industry, tourism is a major part of the economy, with Richards Bay seen as a gateway to Zululand, and area popular with foreign tourists because of its large game parks and the diverse wildlife on offer.

The Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone is one of two Industrial Development Zones within the province of KwaZulu-Natal. It is a fully serviced industrial land comprising heavy, medium and light industries linked to the adjacent Port of Richards Bay.

Government and politics[edit]

Since municipal boundaries were newly demarcated in 2000, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), in a coalition with the Democratic Alliance (DA) and other smaller parties, were in power in the uMhlatuze Municipality. However, due to the final floor crossing period, the IFP lost control of the Municipality to the ruling African National Congress (ANC). The mayor of uMhlathuze is now Mr Mduduzi Mhlongo, who so happens to be the Chairperson of the African National Congress in the region. The City of Umhlathuze is part of the King Cetshwayo district, also governed by the ruling ANC.

Demographics[edit]

White people account for 39.98 percent of the population, followed by black Africans at 37.05 percent, Asians or Indians at 19.16 percent and coloureds at 3.8 percent. 74.19 percent of the population is under the age of 34 years, with 2.73 percent over the age of 65. For every 100 females, there are 93 males. The population density has been estimated to be 526-1,192 persons/km squared. There are 12,433 households in Richards Bay, with 66.4 percent of such households being house or brick structure. According to household income, the wealthiest suburb is Meerensee, with an average household income of more than R153,601 per annum. The unemployment rate in Richards Bay alone is 19 percent, compared with 55 percent in surrounding rural areas.

The various racial makeups of the seven different suburbs are still along the Apartheid-era segregation lines, with Meerensee a mostly white area, while suburbs such as Brackenham and Aquadene predominantly Indian/Asian and Ngwelezane home to the black community. However, in recent years there has been a movement towards more integration, with predominantly black people moving into other, traditionally higher-income areas, due to the growing black middle-class in the area.

22 percent of the population have completed school only. A further 8.45 percent have a tertiary education. 16.7 percent have received no schooling at all. However, this data reflects the uMhlathuze municipality as a whole.

Geography and climate[edit]

Richards Bay is characterised by a subtropical climate that very closely resembles a tropical climate as only two months have an average temperature of below 18 °C There are warm wet summers and mild moist to dry winters, which are frost-free. The town has an average annual rainfall of 1228 millimeters (48.3 in). The average annual temperature is 21.5 °C (71 °F), with daytime maxima peaking from January to March at 29 °C (84 °F), and the minimum is 21 °C (70 °F), dropping to daytime highs from June to August of 23 °C (73 °F) and a minimum of 12 °C (53 °F). Sunrise is at 04h45 and sunset at 19h00 in summer. In winter sunrise is at 06h20 and sunset at 17h00. Richards Bay is a popular kitesurfing destination thanks to consistent winds blowing from the North East.

The Richards Bay area is generally very flat and is situated on a coastal plain. The terrain rises slightly towards the west. The suburbs are all no more than a few metres (Reneging around 140m) (feet 459.3 ft) above sea level. The area is abundant in coastal dune forest, most notably along the coastal dune belt and in the suburb of Meerensee.

Catholic history of Richards Bay[edit]

The parish priest of Kwambonambi celebrated Mass twice a month in a private home and, starting in 1973, in the Meerensee Primary School. There were few Catholics in Richards Bay in the beginning, but their number increased steadily with the development of the town. The parish priest of Empangeni took over the pastoral care of these Catholics after a new road link between Empangeni and Richards Bay had been completed at the end of 1974. He introduced a weekly Mass, which was held in the Methodist Church in Meerensee and later in the Primary School in Arboretum. The Diocese of Eshowe had in the meanwhile bought a church site in Meerensee. The site was offered to the Nardini Sisters who built a convent and a primary school there in 1977/78. Reg Sommerville, an architect from Empangeni, drew up the plans. O'Connell Brothers, an Empangeni company, began the building operations in June 1977. They finished the first phase within one year so that Archabbot Notker Wolf of St. Ottilien (Germany), who was at that time in South Africa on a visit, could bless the chapel and kindergarten on 12 August 1978. The second phase which involved the construction of a convent, was completed in January 1979. Two Nardini Sisters took up residence in the new convent in February 1979. The convent chapel was used by the Catholic community of Richards Bay for Sunday Mass from June 1978 until August 1986 when the new church in Veld-en-Vlei was opened.

The influx of people to Richards Bay in the early eighties brought about a marked increase in the number of Catholics. This in turn made it necessary to think of building a proper church. Duvenhage and Fischer, architects from Richards Bay, were approached to submit designs. During this planning period, all parishioners were invited to make suggestions for the new Catholic centre. For months the sketches and plans were displayed after Sunday Mass so that everyone could contribute ideas. The Diocese of Eshowe eventually accepted the proposal to build a church together with a hall and a caretaker's flat in Veld en Vlei because of the central position of this suburb. The turning of the sod service took place on 12 September 1985. LTA Construction, one of the largest building companies in South Africa was awarded the contract. Work was completed in June 1986. Bishop Mansuet Biyase consecrated the new church on 31 August 1986. The patron saint of the church and the parish is St. Francis of Assisi. Attached to the church is a sacristy, a small kitchen and a caretaker's flat. In 1992, another building was added. It contains a meeting room and several classrooms for catechism children. The St. Francis Parish in Richards Bay had about 600 Catholics in 1992.

All the additional buildings were constructed and paid for by Father Pious Paul from a legacy left to him. He gave to the Richards Bay Parish a memorial for the benefit of all Catholics in Zululand. After Father Pious there were several priests who ran the parish namely Fathers Alousios, Eugene, Hemmie, Peter Blue, Max and the present incumbent Bheki.

Sports Events[edit]

2006/7/8 Richards Bay BG Triathlon World Cup[edit]

Richards Bay hosted the ITU World Cup. ITU Triathlon World Cup was a series of triathlon races organised by the International Triathlon Union (ITU) for elite-level triathletes. There were twelve races held in twelve countries, each held over a distance of 1500 m swim, 40 km cycle, 10 km run (an Olympic-distance triathlon). Alongside a prize purse, points were awarded at each race contributing towards the overall World Cup for which an additional prize purse was awarded. The 2008 World Cup was sponsored by BG Group. The 2008 World Cup series marked the final year of this race and championship format as the ITU shifted its focus to developing the World Championship Series. For more information contact the Zululand Multi Sports Club.

2010 FIFA World Cup[edit]

Due to its regional airport, its close proximity to Durban (3 hour drive) and its status as the gateway to Zululand, Richards Bay was identified as a possible training base for the World Cup. A small stadium aimed at achieving FIFA accreditation was developed. In late 2009, a Ghana delegation visited the town, raising speculation that the Ghana football team could base themselves in the town. In May 2010, it was announced that the Nigeria football team would move their base to Richards Bay for the duration of the World Cup.

2011 South African Surfski Championships[edit]

Zululand Kayak Club, Richards Bay, was nominated by Kwazulu Natal Canoe Union (KNCU) to host the yearly surf ski championship for single and double surf ski formats. This was achieved on the 17th and 18th of September 2011. This race brought in professional and amateur surf ski racers alike from Durban, East London, Port Elizabeth, Cape Town and Johannesburg. The race was sponsored by Rio Tinto-Richards Bay Minerals and Midbay Motors.

2015 South African Surf Championships[edit]

In 2015 Richards Bay was selected by the governing body of South African surfing, Surfing South Africa (SSA), to host the South African Surf Championships. South Africa's top provincial surfers gathered to compete at Alkantstrand during the week long event in August. The contest was handled and coordinated by local surf club, uThungulu Surfriders (formerly Zululand Surfriders Association), and was extremely successful. The event was covered on the uThungulu Surfriders website www.zulusurfriders.co.za with heat by heat updates and daily articles, by uThungulu Surfriders correspondent John Cawood (of Alliance Graphics).

Sport[edit]

• Canoe / Surfski: Zululand Kayak Club is a water sport organisation, focused on canoe and surfski paddling, and competing in many races on the KNCU calendar. This is a local club that caters to the Zululand community. the club offers a surfski school to the community for anyone interested in trying a new sport. The club promotes a healthy outdoors lifestyle.

• Cycling: The Zululand Cycling Club is active and can be contacted through the Zululand Cycling Facebook page. (ZCC)

• Karate: North Coast Karate Academy practices Kimura Shukokai Karate under Sensei Marius Botha that competes on an international level and has received Springbok colours at a young age and has a high world ranking. Student from North Coast Academy have top rankings in South Africa and some internationally as well.

• Lawn Bowls: The Richards Bay Bowls Club is situated in Veld-En-Vlei. It is a vibrant club where the sport of lawn bowls is played and promoted and is one of the top clubs in Zululand and KZN Country Districts.

• Sailing: The Zululand Yacht Club (ZYC) is located at Longitude 32° 05.015 E and Latitude 28° 47.529 S, at Richards Bay Harbour , The club takes great pride in introducing our visitors to our superb location on the dolphin coastline. Our double story clubhouse, sited on an expanse of well shaded green lawn, allows a wonderful view of the surroundings. The Pelican Bar is situated on the upper level and the balcony is a must for those all important sundowners.

• Surfing: King Cetswayo District Surf Club (formerly uThungulu Surf Riders)

• Wrestling: Richards Bay Wrestling Club is one of the top wrestling clubs in the province of Kwa-Zulu Natal.

Famous people[edit]

• Dudu Myeni - former chairperson of South African Airways.
• Kyle Abbott - Fast bowler, South African national cricket team, The Proteas
• Bridgitte Hartley - Olympic bronze medalist in the Women's K-1 500m Canoeing2012 Olympic games hosted in London
• Freddie 'Rafferty' Horn - Former South African cruiser weight boxing Champion, with a professional debut from 1983 to 1997 and won his first South African junior-heavyweight title in October 1988
• Marius Jonker - South African Rugby union match official
• Fred Le Roux - South African Surfing Masters Champion 2014
• Manqoba Mkhize - Former, Bafana Bafana, Amaglug Glug soccer player
• Lindokuhle 'Linda' Mkhwanazi - Soccer player
• Casimiro Monteiro - Portuguese intelligence officer and assassin for the Portuguese Colonial Police and PIDE (International and State Defense Police). Monteiro was responsible for the assassinations of Portuguese opposition leader and revolutionary Humberto Delgado and Mozambican revolutionary and activist Eduardo Mondlane. After the 1974 Carnation Revolution, Monteiro took refuge in the South African embassy. He eventually took the alias 'Jose Fernandez' and moved to Richards Bay, where he died in 1993
• Sakho Ngema - Generations actor
• Sifiso Mthethwa - Generations Actor,Binnelanders Actor,Lockdown Actor
• Sthembiso Mthethwa - Musician(Top Dog Hip Hop group)

Local Media[edit]

• Focus Magazine - a glossy community magazine detailing property and life in and around Richards Bay.
• Zululand Observer- Locally operated newspaper founded by Mrs Regina Anthony in 1969 - www.zululandobserver.co.za

See also[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^ ^abcd'Main Place Richards Bay'. Census 2011.
2. ^'The Channel Autumn 2017'(PDF). Port of Newcastle Operations Pty Limited. April 2017. p. 3. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
3. ^'John Ross Highway Phase 3 (N2 - Empangeni, KZN)'. Acer Africa. 1 July 2009. Retrieved 20 June 2010.
4. ^South African Weather Service 'Richardsbay Stats' Check url= value (help). Weather SA. August 2011.

The Port of Richards Bay is located in Richards Bay harbour on the Indian Ocean coast of South Africa, and contains the Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT) which is the largest coal export facility in Africa.^[a]

Although originally built to handle coal exports, the port has become South Africa's premier bulk port, handling other dry bulk in addition to coal, as well as liquid bulk and breakbulk cargoes.^[2] It is also South Africa's most modern port.^[2]

• 2Coal terminal

History[edit]

The idea for a new harbour north of Durban began as far back as 1902 when a Cathcart W. Methen, Harbour Engineer, Durban, conducted a survey and advised the Natal Colony government in 1903, that Richards Bay would be a better choice than St Lucia.^[3]:396

The idea was again revised in 1921 when a proposed harbour was investigated by a group of engineers at Kosi or Sodwana Bay's.^[4]:246 Sodwana's suitability was again investigated in 1922 by Sir George Buchanan.^[4]:246 The two former bays were again investigated in 1923, this time by Jan Smuts.^[4]:246 The idea for a northern harbour would again be revisited in the 1950s when Prime Minister D.F. Malan visited by air reconnaissance.^[4]:246 By 1965, the then Minister of Transport Ben Schoeman decided after visiting Kosi and Sodwana Bay's, that Richards Bay would be the best choice.^[4]:246 Four reasons were given for the choice. It had a protected bay; the hard material was at a depth allowing the creation of a deep bay; the ability to integrate the existing railway infrastructure and a shorter rail distance to the industrialised Transvaal interior.^[4]:246

In 1967, surveys began of the 3,050 ha lagoon. Aerial photography took place, off-shore soundings were made by the South African Navy's hydrographical department while the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) studied the coastal morphology, collected data on wave heights, directions, tides, currents, sediment transport and studies on river discharge into the lagoon.^[5]:257 Three rivers flowed into the lagoon, the Umhlatuzi, the Nsezi and the Manzamyana with the depth of the water in the lagoon being around a metre.^[6]:80 The ground below the lagoon water was very soft making proposed dredging easier with the hard rock at a depth making the proposed port a deep water harbour.^[6]:80 The existing sea entrance to the lagoon was found to be a natural underwater gorge that was filled with loose material and so made it ideal as a channel for ships to enter the proposed harbour if two breakwaters where built.^[6]:81

Despite no harbour or facilities, in January 1969, earthworks began for the building of the Alusaf Smelter, the country's first aluminium smelter.^[7]:287 2,100,000 m³ of soil was brought into the swampy site and 40 km of piles driven into the ground.^[7]:287 Concrete pouring began in June 1969 with Aluisse the project managers, Roberts for the construction and Dorman Long the steelworks.^[7]:287 It would open on 1 April 1971 with initial processing capacity set at 52,000 tons and 300,000 tons if expanded.^[7]:287Alumina was imported from Australia and transported by rail to Richards Bay.^[7]:287

In the middle of 1971, boring tests indicated poor ground in certain areas of the proposed harbour that necessitated changes to the location of some infrastructure.^[3]:396 By November 1971 the design and construction tenders were released and closed in March 1972.^[3]:396 May 1972 saw the South African parliament passed an Act that authorised the construction of the harbour.^[4]:246 Ten tenders were received and a contract was awarded in May 1972 to a Dutch, Belgian and German consortium worth R108,606,402.50 for a period of five years.^[3]:396 The first stage of development was the construction of quay-walls, to eventually berth bulk-carriers of up to 250,000 tons dw, with the completion deadline being April 1976.^[8]:319

The Transvaal Coal Owners Association proposed to export coal of 9.1 million tons from the Eastern Transvaal through the new port to Japan.^[8]:320 The railway infrastructure needed upgrading or new lines built.^[8]:320 The current rail line between Ermelo and Vryheid was upgraded and a new 90 km line from Broodsnyersplaas and the coalfields to Ermelo was built.^[8]:320 The third main upgrade, was a new rail line from Vryheid to Empangeni, just outside Richards Bay, which would 210 km in length, with 10.5 km of tunnelling and 67 bridges or viaducts over several rivers including one over the Umfolozi River of a 39.6 m span.^[8]:320

Coal terminal[edit]

Location[edit]

The Richards Bay Coal Terminal is positioned at one of the world’s deep sea ports, and is able to handle large ships and subsequent large volumes.

As such, it has gained a reputation for operating efficiently and reliably.

The 276 hectare site currently boasts a quay 2.2 kilometres long with six berths and four ship loaders. Currently, the terminal has a storage capacity of 8.2 million tons of coal and is serviced by seven stacker reclaimers, two stackers and a reclaimer.^[9][10]

Capacity[edit]

In September 2006, RBCT set a new world record by loading and exporting 409,809 tons of coal in a 24-hour period at an annualised rate of 149.17 million tons per annum (Mt/a).Potential throughput is to reach 91 million tons a year by the first half of 2009.^[11]

In 2007 annual throughput was 66.12 million tons^[vague], despite a capacity of 76 million tons. It was largely due to rail deliveries failing to reach expectations.^[12]

Expansion[edit]

RBCT commenced its Phase V expansion project in September 2006, which was completed in May 2010 and rose the throughput to the current capacity.^[13] Discussion about available export capacity to emerging black coal miners in South Africa is still going on.^[14] Therefore, Transnet and Grindrod started to build up coal export capacity through the Richards Bay Terminal (RBT), the dry bulk terminal of Richards Bay. The capacity of this facility will be increased to 4.5 million tons a year, which will give together with 4 million ton capacity reserved in the RBCT a total capacity of 9.5 million tons a year, which should be sufficient to cover the export needs of the black miners in the next years.^[15]

In January 2012, the Swazilink rail project was announced, which would remove general freight traffic from the Richards Bay line and allow more coal trains to Richards Bay Coal Terminal.^[16] Completion is foreseen for 2019 or 2020.^[17]

References[edit]

Notes

South Africa Richards Bay

1. ^The Chinese port of Qinhuangdao maintains the largest coal exporting terminal in the world, at 209 Million tons compared to Richards Bay with 91 Million tons.^[1]

Citations

Richards Bay South Africa Airport

1. ^Qinhuangdao
2. ^ ^ab'Richards Bay'. findaport.com. Shipping Guides Ltd. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
3. ^ ^abcd'Richards Bay harbour development'(PDF). Civil Engineering = Siviele Ingenieurswese. 14 (12): 379–80. December 1972. – via Sabinet (subscription required)
4. ^ ^abcdefgDu Toit, H.J.L (November 1976). 'The Broodsnyersplaas - Richards Bay railway line and harbour: overall objectives, features, planning process and constraints'(PDF). Civil Engineering = Siviele Ingenieurswese. 18 (11): 245–48. – via Sabinet (subscription required)
5. ^Campbell, N. P. (November 1976). 'Planning and construction of the new deep water harbour at Richards Bay'(PDF). Civil Engineering = Siviele Ingenieurswese. 18 (11): 257–65. – via Sabinet (subscription required)
6. ^ ^abcZwamborn, J.A.; Cawood, C.H. (February 1974). 'MAJOR PORT DEVELOPMENTS WITH DUE REGARD TO AT RICHARDS BAY PRESERVING THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT'(PDF). Civil Engineering = Siviele Ingenieurswese. 16 (2): 79–86. – via Sabinet (subscription required)
7. ^ ^abcde'South Africa's first aluminium smelter'(PDF). Civil Engineering = Siviele Ingenieurswese. 13 (8): 287. August 1971. – via Sabinet (subscription required)
8. ^ ^abcde'The days work a Commentary'. Civil Engineering = Siviele Ingenieurswese. 14 (9): 319–21. September 1972. – via Sabinet (subscription required)
9. ^'RBCT (Home page of operator)'. Retrieved 2015-10-14.
10. ^'RBCT (Home page of operator): What equipment does RBCT use to handle the coal?'. Retrieved 2015-10-14.
11. ^'South African Coal Sales to India Jump, Europe Hurt (Update1)'. Bloomberg. Retrieved June 30, 2008.
12. ^'Richards Bay Coal falls short again'. MiningMX. Retrieved June 30, 2008.
13. ^'RBCT has completed its Phase V expansion project'. 2010-05-03. Retrieved 2015-10-14.
14. ^'Transnet fights for black coal miners'. 2010-05-03. Retrieved 2014-02-11.
15. ^'Grindrod pushes ahead with Richards Bay expansion'. 2015-08-21. Retrieved 2015-10-14.
16. ^'Railway Gazette: Ceremony launches Swazilink project'. Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 22 January 2012.
17. ^'Transnet says take-or-pay contracts offer volume 'cover' in weak commodity climate'. Retrieved 2015-10-14.

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