President Cyril Ramaphosa says a R350 million investment by Swedish company Sandvik is an important vote of confidence in the country and its mining sector. He was speaking at the launch of the Sandvik Khomanani Manufacturing Site in Kempton Park, east of Johannesburg, on Friday.
Sandvik is a global manufacturer of mining and mineral processing equipment. This is part of the commitments made at the third South Africa Investment Conference in 2020, where Sandvik vowed to expand its remanufacturing and warehouse facility in the country.
“To you Mrs Myakayaka who is the program director and legal counsel, yes I need a lot of legal advice these days, maybe you will help me, yes always true,” says Ramaphosa.
President Ramaphosa jokingly and making fun of his political and legal woes. He was speaking at the launch of the multi-million rand Sandvik Khomanani Manufacturing Site in Kempton Park, east of Johannesburg on Friday. Sandvik’s high-tech head office facility, workshop and manufacturing complex in Kempton Park will create at least 550 jobs for locals. And the president interacted with its managers and some of the employees at the plant.
VIDEO: Sandvik Khomanani manufacturing launch
The 62 000 square-metre site is one of Sandvik’s biggest and most advanced facilities globally. The company can produce underground loaders with over 60 % South African content, allowing them to be designated as Proudly South African. President Ramaphosa says Sandvik’s creation of the much-needed jobs and its focus on localisation is a welcome development.
“This is phenomenal, particularly during a period when unemployment has been rising to see that a company that made a commitment just almost three years ago has lived up to the commitment and has resulted in the creation of so many jobs. This investment, therefore, extends beyond what I would call the financial. It is an investment in skills, technologies and capabilities. It is an investment in people and productivity. The investment by Sandvik in local manufacturing capacity is an important vote of confidence in South Africa and its mining industry,” Ramaphosa added.
The President also says Sandvik’s investment is a testimony that his administration is working flat out to ensure a conducive environment for business.
“At the third South Africa Investment Conference in November 2020, Sandvik made a commitment to invest R350 million to expand its remanufacturing and warehouse facility here in Kempton Park. Today we see the product of that investment. In the State of the Nation Address, which I delivered in February this year, I said that government is hard at work to create the conditions that will enable businesses – both big and small — to emerge, grow, access new markets, to create new products and to hire more employees,” Ramaphosa explains.
Sandvik has been operating in South Africa for the past 70 years and it now manages operations in Zimbabwe, Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Angola and Madagascar, among others.
