'Government has reiterated its commitment to the Coega project beyond question'
FRESH LIFE has been breathed into the Coega Industrial Development Zone and port development with the formation of a new development company and the appointment of a chief executive officer.
Newly-appointed Coega chief executive officer Pepi Silinga says the Coega Implementing Authority is being converted into a development company, the Coega Development Corporation (CDC).
This will take the project into the next stage, he says. The CDC has been established and formally registered as part of the strategy to develop and refocus the organisation, says Silinga.
He says the Coega authority has been assured by Billiton and the Industrial Development Corporation that they are still committed to the zinc refinery which will be one of the anchor tenants.
The Coega industrial development project is going ahead and will, in line with national policy, be eligible for, amongst others, a six-year tax holiday; a one-stop customs and excise shop; a special labour dispensation and world-class purpose-built infrastructure.
Silinga says national government has consciously decided to reduce company tax across the country rather than introduce location-specific incentives.
New industrial development zone legislation will, according to Silinga, add little value to the existing legislation.
Instead the manufacturing development programme (MDP) and other relevant legislation will be modified to provide a competitive investment framework.
Government has reiterated its commitment to the Coega project beyond question, he says. Key projects which have been targeted in the short and medium term include the zinc refinery, a stainless steel flat mill, a carbon steel mill, a ferro nickel mill, wood processing possibilities and a coal project.
All these projects require a port as they will be export oriented, says Silinga.
By Ed Richardson
