The KwaZulu-Natal High Court has dismissed an urgent application by Maersk's APM Terminals to overturn the awarding of the R11.1 billion (US$634.4 million) Durban Container Terminal Pier 2 concession to International Container Terminal Services Inc (ICTSI) reports South Africa's Freight News.

Judge Mahendra Chetty upheld Transnet SOC Limited's decision to award the 25-year contract to ICTSI, rejecting APMT's claim that the tender process was flawed.

The dispute centred on Transnet's February 2022 tender to secure a private partner for DCT2, which handles 46 per cent of South Africa's port traffic. Nine bidders participated, with ICTSI's R11.1 billion bid beating APMT's R9.2 billion offer.

APM challenged ICTSI's solvency calculation during the Request for Qualifications stage, arguing that ICTSI used market capitalisation instead of audited financials, resulting in a 1.28 ratio. APMT cited ICTSI's 2022 statements showing a 0.24 ratio, below the required 0.4.

Judge Chetty ruled that no advantage was gained from the solvency score and that the phase was for vetting responsiveness. He cited the Supreme Court of Appeal's view that not every flaw in a procurement process constitutes a material irregularity.

Transnet's third-party verifier Sycip Gorres Velayo & Co and GrowthStone Assurance later confirmed ICTSI's financial capacity. ICTSI also provided letters from three banks confirming over US$400 million in credit facilities.

The Request for Proposals phase was a straight price contest, with ICTSI scoring 100 per cent and securing a 49 per cent stake in the NewCo vehicle managing DCT2. Transnet retains control. APM scored 83 per cent but failed to prove material irregularity.

The ruling noted DCT2's chronic underperformance, ranked 348th of 370 ports in the 2022 World Bank index, and said Transnet's process aimed to address longstanding freight backlogs and congestion.

Transnet's selection of ICTSI was confirmed in a July 2023 letter, with APM notified as second-ranked. The court's decision allows ICTSI to proceed, pending final conditions including share purchase and project agreements.