R8bn Cape Winelands Airport ‘confident’ of breaking ground in 2026

Despite appeals against government's environmental authorisation for Cape Winelands Airport, the company's managing director remains confident construction will begin soon.

MD Deon Cloete says construction on the R8-billion development will commence once the statutory appeals process has concluded in March 2026. 

He notes that six appeals have been lodged thus far.

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“Of the 1,500 registered interested and affected parties, we had six appeals. There is a process to work through those, and hopefully, in the new year we can be in a position to start our process.”

Cloete says the appeals come from stakeholders and neighbouring land users.

“We have been working with those neighbours on consolidating land use and integrating our development. We are making good progress and we can expect the announcements in that regard in the near future.”

The airport is set to feature a user-friendly experience, a strong logistics and cargo platform, and a blend of rail, road, and ocean connectivity.

With a phased opening planned, the airport is expected to create about 35,000 direct and indirect jobs and sustain 100,000 jobs during its initial 20 years of operation.

“We have two critical things that drive the development, it is smart and it’s green; making it user-friendly and a very special experience,” he says.

RELATED: Cape Winelands Airport officials satisfied with Environmental Impact Assessment

To listen to Cloete in conversation with CapeTalk’s Africa Melane, click the audio player below: