The South African National Roads Agency SOC Limited (SANRAL) has invested more than R8bn in roads construction projects in the Eastern Cape Province over the past three years, said Marlize Nel-Verwey, SANRAL Southern Regional Project Manager.
She was speaking at the inaugural Eastern Cape Investment Conference which took place in East London last week Wednesday.
SANRAL was invited to participate in the conference because the roads agency is one of the province’s key investors, with road infrastructure projects and a national road network that continues to be a catalyst for socio-economic development in the province, providing much-needed job opportunities and developing skills in the Eastern Cape.
“Over the past three years alone, SANRAL has invested just over R8bn in the Eastern Cape, with about 82% of our projects benefitting majority black-owned companies. We also intend to spend just over R60bn on road infrastructure in the province over the next five years,” said Nel-Verwey.
SANRAL Board Chairperson Themba Mhambi said the Eastern Cape Province is a major province on SANRAL’s portfolio largely because the province has been ignored historically when it comes to investing in roads infrastructure.
“At SANRAL we link infrastructure development to economic development in our country. We see ourselves as not only responsible for building and maintaining the national road network, but we also extend our mandate to be one of a catalyst for economic growth and development.
“The developments that SANRAL has undertaken in the Eastern Cape are linked to other secondary roads in the province and we continue to ensure integration and synergy with local and provincial roads that do not necessarily fall within our mandate,” said Mhambi.
The investment conference was a unique opportunity for the Eastern Cape Provincial Government, working together with its socio-economic partners, to explore investment opportunities in the province.
Welcoming SANRAL’s investment in the province, Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane mentioned the roads agency as one of the province’s 11 new investors who are joining the provincial economy with a combined investment value of R46.5 billion.
“We welcome these new investors to our Province. Their contribution will certainly make a huge difference in our provincial economy and create jobs for our people. We implore the host municipalities to take good care of these new investors,” said Mabuyane.
“Over the past three financial years the provincial government invested over R22.7 billion on social and economic infrastructure. Over the next three financial years we project that our investment on social and economic infrastructure will have accumulated to R24.6 billion, while local government will invest R21.5 billion for social and economic infrastructure in our province.”
“All this infrastructure spending supports the provision of education, health, human settlements as well as building new and maintaining the existing transport network in the province. We do this because we appreciate the strategic and catalytic role that public sector investment plays to crowd in private sector investments,” added Mabuyane.
SANRAL’s projects in the Eastern Cape Province are at various degrees of completion: some are completed while others are under construction, under the tender and evaluation stage, or in the planning phase for the current financial year.
Some of the key projects that have been completed include the special maintenance project from the R75 national road in Jansenville to the R63/R75 intersection; this project amounted to R125 million.
In the Buffalo City Metro, the Breidbach and Belstone interchanges project on the N2 national road is currently under construction at a total cost of R437m, and the improvement of the N2 Green River to King Williams Town project at a total cost of R500 million is also under construction.
The Mtentu Bridge contract on the N2 Wild Coast Road (N2WCR) project, valued at R4.05billion, and the R56 Matatiele project, valued at R1.2 billion, have recently been awarded.
There are also various community development projects in parts of the province currently been undertaken during this financial year.