Dube TradePort Corporation (DPTC) has launched Dube TradeZone 2, the second phase of its industrial precinct and Special Economic Zone (SEZ) adjacent to King Shaka International Airport.
Dube TradePort Corporation is a business entity of KwaZulu-Natal’s Provincial Government, and it has secured seven private sector investors for Dube TradeZone 2 with four of these investors having begun construction on their facilities. The total private sector investment value secured for Dube TradeZone 2 amounts to R1.8 billion and it is expected to create 600 jobs within the next five years.
Dube TradeZone 2 will target investors in the manufacturing and assembly, logistics, and automotive sectors while facilitating the planned expansion of numerous phase one-based enterprises.
The launch of the second phase of the TradeZone follows implementation of Dube TradeZone 1 which is fully tenanted by 50 investors including international companies such as Samsung, Mahindra, DHL, Chem Energy, and PepsiCo-Futurelife. To date, the 26-hectare TradeZone 1 has attracted more than R2.8 billion in private sector investment from enterprises focused on air-related logistics, distribution, and light manufacturing. It includes the Dube TradeHouse, a dedicated facility for freight forwarders and shippers with airside access via an overhead conveyer airbridge to the adjacent, state-of-the-art Dube Cargo Terminal. During 2023/2024, Dube TradePort Tenants exported goods worth R610 million.
Dube TradeZone 2 will open an additional 45-hectares of industrial land for development, bringing to market another 23 fully serviced sites ranging in size from 3 000m2 to 57 000m2. It will include three Dube TradePort-owned warehouses, one of which will accommodate medium-sized businesses, enabling the expansion of small businesses located in the mini-factories.
Two factories worth over R180 million, and currently under construction, include the R166 million Yangtze Optical Africa Cable plant and a R17.5 million development by HRMP, a 100% black-owned logistics company that specializes in warehousing and the distribution of graphite electrodes.
To date, Dube TradeZone has attracted a total of R4.6 billion in private sector investment and created more than 5 000 permanent jobs.