Home
FacebookSearchMenu
  • Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • News
  • Features
  • Knowledge Library
  • Columns
  • Customs
  • Jobs
  • Directory
  • FX Rates
  • Categories
    • Categories
    • Africa
    • Air Freight
    • BEE
    • Border Beat
    • COVID-19
    • Crime
    • Customs
    • Domestic
    • Duty Calls
    • Economy
    • Employment
    • Energy/Fuel
    • Events
    • Freight & Trading Weekly
    • Imports and Exports
    • Infrastructure
    • International
    • Logistics
    • Other
    • People
    • Road/Rail Freight
    • Sea Freight
    • Skills & Training
    • Social Development
    • Sustainability
    • Technology
    • Trade/Investment
    • Webinars
  • Contact us
    • Contact us
    • About Us
    • Advertise
    • Send us news
    • Editorial Guidelines

Status message

The requested resource isn't available. Please use the search feature to look for an alternative.
Africa
Economy
Other

Limpopo government gives green light to Musina Makhado SEZ

13 Jul 2022 - by Staff reporter
 Source: Life After Coal
0 Comments

Share

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • LinkedIn
  • E-mail
  • Print

The Limpopo government has dismissed an appeal by environmental activists who oppose the granting of environmental authorisation to build one of the largest-ever heavy industrial parks in Limpopo. 

The proposed Musina Makhado Special Economic Zone (SEZ) covers 7 262 hectares and will be one of the biggest in SA, larger than the Dube Tradeport SEZ, the Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone (IDZ), and the Saldanha Bay IDZ. The Coega SEZ in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro, at 9 003 hectares, is the biggest SEZ development to date. The Musina Makhado SEZ will include heavy manufacturing industries, such as ferrochrome, ferromanganese, steel, and cement plants. It will also have a 3300-MW coal-fired power station.

Concerns about the impact of the development on the environment have led to multiple delays in its progress since it was first announced by former trade and industry minister Rob Davies in 2017.  The process to get the development off the ground started in 2018, before a scoping report was conducted in 2019, but concerns about its potentially hazardous impact on the environment stalled the project.

The Limpopo Economic Development and Tourism Department initially decided that the development’s environmental impact assessment was insufficient and temporarily stopped the development in 2021. The department advised project developers to source the opinions of local stakeholders, including traditional authorities, landowners and other affected people, after they had been properly informed about the project in their indigenous languages.

The department also raised concerns about water and energy supply for the development and asked the developers to clearly outline their water and energy supply plans in the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report. This came after Environmental Assessment Practitioner Deltabec did not recommend a decision be made on the project.

The developers submitted another EIA report in November 2021 which led to the department finally granting environmental authorisation for the development.

However, environmental activists, including Earthlife Africa, groundWork, and the Mining and Environmental Justice Community Network of South Africa, represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights, appealed the decision.

The environmental activists argued that the final EIA had failed to resolve concerns raised by civil society in the past and alleged that there had been serious flaws in the EIA process, as well as conflict of interest among some decision-makers. 

They called on environment minister Barbara Creecy and the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment to intervene to protect the rights of residents.

However, the department has now dismissed their appeal, saying that a full heritage impact assessment had been conducted. The assessment had identified 19 graves and 30 sites of heritage significance within the project area, for which the developers said they had put mitigation measures in place. 

"All anticipated cumulative impacts were considered before the decision was made, including compliance with the environmental prescripts," Limpopo's economic development, environment, and tourism MEC, Thabo Mokone, said.

Musina Makhado SEZ CEO Lehlogonolo Masoga said in a statement that the dismissal of the appeal had vindicated the organisation against "baseless and speculative accusations".

"For far too long, the SEZ bent backwards to afford the interested and affected parties the democratic space to register their legitimate concerns on our EIA application, a process which unfortunately degenerated into abuses," he said.

Sign up to our mailing list and get daily news headlines and weekly features directly to your inbox free.
Subscribe to receive print copies of Freight News Features to your door.

Deployment of new RTGs at PoCT speeded up

Logistics

A general cargo vessel carrying a second batch of new RTGs is expected imminently.

Today 15:30
0 Comments

ULCV successfully docks at Ngqura, makes history

Logistics
Sea Freight

“This achievement solidifies our status as a significant player in the maritime industry.” – TNPA

Today 15:15
0 Comments

Trump tariffs – July 9 deadline draws nearer

Imports and Exports
Trade/Investment

One of the countries that has already learned its fate in the face of punishing duties is Vietnam.

Today 15:15
0 Comments

Fuel price hikes a strain for consumers

Energy/Fuel

Double-digit price increases and a higher fuel levy will place financial pressure on households.

Today 15:15
0 Comments

Pork for citrus? South Africa faces tough US trade choice

Imports and Exports

If SA’s disease-free status is compromised, PRRS could come at a heavy cost to local pork producers.

Today 15:15
0 Comments

Carrier launches direct flights to London Gatwick

Air Freight

The new route enhances the Kenya-UK Economic Partnership Agreement.

Today 12:30
0 Comments

Creecy reiterates rail cargo volume targets

Logistics
Road/Rail Freight

The intention to re-establish rail as the backbone of transport is fundamental to reforms in SA.

Today 11:45
0 Comments

Resilience required for air sector disruption – executive

Air Freight

Air traffic in the region is expected to rise by an average of 6.4% annually.

Yesterday
0 Comments

Insight of the week: legally ditching higher duties

The actual practice can be traced back to 1882, when an importer in the United States had sugar coated with molasses.

Yesterday
0 Comments

How to avoid the fear of being evaluated

Freight & Trading Weekly
Logistics
Skills & Training

Lifelong learning has become the norm across all economic sectors, both in the UK and globally.

Yesterday
0 Comments

Skills needed to unfreeze African growth potential

Logistics

Growth in demand for cold chain efficiencies is being driven by economic development and rising income.

Yesterday
0 Comments

Iran seeks full control of Russian Caspian Sea terminal

Logistics

The port handles a broad range of goods, including grain, timber, metal products and fertilisers.

Yesterday
0 Comments
  • More

FeatureClick to view

Cold Chain Logistics 4 July 2025

Border Beat

Forum tightens net against border corruption
25 Jun 2025
Police clamp down on cross-border crime
17 Jun 2025
Zim's anti-smuggling measures delay legitimate freight operations
06 Jun 2025
More

Poll

Has South Africa's ports turned the corner?

Featured Jobs

New

Road Logistics Pricing Specialist

Tiger Recruitment
East Rand
02 Jul
New

Operations Manager

Lee Botti & Associates
Cape Town
02 Jul
More Jobs
  • © Now Media
  • Privacy Policy
  • Freight News RSS
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Send us news
  • Contact us