The Yangtze Optics Africa (YOA) Cable fibre-optic cable manufacturing facility in Durban’s Dube TradePort special economic zone now produces more than 4 800km of cable for the local telecommunications industry per month, with more expected as production ramps up.
Construction of the 14 000sq m facility was completed in December 2024 after eight years and R310-million of investment. Although the plant’s production line started making cables for local customers including Openserve and Dark Fibre Africa as early as January this year, an official opening event was held at the facility on Tuesday.
“This is an incredible, exciting time for the optical cable market,” said YOA CEO Pieter Viljoen at the event, which TechCentral attended.
YOA Cable is a subsidiary of Yangtze Optics Africa Holdings, a joint venture between Chinese-based Yangtze Optical Fibre Cable Joint Stock Company and JSE-listed Mustek.
Plans for the factory were first announced in 2016, with the site getting an initial R150-million for the first leg of the build. In 2023, a further R160-million was spent acquiring plant and machinery, bringing the total to R310-million. Mustek has a 25% stake in the venture, according to CEO Hein Engelbrecht, who attended Tuesday’s launch event.
The plant employs 155 people, with this number expected to reach 210 by the end of the year as production ramps up. YOA aims eventually to increase its production capacity to four million kilometres of fibre per year, at which point it will employ around 300 people.
Special economic zone
Fibre-optic cable is the preferred medium for high-bandwidth data. Although it is used in last-mile infrastructure to connect homes and businesses, fibre is arguably even more important in backhaul infrastructure, which includes its use in the undersea cables that connect South Africa to the rest of the world.
The Dube TradePort, where the factory is located, was demarcated as a special economic zone in 2016. With the King Shaka International Airport at it is core, companies operating within the SEZ get easy access to globally connected manufacturing and logistics infrastructure, including cargo operations and warehousing.
Other benefits of operating there include a preferential 15% corporate tax rate for qualifying businesses and employment incentives for companies that hire lower-paid workers. There is also a customs-controlled area offering import duty rebates for production-related and exported products, and VAT exemptions under specific conditions for supplies procured in South Africa. The TradePort also offers tax incentives for new investments.
Read: YOA Cable to invest additional R155-million in Dube TradePort
The location of the Dube TradePort and the additional benefits of operating within the precinct are meant to attract domestic and foreign direct investment into South Africa and grow local manufacturing capacity. – © 2025 NewsCentral Media
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