South Africa’s transition to a low-carbon economy could become a powerful driver of industrial development, provided the country is able to translate growing investment in renewable energy and clean technologies into local manufacturing, new industrial capabilities, skills and jobs.
This was the central message emerging from the webinar “Green Industrialisation in South Africa: The Strategic Role of Industrial Spaces”, co-hosted by UNIDO and GreenCape under the Flanders-funded Low Carbon and Positive Energy Industrial Spaces (LC-PEIS) project. The webinar was attended by more than 220 participants from government, industry, development finance institutions, research organisations and development partners.
The discussion explored how South Africa’s special economic zones (SEZs), industrial parks and other industrial spaces can support two mutually reinforcing objectives: decarbonising existing industry, and developing new domestic manufacturing capabilities linked to the clean-energy transition.
Opening perspectives: connecting the transition to industrial development
Opening remarks brought together senior perspectives from government, industry and international partners: Gerhard Fourie, Chief Director: Green Industries at the dtic; Mike Mulcahy, Chief Executive Officer of GreenCape; Thomas Castrel, General Representative of Flanders in Southern Africa; and Fakhruddin Azizi, UNIDO Representative for Southern Africa. Together, their participation reflected the breadth of collaboration required to advance green industrialisation, spanning industrial policy, the private sector, international cooperation and multilateral development.
A recurring message from the opening speakers was that decarbonisation should not be viewed only as an environmental objective. South Africa’s anticipated investment in renewable energy, battery storage, electricity transmission and other clean technologies also creates an opportunity to deepen the country’s industrial base.
The subsequent presentations moved from this strategic framing to practical pathways for capturing greater industrial value from South Africa’s energy transition.
SAREM: Converting clean-energy demand into manufacturing opportunities
Noma Qase, Director: Renewable Energy at the Department of Electricity and Energy, presented the implementation priorities and approach of the South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (SAREM). She outlined how SAREM seeks to connect South Africa’s growing renewable-energy demand with industrial development, inclusive development and capability building.
Audience members were invited to participate directly in SAREM implementation by signing up for SAREM task teams and joining the SAREM renewable-energy value-chain manufacturers database.
Identifying investable manufacturing opportunities
Jack Radmore, Energy Programme Manager at GreenCape, focused on the investment proposition emerging from South Africa’s renewable-energy value chain. He highlighted areas in which projected demand and existing industrial capabilities could support competitive local manufacturing, including solar mounting and tracking structures, transformers, wind towers and tower internals, power cabling, batteries and energy-management systems.
A key message was the importance of connecting manufacturing ambitions to credible market demand. This means identifying opportunities where South Africa already has, or can realistically build, the capabilities needed to compete, rather than pursuing localisation in isolation from market fundamentals.
Industrial spaces as platforms for investment and decarbonisation
Rouba Onaissi, Sustainable Energy Expert at UNIDO, presented UNIDO’s Sustainable Industrialisation Hubs approach, demonstrating how industrial spaces can provide practical platforms for aggregating clean-energy demand, sharing infrastructure, supporting decarbonisation and attracting new green manufacturing investment.
She was joined by Tamer Tandogan, Policy Specialist at UNIDO, who introduced UNIDO’s African SEZ Profiling Initiative and Digital Investment Promotion Solutions (DIPS) platform. The approach is intended to strengthen the information base available on industrial spaces, infrastructure, sectoral capabilities and investment opportunities, helping translate industrial-space potential into more targeted investment promotion. Participants were invited to join the DIPS tutorial webinar on 14 October 2026.
Panel discussion: Turning opportunity into investment
A panel discussion, moderated by Noma Qase, with panellists Shaun Moses (the dtic), Dominic Milazi (World Bank), Philippa Rodseth (Manufacturing Circle of SA), and Ndivhuho Raphulu (NCPC-SA) shared perspectives around a common challenge: how to convert the potential associated with green industrialisation into projects, investment and industrial capacity. Issues raised included affordable financing, infrastructure, skills, data, regulatory coordination, project preparation and predictable market demand.
Looking beyond the domestic market
In closing the webinar, UNIDO Programme Manager Karin Reiss-Haimbala emphasised that the opportunity extends beyond South Africa.
The African Continental Free Trade Area provides scope for South African manufacturers to strengthen their participation in regional and continental value chains and expand markets for green industrial products and technologies. Well-functioning industrial spaces can serve as anchors for this regional industrial integration, connecting industrial clusters, investment opportunities and economic corridors.
The webinar ultimately highlighted a clear convergence between South Africa’s energy transition and its industrial development ambitions.
Realising this opportunity will depend on connecting the different pieces: market demand, energy investment, industrial spaces, infrastructure, finance, manufacturing capabilities, skills and appropriate policy instruments.
Through the LC-PEIS project and its wider green industrialisation portfolio, UNIDO will continue working with the Government of South Africa, the Government of Flanders, GreenCape, NCPC-SA , VITO and other partners to help translate these opportunities into practical investments and scalable models for competitive, low-carbon industrial development.
Watch the recording of the webinar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r72VOVmDx50
Access the presentations here:
- SAREM priorities and approach to advancing green industrialisation – by Noma Qase, Department of Electricity and Energy
- Investment proposition: South African renewable energy value chain – by Jack Radmore, GreenCape
- Sustainable Industrialization Hubs: Platforms for green industrialization – by Rouba Onaissi, UNIDO. This presentation also includes an introduction to SEZ profiling and UNIDO’s Digital Investment Promotion Solutions (DIPS) by Tamer Tandogan of UNIDO.
Photos: (Left to right) Freeport Saldanha IDZ; OR Tambo SEZ; Perseverance Industrial Park
Photographs provided by the respective industrial spaces
