Durban has long been a powerhouse in South Africa’s economic landscape, yet its global profile has not always reflected its established strengths. Today, the city continues to consolidate its position as a major investment hub, with a focus on logistics, manufacturing, tourism and services-led growth. In conversation with Dominic Hale, the CEO of Invest Durban, Russell Curtis noted the city’s strategic advantages for investors and highlighted the practical mechanisms in place to support them from landing through expansion.

He emphasised that Durban’s appeal is rooted in its natural endowments, infrastructure and integrated services ecosystem. And the city’s position as Africa’s busiest container port, its connectivity to undersea cables and a strong industrial base spanning automotive, chemicals, and manufacturing sectors were cited by him as key differentiators. He also highlighted Invest Durban’s aftercare processes, designed to ensure that investors not only land successfully but have the support to reinvest and expand. Recent expansions by companies such as Tetra Pak and PepsiCo pay testament to its effectiveness and to international corporate confidence in Durban’s long-term potential.

Why Durban Matters
For a global investor considering Africa, Durban offers a compelling proposition. The city is a gateway not only to South Africa but to the broader continent. Its geographic location, combined with well-maintained infrastructure, provides a natural advantage over other cities. As Russell Curtis explained, “We have maintained pre-eminence in manufacturing, distribution and logistics sectors while also developing a growing services economy including tourism and contact centres.”

When benchmarking against other African cities, Durban’s differentiator is its combination of infrastructure, market access and investor support. Moreover, Curtis made clear that the city has already arrived: a place of action rather than promise, with an embedded ecosystem of suppliers, skills and services that allow investors to plug in efficiently.

Investment Opportunities
The investment pipeline is robust, with the Invest Durban CEO citing significant interest across multiple sectors, from automotive and chemicals to tourism and digital services. Projects such as Toyota’s ongoing expansion in the city demonstrate Durban’s capacity to support large-scale industrial operations, the mighty carmaker long drawn to the stability and embedded capability of the city’s automotive cluster.

Similarly, Tetra Pak’s recent expansion reflected confidence in the city’s aftercare mechanisms, which involved coordinated engagement with municipal authorities and Invest Durban. Curtis highlighted that success was a collective effort, with multiple stakeholders supporting investors through regulatory approvals, infrastructure access and skills development initiatives.

Aftercare is more than a courtesy; it is a strategic tool to encourage reinvestment. Invest Durban’s integration into municipal CRM programmes ensures that key decision-makers across power, water, and roads are engaged early. Curtis explained that this approach has already led to tangible reinvestment, showing that Durban is not just a landing point but a long-term partner for global business.

SMEs & Value Chains
The Invest Durban CEO was also keen to point out that Durban’s development model extends far beyond multinational corporations. He outlined how local SMEs are integrated into export value chains through skills development, financing support and market access programmes. These linkages, supported by both private sector initiatives and public sector procurement policies, allow local enterprises to participate meaningfully in global supply chains. Examples include contact centres in Umlazi Township and local suppliers in the automotive and chemical sectors, which have direct channels to international markets.

Logistics & Corridors
Durban’s status as Africa’s busiest container port remains central to its investment proposition. Curtis noted recent progress on terminal concessions and modernisation, driven by organisational changes at Transnet, the state-owned freight logistics and railway company, providing rail, port, and pipeline services. New leadership and clearer timelines for investment opportunities have created greater confidence in the delivery of infrastructure. “These multibillion-rand projects are galvanising private sector investment,” he observed, highlighting both port terminals and bulk rail improvements.

Quick wins have also been achieved in decongestion and rail recovery, particularly along the pivotal N3/N2 corridor running inland from Durban to the major economic hub of Gauteng province, with private sector operators acquiring land and developing multimodal hubs. Curtis emphasised that interventions here have quantifiably improved efficiency while providing certainty for investors, particularly in the logistics and export sectors.

Energy & Decarbonisation
Energy remains a focal point for industrial growth, according to the CEO. He highlighted Durban’s approach to renewable energy procurement and integration of private sector solutions. New utility-scale green energy capacity is expected to come online by 2026, while many private manufacturers have already deployed solar PV solutions. “Investors can be confident that they will meet renewable energy and ESG targets from day one,” he noted, particularly for those targeting international markets with stricter carbon requirements.

He also acknowledged the pragmatic balancing act between industrial growth and decarbonisation. Coal-fired power remains part of the mix, upgraded with cleaner technology, while emerging opportunities exist in biomass-to-energy and small modular reactors. Curtis explained that this strategy of combining upgrading legacy energy infrastructure with selective adoption of new, cost-effective renewable technologies, ensures stability for investors, while advancing decarbonisation goals.

Incentives & Regulation
Fiscal incentives in Durban are designed to accelerate investment decisions. For example, there exist municipal property rates rebates of up to 100 percent for qualifying projects, complemented by non-fiscal incentives such as accelerated regulatory approvals. These mechanisms, coupled with national and Special Economic Zone (SEZ) incentives, create a competitive environment relative to other cities in South Africa and across the continent. Moreover, investors benefit from clear service standards for land assembly, utilities onboarding and permits, helping reduce the time from initial interest to operational readiness.

Dube TradePort
Russell Curtis was keen to point out that Dube TradePort continues to expand its industrial and logistics offerings, highlighting anchor tenants and joint ventures, including Chinese fibre-optic manufacturing and chemical production facilities. He noted that the integration of logistics and industrial parks with airport infrastructure has served to provide investors with efficient supply chain solutions and direct access to regional and international markets. Meanwhile, the Aerotropolis is evolving into a coordinated urban-industrial ecosystem, with zoning and trunk infrastructure investments ensuring readiness for the next 18 months of development.

Manufacturing & Resilience
Durban’s automotive sector remains a cornerstone of industrial activity. Beyond Toyota’s hybrid vehicle production and supply chain clustering being examples of resilience and long-term commitment, Curtis pointed to lessons learned from social unrest and extreme weather events in previous years. These have prompted improvements in disaster preparedness and infrastructure robustness, with industrial parks and OEM clusters now incorporating enhanced security, early warning systems and flood resilience measures to ensure business continuity for both manufacturers and suppliers.

Tourism & Property
Mixed-use coastal precincts and tourism developments are transforming Durban’s property landscape. Projects such as the West Town retail and residential development, the Beachwood Golf Club redevelopment and various hotel and residential towers along the coastline bring with them opportunities for foreign capital to co-invest. And their investment appeal is further enhanced thanks to upgraded infrastructure and intensive urban management initiatives.

Business tourism and conferences also play a strategic role in services-led investment, with Curtis emphasising the continued success of the International Convention Centre, which hosts major regional and international events. Smaller conferencing facilities and hotel developments complement these offerings, creating a vibrant ecosystem that attracts both corporate and leisure visitors.

Data & Innovation
Durban has made great strides recently in digital infrastructure and knowledge-intensive sectors, with initiatives to stimulate fintech, shared services and BPO investments particularly noteworthy, according to Russell Curtis. These include Smart Exchange and other innovation platforms, which provide investors with operational support, skills development and access to markets. He noted that while the city lagged behind Cape Town in branding as a tech hub, its infrastructure, fibre connectivity and embedded industrial ecosystem offer truly untapped potential. With the foundations firmly in place, targeted private equity, venture capital and international partnerships would serve to accelerate Durban’s positioning as a regional leader in knowledge-intensive FDI.

Risk & Delivery
Russell Curtis acknowledged that municipal reliability and climate adaptation are critical for investor confidence, and that measurable progress and consistent standards are essential to maintaining investor trust.

And so, to both reassure and excite, he noted ongoing investments in water, waste, roads and power systems, emphasising that public-private partnerships have been central to improvements. Additionally, flood resilience, early warning systems and coordinated security in business districts were highlighted as examples of the city’s proactive risk management.

Capital & Partnerships
The Invest Durban CEO drew attention to opportunities for private sector co-investment with local pension funds and development finance institutions, stressing that these structured partnerships could accelerate logistics and industrial projects, maximise economic returns, and generate substantial employment. Looking towards 2030, he envisioned a Durban defined by seamless public-private collaboration, world-class infrastructure and fully integrated value chains. Such conditions, he explained, would ensure sustained foreign investment and position the city as Africa’s foremost business gateway.

He concluded by stressing that modernising policy, regulatory frameworks and processes are critical to realising this vision, with streamlined public sector procurement, faster permitting and coordinated regulatory oversight being the most powerful levers to attract and secure investment.

As Russell Curtis sees it, Durban is not just a viable choice for investors but the unequivocal destination. Its established industrial base, strategic location and latent potential make it the only place where global investors can reliably access Africa’s growth, realise significant returns and participate in shaping the continent’s economic future.

“Durban is already an established gateway with everything investors need,” Curtis noted. “Its location, infrastructure, and opportunities make it the only place in Africa where you can reliably scale, innovate and grow.”