The Eastern Cape government continues to attract investments that are propelling the province. In the first three quarters of 2025, the province attracted investments valued at R2.5b. Through the Eastern Cape Investment Conference, the government built a premier public-private platform that is steadily turning the government s bold vision of a thriving, inclusive provincial economy into reality.
The provincial government is planning to host the 5th Eastern Cape Investment Conference in 2026, with a current pipeline of declarations of about R50bn across both public and private sectors, aligned with the economic growth frontiers. This year, the investment conference will coincide with the 7th Eastern Cape Export Symposium.
In this way, the Eastern Cape Investment Conference is not an event, but a strategic instrument of the government s economic diplomacy to unlock new industries such as the R30m Mohair Investment expansion in Ntabozuko. Premier Oscar Mabuyane said SA would move towards producing more than 65% of the world s mohair in the province, creating sustainable jobs for the people.
In 2025, the automotive industry suffered some blows with the closure of Goodyear in Gqeberha and retrenchments at Mercedes Benz in KuGompo City. Mabuyane said the Eastern Cape government supported efforts of the national government to reach a trade deal with the US. The provincial government also welcomed the announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa in the state of the nation address of a 150% tax deduction for new energy vehicle investments, effective from March 2026.
Despite global headwinds in the automotive sector, confidence is still being displayed by the auto industry in the Eastern Cape. Our entities, ELIDZ and AIDCEC, are collaborating to convert potential investments into meaningful jobs for our people.
Negotiations are at an advanced stage with a Chinese company that has an interest to locate at the East London IDZ. A new commercial vehicle investor with an investment value of R430mn, has been approved for the East London IDZ. As we speak, the ELIDZ is building a factory for the investor which will be completed in December 2026,” Mabuyane said.
At the Coega Special Economic Zone, conditional funding of R1.049b has been approved for the Stellantis vehicle project. While the project has undergone revisions to its scale and delivery model, it remains active with detailed designs and commercial agreements advancing. The Coega SEZ also continues to meet its investment numbers and value, having already secured five new projects at the end of the third quarter of 2025.
These are in the manufacturing, logistics and energy sectors, with an investment value of R827m. Mabuyane said the government appreciated Isuzu Motors South Africa s commitment to its Eastern Cape operations and for its continuous investments. It welcomed Isuzu s tooling expansion and supplier development programmes to enhance technical capability across its value chain and reinforce SA s automotive ecosystem.
In October 2025, Isuzu opened a new VSL manufacturing facility worth R750m in Nelson Mandela Bay. This Eastern Cape-based company supplies Isuzu with production of key components for the DMAX range. Last year, BAIC Automobile South Africa launched the new BAIC B30 SUV, a model that is assembled in its Coega plant.
The government is actively pursuing BAIC to fully manufacture vehicles in that plant to create more jobs and business opportunities in the Eastern Cape. In 2025, the government successfully hosted both the NAACAM Show and SA Auto Week, which positioned the Eastern Cape as a premier investment destination to key auto industry leaders and to the 7,000 attendees who came from around the world.
