Transnet suspends iron ore railway due to cable theft

Transnet has suspended operations on its main iron ore railway line due to cable theft, it said in a statement on Wednesday.

“A power failure was reported on the line at 11.50pm on Tuesday night and upon inspection the team confirmed that 11 spans of catenary and contact wire were stolen,” Transnet Freight Rail said.

The railway line stretches up to 861km from iron ore mines at Sishen in the Northern Cape to the Saldanha port in the Western Cape and is South Africa's main link for iron ore exports. 

Reuters