S A L D A N H A
B AY
feature
Bay
Saldanha
– The future belongs to us!
As Colin Chinery reports, Saldanha Bay is one of South Africa’s mighthave-beens, the country’s biggest port instead of Cape Town. But a multibillion R project is gaining momentum, poised to transform the economy, prosperity and social vitality of this part of Western Cape. 2
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Saldanha Bay FEATURE
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he port of Saldanha in Western Province is the deepest and largest natural anchorage in the southern hemisphere. From a high point on a clear day you can see Table Mountain, and arguably only lack of fresh water prevented it becoming the major port along the south shoreline of Africa instead of Cape Town, 120km down coast. One hundred thousand people live in the Saldanha Bay area and nearly one in four is unemployed. So job creation unsurprisingly is an urgent motivator in the multi-billion Rand programme to change the Municipality into an industrial powerhouse, a strategy attracting investors from around the world.
Inter-government support Five major projects are scheduled in the Industrial Development Zone plan being worked on by the national and provincial governments in collaboration with the Municipality of Saldanha Bay. These range across expansion of the port economy and raising its bulk export capacity, renewable energy, exploiting the oil and gas potential, minerals and metals, aquaculture, and a massive housing project. Feasibility studies are on-going along with environmental impact assessments. And construction could start in the second half of 2011. “As a municipality we came to the conclusion that if you have a 23% unemployment rate then clearly people can’t afford your services. It also means you cannot upgrade your services, and this is the logic behind the development,” says Shane Cordom, Saldanha Bay Municipality’s Industrial Strategy Manager. Early last year a pre-industrial study looked at the possibility of an industrial development zone and the distinctive clusters that had been identified. “The outcome was positive and paved way for a feasibility study encompassing environmental aspects, international scoping,
technical land availability and the master planning of the entire IDZ. “The IDZ application is fully supported by councillors across four political parties, by the Provincial Cabinet, the Finance, Economic Development and Trade Minister Alan Winde, and backed by the national government through the Department of Trade and Industry.”
Tripling GDP This vast project will be driven largely by foreign investment. R83 billion has been quoted, but Cordom will not be pegged on a precise number. “We never set that figure, but over 20 years it seems very reasonable. Our target is to at least triple our GDP over five years, a rate of growth that would have a major impact on our area.” The massive implications for infrastructure, housing, and the social needs local market are now under review. “We want to develop the back of port as an industrial corridor, the port itself as a multi product port facility. And we are looking to build high profile partnerships with those who want to invest… and not come just to take, using our sun and our wind and not investing in our area. “And we can develop our tourism. In terms of our training there can be a major injection. Already the Western Cape has three of the biggest universities in the whole of Africa and we can only build on the type and range of expertise that comes from them. We want to minimise our unemployment rate, increase the pass rates in our schools.”
Clean technology Six towns make up the Saldanha Bay Municipality with a total population of around 100,000. Its dominant sector is manufacturing – Mittal Steel and Exxaro are already established here - contributing one third of R2.2billion GDP, and clean technology is firmly at the centre of its planned industrial expansion. “We are saying that any industry
Saldanha Bay FEATURE
that comes into our area must have clean technology,” says Cordom. “Saldanha Bay with its natural current of 23 metres is a perfect harbour for deep oil vessels, wells and repairs. In terms of location we have the infrastructure in place, port in place, and rail link, roads in perfect condition. So the flow of materials and equipment will not be a problem.” The port’s development into a modern harbour is only recent, brought on by the need to move Northern Cape exports of iron ore. A 800km rail line was built linking the mines at Sishen, along with a new deepwater jetty in Saldanha Bay to accommodate the ore carriers. With its prime location Saldanha was then targeted as a major oil and gas hub for the servicing of oil rig vessels, specifically for the West African oil industry. Three years ago its first R200 million fabrication yard for offshore oil and gas platforms was completed, one major investment in what has become a project of massive economic and social potential. Other developers in the wings range from major oil conglomerates to solar power companies. Foreign investors include an asyet-unnamed oil consortium looking to invest about R8 billion to operate an oil and gas supply base. “We already have an agreement with an investment consortium that wants to invest
in two 360 mgw coal gasification units, ten 20 mgw solar power units, and a 100 mgw wind plant. It’s also interested in water desalination and treatment.” And all manufacturing – wind turbines, blades, and gear boxes – would be carried out in the Bay area, says Cordom. Local property investor Robert Baron owns 1 600 hectares of land here and with foreign investors plans to input R6.5bn into the green housing project, which will include 6 000 houses for lower to middle-income groups and will have its own renewable power source from solar and wind energy.
A Robin Hood “You can call me a modern Robin Hood. There is a dire need for housing for the lower and middle-income brackets. “Whoever gets the construction contract has to sign a clause saying they will use local labour and transfer vital skills to the communities,” says Baron. “The construction phase will create 7,500 jobs and 5,000 direct jobs would be created in maintenance and running of the wind generators, sewerage water purification, plumbing and power generation.”
Added value a must Another Saldanha Bay suitor is Rare Metals Industry which wants to build a titanium smelter – projected investment R10 billion.
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“It’s a major, major investment, massive. There are only three other titanium smelters in the world.” Titanium is increasingly being used in industries like aerospace and defence because it is as strong as steel and light as aluminum. And a local plant would allow South Africa to export processed metals rather than the raw metals currently shipped out. South Africa’s government is pushing companies to add value to commodities before they’re exported to boost income from the nation’s natural resources. But is smelting a ‘clean’ industry? “Yes this will be a challenge for some, especially when it comes to the titanium smelter. But what we are saying all the time is that the techniques used must be clean – this is a clear and firm commitment.” Last year in a survey of South Africa’s 283 municipalities Saldanha Bay was won second top award for the most productive. Municipal IQ measures the performance of municipalities on a range of critical socio-
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economic and financial issues that reflect the reality of local government circumstances and risk on the ground. Saldanha Bay scored 95.9 per cent for actual service delivery and was also among the top three for water provision and in the national top five for sanitation.
A golden egg “To investors we are saying you won’t lose out if you invest in Saldanha Bay; in fact you will be sitting with a small golden egg. “Investors want a footprint in Africa. They want a stable political environment and stable services. There is a commitment from Government in regard to our stance with regard to renewable energy, and studies are conforming that the Saldanha Bay is perfectly located in terms of sun and wind - that hybrid mix of energy provision opportunities. “So I think the future for Saldanha Bay can only be positive. And the interest being shown confirms that we can expect some big things.”END www.southafricamag.com
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