South African logistics is two stories that are both true at once. In the World Bank and S&P Global Container Port Performance Index for 2024, Durban ranked 405th out of 405 ports, with Cape Town 400th and Port Elizabeth 395th. In the same period Transnet Port Terminals passed 100,000 TEU in a single week for the first time, handled 305,775 TEU across the network in January 2026, and cut its annual loss from 7.3 billion rand to 1.9 billion. The country exports through infrastructure that is simultaneously the worst-rated in the world and visibly recovering. One change matters more than any other for anyone shipping containers: ICTSI of the Philippines took over management of Durban Container Terminal Pier 2 on 1 January 2026 under a 25-year agreement, after a rival operator's court challenge was dismissed. This 2026 guide profiles ten providers with the strongest footprint in South Africa, listed in no particular order, drawn from annual reports, JSE announcements and company disclosures.
How we chose this list
This is an editorial guide, compiled from public sources such as annual reports, company accounts, regulatory filings and trade media, rather than from paid placements or our own directory data. We weighed four things:
- Scale in South Africa: revenue, sites, fleet and employees based in the country.
- Breadth of services: freight forwarding, contract logistics, haulage, parcels and terminal operations.
- Track record: years operating in South Africa and publicly verifiable results.
- Network: domestic coverage plus international connections.
Figures are the most recent publicly reported at the time of writing. The companies appear in no particular order. A provider further down the page may well be the better fit for your specific lane or freight type.
The 10 companies at a glance
| Company | Type | Known for |
|---|---|---|
| Transnet | State-owned rail, port and pipeline operator | The ports, container terminals and freight rail the whole economy exports through |
| Grindrod | Listed port and terminal group | The Maputo corridor, which routes bulk exports around congested South African ports |
| Bidvest Freight | Listed group's freight division | Portside terminals plus clearing and forwarding under one roof |
| Super Group | Listed logistics and mobility group | National consumer supply chain and commodity road transport |
| Santova | Listed freight forwarder | Technology-led forwarding for mid-market exporters |
| Imperial | Contract logistics, owned by DP World | End-to-end market access distribution in healthcare, consumer and industrial goods |
| Value Logistics | Private road freight and warehousing | National line-haul running on its own superhubs |
| Unitrans | Road freight and agricultural logistics | Bulk agriculture, sugar, fuel and mining haulage across southern Africa |
| OneLogix | Specialised vehicle and abnormal-load logistics | Finished-vehicle delivery and abnormal or agricultural equipment transport |
| City Logistics | Private road freight and courier group | Retail distribution combined with a parcel network |
Transnet
For the year ended 31 March 2025, Transnet reported revenue of 82.7 billion rand, up 7.8%, with EBITDA of 30.6 billion, up 39.4%, and a loss of 1.9 billion, which was a 74% improvement on the 7.3 billion lost the year before. Rail volumes recovered to 160.1 million tonnes from 151.7 million. The peak was 226.3 million tonnes in 2018, and that gap is what the entire reform programme is trying to close.
Two structural changes matter more than the financials. ICTSI took over management of Durban Container Terminal Pier 2 on 1 January 2026 under a 25-year agreement, after a rival operator's legal challenge was dismissed in October 2025. And 11 private train operating companies were selected in August 2025, all of which had signed access agreements by May 2026. Government support has come as guarantees rather than cash, 51 billion rand approved in May 2025 and 94.8 billion in July 2025.
Best for: not a vendor choice, since it is the infrastructure, but the operator whose performance sets your port and rail lead times.
Grindrod
Grindrod reported core revenue of 7.5 billion rand for 2025, up 1%, with core EBITDA of 2.3 billion, up 13%, at a 30% margin, and headline earnings per share of 179.8 cents against 46.7 cents the year before. The first half of 2026 was stronger again, revenue up 19% and EBITDA up 52%.
The Port of Maputo handled a record 32.0 million tonnes in 2025 and Grindrod's Matola terminal a record 9.9 million, up 22%. It acquired the remaining 35% of that terminal in May 2025 for 1.04 billion rand, and formalised a Richards Bay container concession in May 2025 with operations expected from 2028. Note that Grindrod no longer has a shipping segment, despite what the name suggests to anyone who remembers the old group.
Best for: bulk exporters who want a route that avoids Durban and Richards Bay congestion.
Bidvest Freight
Bidvest's freight segment reported revenue of 8.95 billion rand for the year to 30 June 2025, up slightly on 8.77 billion restated, though trading profit fell 10% to 2.09 billion. Operating assets stood at 9.76 billion, and two additional fuel tanks were commissioned at Richards Bay in May 2025.
The division is broader than the Bidvest International Logistics forwarding brand most shippers deal with: it also contains Bidfreight Port Operations, Bidvest Tank Terminals and Bulk Connections. It was not among the assets Bidvest has been selling, which have been financial services rather than freight.
Best for: importers wanting terminal handling and customs clearance from the same group.
Super Group
Super Group reported group revenue of 44.51 billion rand for the year to 30 June 2025, down 1.4%, with its Supply Chain Africa segment at 17.13 billion at a 6.4% operating margin. The half year to December 2025 was better, revenue up 7.0% and continuing headline earnings per share up 28%.
The balance sheet changed more than the trading did. Selling SG Fleet released 7.47 billion rand, funded a special dividend of 16.30 rand a share and cut net gearing from 136.3% to 20.6%. One point of confusion worth clearing up: this is not the NYSE-listed Super Group that operates Betway, which is an entirely different company.
Best for: FMCG and retail shippers needing national consumer distribution.
Santova
For the year ended 28 February 2026, Santova reported revenue and net interest income of 1.19 billion rand, up 88.3%, with operating profit of 200.2 million, up 3.8%.
Read that growth figure carefully, because it is acquisition rather than trading. It came from buying Seabourne Group for 17 million pounds in May 2025. Excluding Seabourne, comparable revenue fell 1.8%, headline earnings per share fell 6.2% and tangible net asset value per share fell 29.4%. The business is now heavily offshore, with 84.6% of revenue earned outside South Africa across 32 offices in 13 countries.
Best for: exporters who want a listed, accountable forwarder rather than a global giant's local branch.
Imperial
DP World acquired Imperial for 890 million US dollars, with the offer implemented on 14 March 2022, and it has been a wholly owned DP World business since. Imperial's own material describes more than 25,000 people, although that figure dates from around the acquisition rather than today.
One practical caution before you tender to it: Imperial's public-facing material has not been substantially updated since 2023, so confirm directly what the South African entity is currently called and what it covers. The capability is real and large; the published description of it is out of date.
Best for: multinationals needing regulated-sector distribution across African markets.
Value Logistics
Value reports more than 4,600 vehicles and forklifts, over 5,550 people, and four national superhubs holding more than 507,000 square metres of warehousing. It was founded in 1981 by group chief executive Steven Gottschalk.
Those are company-stated figures. Value is now a private company rather than the JSE-listed group it once was, so it no longer files public results. Its pitch is ownership: owned fleet and owned warehousing rather than subcontracted capacity, which matters most when you need guaranteed space at peak.
Best for: shippers who want assets under the provider's own control rather than brokered capacity.
Unitrans
Founded in 1892, Unitrans is one of the oldest names in South African transport, and operates in ten countries: Botswana, eSwatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia.
It is owned by the JSE-listed KAP group, which does not break out Unitrans figures in a form that can be independently checked, so it is judged here on footprint rather than on scale. It has also been rebranding toward Unitrans Africa, so expect the newer name in correspondence.
Best for: bulk agricultural and mining shippers needing cross-border road capacity across the SADC region.
OneLogix
OneLogix was taken private at 3.30 rand per scheme share by a management consortium led by Best-Krug, which holds 60%, and delisted from the JSE in early 2023. The price was a 17% premium to the 30-day volume-weighted average at the time of the firm intention announcement in October 2022.
Its specialism is the work ordinary hauliers turn down: finished vehicles, abnormal loads and agricultural equipment. It publishes no results now that it is private, so judge it on references for your specific load type.
Best for: vehicle manufacturers and anyone moving abnormal or oversized loads.
City Logistics
Founded in 1988 by Richard Fisher and still privately owned, City Logistics reports more than 1,200 vehicles and over 3,000 employees, and runs cross-border into Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Zambia.
It is the majority shareholder in AGX International Logistics and owns Fastway Couriers in South Africa, which is what allows it to put pallet distribution and parcel delivery on the same account. As with the other private operators here, the figures are company-stated rather than filed.
Best for: retail shippers who want pallet distribution and parcels from one supplier.
Names you might expect that are not on this list
A few companies appear in almost every guide to this market but should not, because their situation has changed:
- Barloworld Logistics: Still widely listed as a major South African 3PL. Barloworld resolved to dispose of its logistics division in 2021, and its own site today lists only industrial equipment and consumer industries, so there is no Barloworld Logistics to appoint. Barloworld itself was taken private and delisted from the JSE in January 2026.
- South African Post Office: It remains in business rescue. The practitioners notified an intention to file for liquidation in March 2026, although no liquidation papers were filed, and the promised 3.8 billion rand government bailout was withdrawn in December 2025. The trend is improving, but it is not a network to build a commercial delivery commitment on.
How to choose between them
The right provider depends less on overall size than on fit with your freight and lane:
- Ports and rail: Transnet is unavoidable, with ICTSI now running Durban Pier 2; Grindrod's Maputo corridor is the way around it.
- Forwarding and customs: Santova for a listed mid-market forwarder, Bidvest for terminal handling and clearing together.
- National road distribution: Super Group for consumer supply chain, Value Logistics where owned assets matter.
- Cross-border into SADC: Unitrans for bulk and agriculture, City Logistics for retail and parcel.
- Specialised freight: OneLogix for vehicles and abnormal loads, Imperial for regulated healthcare distribution.
Whoever you shortlist, get more than one quote, because rates for the same lane can vary widely, and confirm licences, insurance coverage and references for your specific freight type. Our guide to the best websites to find a freight forwarder covers how to run that comparison, and the credentials you can check yourself covers verifying them.
Compare South Africa logistics providers in one place
The ten companies above are the biggest names, but they are not always the best-priced option for a specific shipment, and independent forwarders often handle SME import and export work more attentively than the majors. CargoLinked's directory lists 450 logistics companies and freight forwarders based in South Africa, which you can browse by service and location. If you have cargo to move, you can also post your shipment for free and collect quotes from interested forwarders instead of contacting providers one by one.
