PROFILE the due
PROFILE the due diligence to understand what having custom control area status actually means.” Optimistic offshore outlook The custom control area regime is only part of the SBIDZ’s ease-of-doing business value proposition. “Our focus is on being responsive to our investors and tenants, which enables our commercial proposition and our sustainability,” says Beukes. Peinke cites the SBIDZ’s back-of-quay project leasing facilities as a concrete example of responsiveness in action: “Companies bring in riser pipes to be inspected and certified. Each riser pipe weighs three to four tons and there are 75 riser pipes per project. Sometimes they need to be maintained before they can be certified. These clients need something directly back of quay, but it is a project that they might have once a year, so they do not want a longterm lease. The project-leasing facility purposively addresses that short-term requirement.” This responsiveness goes hand in hand with an outward-looking approach to the offshore market. “Ours is very much an offshore service offering that goes beyond the oil and gas and maritime support services value chain,” says Peinke. “Internationally, many companies recognise South African skills and capabilities in terms of manufacturing, fabrication, engineering, repairs, servicing, certification, you name it. Looking at Tanzania alone, our pipeline includes companies that actually repair and recycle sub-sea telecommunications, sub-sea oil and gas, sub-sea mining cables and so on. It is difficult to quantify in terms of market share because we will probably struggle to find an exact model of us elsewhere.” Shared vision of value Rather than attempt to be everything to everybody, the SBIDZ’s vision is to develop infrastructure to maximise value. “There are multiple sectors in the Port of Saldanha. It’s not just the IDZ. it’s not just oil and gas and maritime. We have a massive port with a huge amount of space – so how do we and our stakeholders plan together to maximise this potential? This is really where we come in as a role player on the property side. This includes project-leasing facilities, the offshore supply base, long-term lease areas, office facilities, research and development centres, and that is really where we then come in as a role player on the property side,” says Peinke. “By maximising the value of the port environment, we are developing into one seamless zone and port where a client can bring in any vessel or project and have the necessary back-of-quay support.” Socio-economic transformation “We work with many government departments and the private sector to enable inclusive development and socio-economic transformation in the region. As a catalyst and facilitator, we help inform and unlock opportunities in potential markets that would see a thriving Saldanha Bay," says Peinke. An important part of the SBIDZ’s ground-breaking journey has been the development of good stakeholder relationships and partnerships. The first of its kind leasing agreements with the Transnet National Ports Authority came on the back of diligent work over nearly 6 years. “We have learnt a lot along the way, and there is a lot we can do to enable other relationships with other 10 | www.opportunityonline.co.za
PROFILE government departments so that economic development actually takes place,” says Peinke. “We are committed to making the whole of Saldanha Bay a success,” adds Beukes. “The first step is getting a successful zone, the next step is ripple effect on the broader community and the broader economy.” Skills pipeline Skills development is a critical focus of the SBIDZ. Investors need to know that local companies have the skills capacity to integrate into their supply chains. Building an eco-system for local procurement from a low skills base to facilitate enterprise and contractor development in parallel with ongoing infrastructure development has been a learning curve in itself. www.opportunityonline.co.za | 11
