A unique guide to business and investment in Mpumalanga, the 2025/26 edition of Mpumalanga Business is the 16th issue of this successful publication that since its launch in 2008 has established itself as the premier business and investment guide for the province.
Global Africa Network is pleased to carry a message from the CEO of the Mpumalanga Economic Growth Agency (MEGA) in which the investment climate in this resource-rich province is outlined. Ongoing work on infrastructure such as roads, water works, schools and hospitals, supported
by the establishment of one of South Africa’s newest and most dynamic universities, makes this an attractive destination for investors in a wide variety of sectors. In this journal MEGA also presents the Mpumalanga Trade & Investment Profile, a 12-page booklet which surveys the provincial economy and gives specific details about what investment opportunities are available.
The creation of the Mpumalanga Green Cluster Agency is a sign of the times, and a further invitation to investors to consider this forward-looking province. The rapid development of the province’s first wind farm, Seriti Green’s Ummbila Emoyeni, is covered in full in this edition, as are other developments in the energy field. The latest updates in all the most important sectors of the provincial economy are covered, including news that Sasol has a plan to avoid a looming “gas cliff”.
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. Updated information on Mpumalanga is also available through our monthly e-newsletters, which you can subscribe to online at https://www.globalafricanetwork.com/ and https://www.southafricanbusiness.co.za/, in addition to our complementary business-to-business titles that cover all nine provinces, our flagship South African Business title and the new addition our list of publications, The Journal of African Business, which was launched in 2020.
A REGIONAL OVERVIEW
A REGIONAL OVERVIEW OFMPUMALANGAPROVINCEMpumalanga is positioning itself for the new economy but coal mines continueto thrive. The Mpumalanga Investment Conference showcases the province’sopportunities in multiple sectors while G20 ministers will also get to appreciateMpumalanga’s tourism charms.By John YoungThe internal investment by ManganeseMetal Company (MMC) to enable it toproduce the high-purity manganesesulphate monohydrate that is usedin battery electric vehicles is significant. Notjust for the company and its more than 400employees on its Mbombela site, pictured, butfor Mpumalanga and South Africa.MMC has been a world leader in high-gradeelectrolytic manganese metal (EMM) for morethan five decades and is currently the only facilityoutside of China to still be producing it. The R150-million investment in new plant positions MMCto take advantage of a market that is growing,and which must keep growing if the world is toreach carbon-emission targets.Despite reduced enthusiasm in many partsof the world for more ambitious targets, thedirection of travel is broadly towards a greener,more renewable future. However, China seemsto be striving for more renewable energy atthe same time as producing more coal. In 2024China began work on enough new coal-poweredpower plants to produce an additional 100GW,roughly the same amount as the total powercapacity of the UK (The Economist). China is alsoMPUMALANGA BUSINESS 2025/268 PHOTO: MMC
SPECIAL FEATUREfar and away the largest contributor to wind andsolar capacity, but the amount of coal and coalgeneratedpower that it is producing is striking.Something of that trend can be seen inMpumalanga. A Senior Technical Advisor at theSouth African Wind Energy Association, SantoshSookgrim, recently wrote that, “Mpumalanga hasthe necessary infrastructure to ensure a smoothertransition to the existing grid, with the adjacentland and existing grid connections from formercoal plants of equivalent size making it an ideallocation for renewable energy projects.”And companies are acting on this scenario, butit is not what one might call a “pure transition”.Seriti Green is building a hybrid 900MW facility,the first phase of which will produce 155MW ofwind energy – to power the coal mines of SeritiResources. Coal is not going away, and althoughSouth Africa is part of a Just Energy Partnership,whereby US, EU and British money will flow tothis country to help it transition away from coal,the whole procedure of closing down coal-firedpower plants has slowed.The decommissioning of Komati powerstation was not handled well in 2022, accordingto the Presidential Climate Commission. Betterprocedures and steps to ensure the livelihoodsof adjacent communities will be top of mind in2030, the new date for the closure of the powerstations at Camden, Grootvlei, Hendrina and Kriel.The Mpumalanga Green Cluster Agencyaims to bring together government, academiaand industry to create the environment forbusinesses to develop in a green economy. TheCluster, a body of the Mpumalanga Departmentof Economic Development and Tourism, wasinitiated with the support of GreenCape andthe Deutsche Gesellschaft für InternationaleZusammenarbeit (GIZ). It has joined theInternational Cleantech Network, a groupthat has 15 000 businesses affiliated to it acrossthe globe.Investment readyMpumalanga is attracting investments in arange of sectors, quite apart from the MMCinvestment in its own future and Seriti Green’shuge renewable-energy play.Existing power lines are in place to support thewind turbines of Ummbila Emoyeni.The 2025 Mpumalanga Investment Conferenceshowcases the province’s readiness for foreignand domestic investment in a number of sectorsincluding mining and energy, agriculture andagro-processing, forestry, manufacturing andbeneficiation, tourism and green energy.Radisson Hotels has recently invested in twonew hotels in the province. The Radisson SafariHotel Hoedspruit is ideally located in terms ofaccess to the Kruger National Park and RadissonHotel Middelburg will be located at the centreof a busy mining and business district. In theprovince’s southern section, PG Bison has investedR560-million in new equipment while Sappi’sgiant mill at Ngodwana annually contributesabout R5-billion to the local economy.The Provincial Government of Mpumalangahas set itself the target of facilitating domesticand foreign investment of at least R50-billion intothe province.The International Fresh Produce Market inNelspruit is intended to begin operations in2025. This large facility will take advantageof Mpumalanga’s rich agricultural produceand hopefully attract investors in areas suchas refrigeration, warehousing and logistics.Countries such as Oman and China have beenapproached with regard to their being tradingpartners and potential new markets.Another potential site for investment is theNkomazi SEZ (Special Economic Zone). NationalPHOTO: Seriti Green 9MPUMALANGA BUSINESS 2025/26
