REGION netite, zinc, antimony, cobalt, copper, iron, manganese, tin and many more. Gold was first discovered in Mpumalanga province in 1883 in the mountains surrounding what is now Barberton. Mpumalanga accounts for 83% of South Africa’s coal production; 90% of South Africa’s coal consumption is used for electricity generation and the synthetic fuel industry. Coal power stations are located close to the coal deposits. Sasol's coal liquefaction plant in Secunda creates petroleumfrom-coal. South Africa produces 75% of the world’s platinum, 80% of its manganese, 73% of its chrome and 45% of its vanadium. Mpumalanga has significant resources of each of these minerals, and several others. The Witbank coalfields are the most productive in Africa and the province lies at the southern end of the eastern limb of the Bushveld Igneous Complex. Chromite, magnetite and vanadium are found in significant quantities in the province. The ferroalloy industry is centred on the town of Middelburg Deposits of chromite, magnetite and vanadium in this area are the basis of the ferro-alloy complex in Witbank-Middelburg (in the Nkangala District Municipality) and Lydenburg (Mashishing). Nkomati Mine is South Africa's only pure-nickel operation. The province's coalfields are in the south and west of the province. Mining contributes 21.8% to provincial Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Economic future Mpumalanga aims to provide at least 2 000MW as part of the national Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme (REIPPPP). The Boschejskop Hydro Dam project would achieve two goals – alleviate the water shortage in the provincial capital of Mbombela and provide 300MW of power. A private investor would be asked to do the feasibility study and then finance and construct the facilities with two future revenue streams in prospect: a water off-take agreement with Mbombela and the sale of electricity to the national power utility Eskom.
Other projects suitable for public-private partnership include the construction of a solar park to power the Nkomazi Special Economic Zone and a wind power plant to be built at Sabie and Lydenburg. Investors are sought for the development of the Blyde River Tourism Cluster. More than a million visitors every year look into this awe-inspiring canyon, but they seldom stay for long. This project aims to give the visitor something to do and a closer look at the canyon via a cable-car trip to Blyde Lake. A related hotel and restaurant development (and a skywalk for another, adventurous, way of looking) are all part of the proposal, which could be parcelled out to a number of investors depending on their interest or speciality. Land is available for developers in the province's capital city of Mbombela to create an International Convention Centre. Conference delegates always like to be in nice places, and the selling point here would be to link the centre to the province's greatest tourism assets like the Kruger National Park, the Blyde River Canyon and God's Window. Space is also available for the construction of a related hotel and multi-purpose recreational facilities. There is relatively little agri-processing that takes place in the province, with most of the products being exported in their raw state. The Fresh Produce Market in Mbombela has been planned to accommodate investors who want to start factories to manufacture products such as juice, or packaging firms. Land has been bought and registered for the required use in Mbombela as the Mpumalanga International Fresh Produce Market. Investors in fresh produce are invited to be take advantage of Mpumalanga's superior fruit, vegetables and nuts. The 248ha site is near rail and road links and private investors are sought to be partners in building the top structure; services are being laid on by the province.
137
Capital
Mbombela
Population
4 283 900 (2015)
Area
76 495km2
Premier
David Mabuza (ANC)
Languages
Ndebele, Swati, Zulu
SOUTH AFRICAN BUSINESS 2017