Blacked-out documents released by the Cape Town High Court yesterday relate to Sanral's tolling plans for the N1 and N2 highways and have kept the public in the dark about the costs of the proposed project.
Sanral and the preferred bidder, Protea Parkways Consortium, fought hard in court this week to keep the tolling details secret.
Yesterday the court reserved judgment on the secrecy hearing but ordered that certain redacted court papers be released, a move welcomed by non-governmental organisations as giving a small but important glimpse into the project.
New details emerging from these documents include that Connor Dawson, a director of Group Five Infrastructure Developments, is PPC's N1-N2 Winelands toll highway project leader.
In an affidavit arguing that the information was of a "commercial" nature and should be kept secret, Dawson said PPC was worried the details could end up in the hands of its competitor, Overberg.
"[T]he tender process has not been finalised. PPC is merely the preferred bidder and its status may be revoked. A long and arduous negotiation process, which will last anything from eight to 12 months, lies ahead before the concession contract will be finalised. PPC can lose its preferred [bidder] status during this time and can be replaced with Overberg," said Dawson.
Cape Town and Sanral have been embroiled in a bitter court battle over implementation of the project. The city also seeks an order to prevent the agency from continuing with its plans until the court has ruled on the matter.
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