The Type YE tender first entered service in 1901, as tenders to the first four 6th Class 2-6-2 Prairie type steam locomotives of the Cape Government Railways, which were soon modified to a 2-6-4 Adriatic wheel arrangement.

[1] In 1901, the Cape Government Railways (CGR) placed four 6th Class steam locomotives with a 2-6-2 Prairie type wheel arrangement in service.

The engines were soon modified to a 2-6-4 Adriatic type wheel arrangement.

[1][2][3] The tender had a coal capacity of 5 long tons 10 hundredweight (5.6 tonnes), a water capacity of 2,825 imperial gallons (12,800 litres) and a maximum axle load of 10 long tons 17 hundredweight (11,020 kilograms).

[3] A number, when added after the letter code, indicates differences between similar tender types, such as function, wheelbase or coal bunker capacity.