The Jubane Consortium, led by the Bombela Concession Company (BCC), operator of the Gautrain since its inception, is bidding to “revolutionise” Gauteng’s transport system.

Drawing on global expertise in railway and bus operations, combined with local insight, the consortium promises a “transformative leap in service excellence” for commuters in the next concession.

If successful, the consortium’s initiatives include increasing ridership, re-signalling the system and expanding the fleet to deliver more frequent train services from earlier in the morning until later in the evening, and expanding and enhancing the feeder bus system.

Jubane claims that it can achieve all of this while augmenting sustainability, supporting small, medium-sized and microenterprise (SMME) development and broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) initiatives, and transforming stations through transport-orientated developments.

The consortium comprises Intertoll Europe, Strategic Partners Group (SPG), Keolis, Tawufika, a black women’s group comprised of several entities, and the Crowie Holdings Group through its subsidiary Enza Construction.  

Both Intertoll and SPG are shareholders of the BCC, which was awarded the tender by the Gautrain Management Agency (GMA) in 2006 to design, build, operate, maintain, and partially fund the Gautrain system.

The success of the Gautrain project, that is currently managed by BCC with the support of its shareholders, means that the Jubane Consortium is “strongly positioned” to be appointed as the next concessionaire, the consortium argues.

It also highlights the BCC’s commitment to end-to-end project involvement and expertise in contract management and concession management in South Africa.

The consortium, which focuses on balancing local empowerment with global expertise, will allow for a smooth handover from the current concessionaire while introducing innovative solutions for long-term sustainability, it says.

“We are very excited by this consortium. The offer we made is robust, especially from a technical perspective, and in terms of financial structure and localisation,” global shared mobility company Keolis international business development director Tony Dufays tells Engineering News in an exclusive interview.

Keolis is a global shared mobility company and a committed partner to public transport authorities to co-construct safe, smart, sustainable public transport solutions.

“This is a South African solution with international expertise,” Intertoll Europe executive chairperson Kushil Maharaj says.

“Intertoll, which is the majority shareholder of BCC, is a leading South African-owned investor in infrastructure, including motorway, rail concessions, and an independent toll and motorway infrastructure designer and developer, concessionaire, equipment supplier, asset manager, and provider of specialist consultancy services catering to the transportation and infrastructure sectors in Europe and South Africa, with an added focus on rail,” he highlights.

“A key objective is to reach a stage where there are sufficient skills developed for the entire Gautrain to be managed and operated by South Africans, and this is what the consortium aims to achieve,” SPG Group CEO Mzolisi Diliza points out.

A B-BBEE group, SPG was formed in 2002 by a group of organisations and individuals representing the broad-based interests of a large spectrum of previously disadvantaged people.

Its expertise extends to the construction, financial services, telecommunications, education, transportation, and mining industries.

In addition to its shareholding in BCC, SPG is also a shareholder in Bombela Operating Company.

The Gautrain’s assets are owned by the Gauteng provincial government and the current concession agreement ends in March 2026, following a 19-and-a-half-year term that included the construction phase.

The new contract will be for a 15-year term and the bidding process, which was somewhat delayed, closed in late October, with no indication as yet from the GMA of when the successful applicant will be announced.

Maharaj asserts, however, that the consortium is confident in its submission and believes it has a very strong bid.

Maharaj points out that SPG and Intertoll are shareholders in the current concession company, therefore, they bring experience and continuity both at a concessionaire and operating level to the new consortium. They also provide strong financial capabilities.

Keolis, with global experience in the operation and maintenance of railways, operating systems in 13 countries on four continents, will provide the operational and maintenance expertise, while Enza will provide construction and refurbishment services. 

“We have tried to ensure that we deliver excellence by having expert entities provide specific expertise and knowledge, each of which contributes to the overall success of the project. The Gautrain is one of the most successful public-private partnerships in the country and the idea is to take this to an even higher level, with the new initiatives we bring to the table,” Maharaj says.

TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES

One of the requirements of the GMA is for the new operator to replace the signalling system, which Dufays says is key to ensuring the trains run safely.

He acknowledges that, while the Gautrain does currently boast a 99% availability and 95% punctuality rate, this rate of performance could be at risk in the long term if the asset is not proactively maintained, including the technical work of resignalling.

Dufays emphasises the importance of having an experienced operator undertake this work, given the inherent challenges of changing it on a running operation, while ensuring delays are minimised.  

Dufays points out that Keolis has global, entrenched experience to undertake this work for the Gautrain in limited, offpeak hours, gleaned from its work in second- and third-tier cities where it is not feasible to close the lines for a prolonged period of time and undertake the work.

Instead, work would be undertaken at the end of commercial business, and the line reopened for service the next day, he explains.

“As an operator, ensuring the trains continue to run during such work is an absolute challenge. This is where Keolis can bring expertise to the table. It is critical to bring in the correct technical people to ensure the Gautrain continues to be a good system and is secure into the future,” Dufays stresses.

He notes that Keolis will bring in international expertise to assist, but will aim to localise it to ensure there is a transfer of skills and technologies, and for work to be undertaken by South Africans wherever possible – aligned to the company’s ethos of localising operations in countries where it operates.

PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT

Earlier this year, GMA CEO Tshepo Kgobe told Engineering News that the new operator would also be responsible for continuing the GMA’s property development work. The GMA is setting up its own property development company that will partner with the private sector to allow for development at specific stations.

The consortium has plans to develop stations into “destination themes” to boost ridership, as well as stimulate local economic development, Maharaj says.

“Having these destination themes can only help the system through ridership, employment, etc.,” he acclaims.

Maharaj says the consortium has put considerable effort into evolving and enhancing some of the principles that the GMA required in the bidding process for station developments.

It has provided some concepts it thinks would be workable in these environments, and has also benchmarked these against European peers, he notes.

Dufays says the international experience of Keolis will also be leveraged.

“Creating an attraction at stations forms part of the success of the railway system,” he avers, adding that it would make the Guatrain more viable as a system, while also creating real estate value in the province.

AUGMENTING SERVICES

Dufays informs that, during the tender process, the GMA stated clear requirements to considerably increase the service levels for feeder buses.

While this did not necessarily include moving to a different type of service, Dufays says the consortium believes there is scope to bring in more services to respond to the needs of passengers.

Maharaj says the aim is to engender seamless travel across the system, with the Gautrain currently struggling with the issues of the “first and last miles” of getting commuters to and from stations.

Another opportunity for Gautrain is to increase ridership, particularly during the off-peak periods.

Dufays informs that Keolis has a dedicated team to analyse origin and destination of potential clients, and prompt them to use the system, which would be leveraged to increase ridership on the Gautrain.

Kgobe said that an important criterion for the new operator would be its ability to further develop the GMA’s green energy strategy for the entire system, through which the agency endeavours to take many stations offgrid using renewable-energy sources.

Maharaj says the consortium will endeavour to exceed the green energy thresholds outlined in the request for proposals.

Kgobe also stressed that socioeconomic development would play a key role in the appointment of a new operator, with consideration to be given to those who will offer the most commitments over the duration of the contract.

Here, too, the consortium has set targets that exceed the thresholds.

“With its proven track record, visionary approach, and strong commitment to local development, the Jubane Consortium is ready to build on the Gautrain’s success and take it to new heights,” Maharaj concludes.