By Terry Hutson
After a determined bid by East London to attract Gencor's R1,5 billion zinc refinery to the city, and a new port as a spin-off, the Eastern Cape government has thrown its weight behind Port Elizabeth as the site for a new industrial port.
News that the local government has given the green light to the formation of a Section 21 company by a consortium of developers and users to build a new industrial port at Coega, 20 km north of Port Elizabeth, appears to have clinched the matter.
The project will be financed by all stakeholders on an equal basis and is to commence as soon as key personnel have been appointed. The project will begin to take shape before the end of this year, according to local MEC for Economic Affairs and Tourism Smuts Ngonyama. Everyone here means business and wants the new port to be a resounding success, he said. Five ÔEnablers' have been appointed - the P.E. Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Cosatu, P.E. City Council, the Provincial Government, and the National Department of Trade & Industry. Finance will be arranged by five Ôrisk takers' - Gencor, Portnet, Pretoria Portland Cement, Kynoch Fertilisers, and Murray & Roberts. The giant mineral company Samancor is also reported to be showing an interest.
Earlier, there had been suggestions that East London might be considered for the industrial port. Proposals that Gencor establish a R1,5 billion zinc refinery on the West Bank would have given much impetus to this move, which called for the widening and deepening of the present harbour. This however would have led to the harbour swallowing Orient Beach - the city's main swimming beach.
Studies by Cape Town environmental impact consultants Watermeyer, Prestedge & Retief indicated that East London was the most cost- effective site for an industrial port in the Eastern Cape, offering a quicker option than anywhere else. Another site near Fuller's Bay outside the city was also considered.
However, it now appears that the decision has fallen to the original choice of Coega, with advantages of good rail and road links as well as being away from built-up areas.
