Ed Richardson POLITICIANS IN the Eastern Cape are joining forces across party lines to ensure that the Coega development, as well as the development of a duty-free industrial zone on the west bank of the East London harbour go ahead. Further support for Coega has come from Mintek. In its annual report Mintek spells out a two-stage plan for a $1,25bn integrated stainless-steel mill. The first stage of the project involves planned offset investment by German steel giant Ferrostaal in a 120000-tons-a-year cold-rolling mill and also downstream manufacturing industries. If the cold-rolling mill is sited at Coega, it will be able to get its feedstock from South AfricaÕs Columbus steel plant or foreign suppliers - or a combination of the two. The second stage of the project would involve establishing a stainless-steel plant, possibly with Japanese investment. “The second phase develops the concept of a fully integrated stainless-steel project that would include a 500 000-tons-a-year hotrolled stainless steel flat product mill to provide hot-rolled coil imported in the first phase of the project,” said Mintek CE Paul Jourdan.
