In 1900, during the Second Boer War, four 2-6-0 tank locomotives which were destined for the Nederlandsche-Zuid-Afrikaansche Spoorweg-Maatschappij in the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek were intercepted by the Imperial Military Railways and diverted to Indwe Collieries.

[1][2] Before the outbreak of the Second Boer War in October 1899, four tank locomotives were ordered by the Nederlandsche-Zuid-Afrikaansche Spoor­weg-Maat­schappij (NZASM) in the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek (ZAR) from Dickson Manufacturing Company in Scranton, Pennsylvania, through the agency of Arthur Koppel.

However, when they were landed in the Cape of Good Hope in 1900, they were commandeered by the Imperial Military Railways (IMR) and allocated to Indwe Collieries.

[1][2] In 1895, at the time a concession was granted by the ZAR government to Hendrik Jacobus Schoeman for the construction of the Pretoria-Pietersburg Railway, J.S.

The South African Railways (SAR) considered them obsolete and they were therefore designated Class 03 and renumbered by having the numeral "0" prefixed to their existing numbers.