Reigniting industrialisation in the Vaal Region

The Vaal Special Economic Zone (Vaal SEZ) is showing excellent progress on the path to being formally designated, bringing closer its potential to boost growth and job creation.

The Vaal SEZ’s vision states that, “By 2030, an industrialised, globally competitive, export-driven, manufacturing-biased regional economy,” will exist. The Vaal SEZ is connected to other national and provincial initiatives in Gauteng, including Growing Gauteng Together (GGT2030) which aims to create linkages and the integration of the host province’s growth strategies with the local economic development strategies of the host municipalities to national economic initiatives.

Where the Vaal SEZ is unique is that various satellite hubs will work out from a central hub like spokes in a wheel, thus exploiting the existing strengths of particular sites and spreading economic benefits across the area more widely. The Vaal SEZ is to be created within the Sedibeng District Municipality, which already has several attractive assets for wouldbe investors.

Targeted investment strategy

There is a strong case for investors to join and benefit from a green energy-fuelled reindustrialisation of the Vaal region. This will transform this industrial basin into the country’s preeminent hub for low-carbon manufacturing and renewable energy production.

• High-impact investments into the food, agriculture and agro-industries value chain

• Investment in gateway logistics (air, road, rail, river) to exploit the locational advantages of the Sedibeng District

• Investment in the Blue Economy and the Tourism Sector using the advantages of the Vaal River

• Building a Smart City along the Vaal River to enable SEZ development and to drive urban regeneration

• Building strong local linkages between township/rural economies with the value chains that the Vaal SEZ will develop and strengthen

Moving forward: Progress on the road to Vaal SEZ status

Investor presentations: the Sedibeng Investor Conference and the SMME Conference were held, informing the investor community about the plans for the Vaal SEZ, in 2021.

Land allocations made: local municipalities have allocated land which will be converted into Land Lease Agreements.

SEZ Masterplan completed: June 2022.

Masterplan adopted

The 289-page Masterplan for the SEZ includes sections relating to energy, infrastructure, the policy environment and socio-economic impact, legal and governance issues, risk management, environmental and spatial considerations, investment approach, stakeholder management and the financial plan.

The area

Three local municipalities make up the Sedibeng District Municipality. Midvaal is the most rural of the three local municipalities, with urban development concentrated along routes R59 and R82 in the north-western parts. Midvaal has strong regional linkages to major economic cores. These include routes R59 and R82 and the Vereeniging-Germiston railway line. The major urban concentration of Lesedi Local Municipality is located in Heidelberg/Ratanda nodes, along the N3 freeway at its intersection with Provincial Route R42, east of the Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve. Heidelberg is the seat of the municipality. Emfuleni in the west is home to the towns synonymous with steel, Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging, and the Sasol petrochemical complex to the south of Sedibeng in the Free State Province.

MoU signed with North West University and Vaal University of Technology to collaborate on revitalisation and industrialisation of Vaal Region, February 2023.

Investor Value Proposition

Enabling framework

The Sedibeng District, host of the proposed Vaal SEZ, comprises three local municipalities and is strategically located both in terms of highways and railways and in relation to three economically-powerful metropolitan municipalities, Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and Tshwane.

Strong government support, robust legal and regulatory framework. Strong commercial and significant economic and social returns, including incentives and rebates.

Locational benefit

Aconsiderable amount of planning has already gone into the concept which ties in to development goals and frameworks at local, regional and national level.

South Africa’s economic hub, sound logistics networks and infrastructure.

The area

Infrastructure services

Key outcomes

• The Vaal infrastructure

• It will pursue decarbonisation,

• To become

• To be a anchor

• To achieve society, jobs for Process

One-stop shop services and the Vaal SEZ’s Shared Services and investor access to serviced land and funding options.

The three local municipalities which make up the Sedibeng District Municipality are predominantly rural. Midvaal is the most rural of the three local municipalities, with urban development concentrated along routes R59 and R82 in the north-western parts of the municipal area. Midvaal has strong regional linkages to major economic cores.

Management capability

Lesedi is also primarily rural, with the major urban concentration located in Heidelberg/Ratanda nodes, along the N3 freeway at its intersection with Provincial Route R42, east of the Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve.

Independent management body, cooperation between dedicated bodies, local, regional and national government.

The Vaal SEZ end of June been completed. A pipeline established. be initiated priority investors. The SEZ by the end

Appointment of engineering consultancy: to establish townships and to conduct Environmental Impact Assessment, Q1 of FY 2023/24.

Application for official designation as SEZ: Gauteng MEC, approved; sent to Ministers of Finance and Trade, Industry and Competition, Q1 of FY 2023/24.