New R18 billion city coming to South Africa
The Bankenveld District City, located just outside of Sandton, is expected to be completed in December 2026 and is valued at R18 billion.
The development is the largest private-sector project in Nedbank’s recently released Capital Expenditure Project Listing for 2024.
Nedbank’s report on projects announced in 2024 showed the sharpest increase in fixed investment plans since 2021.
The bank said this reflects increased positivity and certainty surrounding the country’s future and, more worryingly, growing infrastructure backlogs.
New projects announced in 2024 amounted to R445.9 billion, more than double the R210 billion announced in 2023.
A major driver of this growth is the increased expenditure from the government, which replaced the private sector as the primary source of fixed investment in the country.
The government’s plans alone totalled R199.8 billion, making up 44.8% of all new projects announced. Combined with state-owned companies, the state’s share grows to around 65%.
Private-sector plans declined by 4.3% year-on-year to R95.6 billion. Nedbank said this is unsurprising as weak economic growth and elevated uncertainty resulted in companies adopting a wait-and-see approach in 2024.
Given the lag between project announcements and implementation, Nedbank said the pickup in investment plans bodes well for gross fixed capital formation in 2025.
Even so, the outlook risks remain tilted to the downside, dependent on the public sector’s ability to follow through on its plans.
The government will have to continue spending heavily to work through its infrastructure backlog, particularly with regard to water and logistics.
Nedbank said for the private sector to commit additional capital to South Africa, the government would have to move decisively towards lifting the constraints on faster economic growth.
Bankenveld District City
Despite projects announced by the private sector declining in value year-on-year, several major developments are planned by companies in South Africa.
Chief among these is the R18 billion Bankenveld District City development in Johannesburg, which is set to be completed at the end of 2026.
Located just off the Marlboro offramp, close to Sandton and with N3 highway exposure, the property is being developed and privately managed by Eris Property Group and Calgro M3.
The development is located on land bought from the University of Witwatersrand for R200 million adjacent to the Marlboro Gautrain Station.
The development received approval from the Competition Commission to purchase the land for the site in late 2024.
Wits said it will use the proceeds from the R200 million sale to fund an endowment that will finance the degrees of future students.
Bankenveld is set to create 20,000 to 30,000 housing units alongside commercial, retail and industrial spaces.
The 300-hectare mixed-used development will include 500,000m² of warehouse and logistics space and retail developments.
Roughly a third of the land will be used for infrastructure projects, such as roads, stormwater management, and green belt areas.
Calgro M3 and Eris will share the cost of the infrastructure installation, after which Calgro M3 will be responsible for the residential components.
Eris will handle all the commercial, retail, industrial, educational and healthcare components.
“Bankenveld District City adds, at minimum, R18 billion to the revenue pipeline through the delivery of between 20,000 and 30,0000 opportunities over a 15 to 20-year period,” Calgro M3 has said.
When announcing the project last year, Calgro M3 said the project would take a minimum of 15 years to fully build out.
Once completed, Bankenveld will more than double the company’s existing residential property portfolio.
While the purchase of the land was only completed in late 2024, plans for the development have been under consideration for at least seven years.
Calgro said the town planning was already in place, and engagements with Eris had reached the final stages of outlining the construction of bulk infrastructure.
Bankenveld increased the company’s development pipeline to just below R34 billion – more than double the R15.5 billion recorded at the beginning of 2024.
Calgro currently has a total of eight projects on the go, with 2,118 units under construction. Its total pipeline, without Bankenveld, consists of 20,239 units.
Bankenveld District City images
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