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Gauteng Business 2025

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The 2025 edition of Gauteng Business is the 15th issue of this highly successful publication that has established itself as the premier business and investment guide for the Gauteng Province. In addition to the regular articles providing insight into each of the key economic sectors of the province, a special feature on the national and provincial policies underpinning Special Economic Zones is included in this edition. SEZs form an important part of the strategy of the Gauteng Growth and Development Agency (GGDA) in promoting sustainable economic growth across the province’s designated development corridors. This edition of Gauteng Business is supported by the GGDA, which is the implementation arm of the Gauteng Department of Economic Development. All of the main economic sectors of the provincial economy are reviewed, ranging from agriculture, transport and logistics, energy and manufacturing through to education and training. A plan to develop a large solar farm in the western reaches of Gauteng is proceeding, with mining company Sibanye-Stillwater having made land available for the project and various contractors having been identified to carry the project forward. In addition, the Provincial Government of Gauteng has revived an inner-city open-cycle-gas turbine and has begun a programme of equipping schools and medical clinics with solar panels. To complement the extensive local, national and international distribution of the print edition, the full content can also be viewed online at www.globalafricanetwork.com under e-books. Updated information on Gauteng is also available through our monthly e-newsletter, which you can subscribe to online at www.gan.co.za, in addition to our complementary business-to-business titles that cover all nine provinces as well as our flagship South African Business title and the new addition to our list of titles, The Journal of African Business, which was launched in 2020.

OVERVIEWTransport and

OVERVIEWTransport and logisticsLogistics hubs are key to growth.SECTOR INSIGHTGautrain is adding 148km.Gautrain is set to expand.Atotal of 82% of South Africa’s air cargo is transported throughOR Tambo International Airport (ORTIA) and Gauteng hasseveral cargo and freight handling facilities well-equippedto deal with rail and road deliveries and despatches.An example of the kind of facility that serves ORTIA is theRiverfields Precinct in Ekurhuleni. Several established brands such asDSV, John Deere, DB Schenker, Sanvick Mining and DHL are tenantsand new facilities for Shoprite and The Foschini Group are being built.The existing facilities include Equites Park Riverfields 1 (also 16ha and9km from the airport) and Equites Park Riverfields 2, which hosts twomajor retailers on 43ha. A new section, Equites Park 3, covering 16hectares, is currently in the planning phase. Equites Property Fundhas released marketing material related to the new area (to be calledLords View): a gross lettable area of 430 450m² is situated on AllandaleRoad (M39) which gives access to the north (via the N1 and R21) andeast (N12). The developers are expecting a new road to be built inthe future. The planned K232 will link Allandale and Marlboro Roads,providing a direct link with the N3 and N12 ring roads.A specific goal of the Provincial Government of Gauteng is tomake the Transnet Tambo-Springs Logistics Gateway the biggestinland logistics hub and dry port in Africa by 2030.The health of the transport and logistics networks of the provinceis key to any economic growth plans. The provincial governmenthas identified logistics hubs,the road network, intermodalfacilities, rolling stock, and busesand taxis as key componentsof the drive to transform,modernise and reindustrialisethe regional economy.A feasibility study toexamine extending theGauteng Rapid Rail IntegratedNetwork has been completed.The current network has 10stations spread over 80kmand the extension would add148km and 19 new stations. Theextended network will concludePhase 1 of the long-term plansfor Gautrain, with new linesextending from Sandton toCosmo City, including stops inRandburg and Little Falls in theWest Rand.Two regional rail plans havebeen in the news, with nationalgovernment announcing itsapproval of a high-speed raillink between Johannesburgand Durban corridor to alleviatethe congestion that frequentlyoccurs on the busy N3 highway.Another scheme that is oftenreferred to is to bolster railconnections northwardsfrom Gauteng into LimpopoProvince, where the N1 highwayis overburdened. However,discussion of neither of theseplans has been accompaniedby a reference to budgets.GAUTENG BUSINESS 202532PHOTO: Joburg Tourism Company

OVERVIEWRoad infrastructure projects are intended to bring in other majorinvestments and connect new economic nodes such as the TamboSprings Logistics Gateway, the planned new megacities (Vaal RiverCity and Lanseria), and the new Special Economic Zones with currenteconomic nodes and existing townships. Of the 18 major roadsidentified for rehabilitation, upgrade and construction, especially inSedibeng and the West Rand, seven had been completed and handedover by early 2024. The K73 Allandale Road and Hendrik PotgieterRoad in Roodepoort were among those completed. Waterfall Cityand Kyalami are the next target areas for road improvements whilethe planned Vaal interchange is set to be a major boost to economicdevelopment in the Vaal region.The Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport has a pipelineof 67 projects with a combined value of R23-billion. Of theseprojects, 13 – valued at R6.6-billion – are private-sector initiativesand the various road, construction and design projects are expectedto be implemented over the decade to 2031. Among the privatecompanies that will be involved in projects are property companiesAttacq Waterfall Investment, Steyn City and Century Properties andmining company Cullinan.During Transport Month, the Gauteng Provincial Governmentpartnered with Diageo to provide 40 000 learner’s licenceopportunities to young people. Of these 10 000 were reserved formotorbike licences to support the Last-Mile project. The Last-Mileproject is a collaboration between the provincial government, theTransport Education and Training Authority (TETA), Radah SkillsAcademy, UberSA, BoltSA and Takealot. The intention is to make iteasier for young people in townships to earn incomes.The Provincial Government of Gauteng is stressing theimportance of digital competence (“smart mobility”) in the transportsector as ever-more complex transactions take place acrossinternational borders. This will only grow as the effect of the AfricanContinental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), signed in 2019, comes intoeffect, allowing for greater and freer trade across the continent.AirportsOR Tambo International Airport caters for more than 20-millionpassengers every year.Lanseria Airport to the north of Johannesburg has grown inimportance as a secondary airport for the country’s busiest businessONLINE RESOURCESAirports Company South Africa: www.acsa.co.zaCAMASA: www.camasa.co.zaSouth African Association of Freight Forwarders: saaff.org.zaSouth African National Roads Agency: www.sanral.co.zaRiverfields Precinct is welllocated for logistics.and commercial hub. It is aconvenient landing point fortravellers bound for regionalcentres like Rustenburg in theNorth West. Gauteng has severalsmaller airports that host mostlycommercial aircraft:• Rand Airport in Germiston• Grand Central Airport inMidrand• Wonderboom Airport inPretoria North• Waterkloof Air Force base,south of PretoriaThe Commercial AviationManufacturing AssociationSouth Africa (CAMASA) reportsthat 50 companies are active inthe sector, employing more than3 000 people in highly skilledjobs. Almost all the activity isaround Johannesburg and CapeTown and the sector (whichencompasses aero-structuresand systems, manufacturing,design and engineering) isresponsible for R3-billion inexports every year. ■PHOTO: Riverfields Precinct33 GAUTENG BUSINESS 2025

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