A top Taiwanese textiles company is set to create more than 2 630 employment opportunities in Mooi River, bringing economic relief to the small KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Midlands town.

The investment deal, valued at some R350-million, was facilitated by Trade & Investment KwaZulu-Natal (TIKZN).

Tai Yuen Textiles made a strategic decision to construct a world-class state-of-the-art textile plant in Mooi River, based on premises previously occupied by Mooi River Textiles, so adding to its world-wide operations.

Already about R100-million has been injected into the project, with equipment and machinery being brought into the province totalling about 450 large container loads.

Pull factors influencing the company’s investment decision included the region’s high unemployment rate, an inexpensive electricity supply, competitive property prices, available building infrastructure, a readily available water supply and a strong recommendation by TIKZN. The Mooi River textile plant will be similar to those owned and operated by Tai Yuen globally and is being developed as an all-in-one production facility. The entails the spinning of cotton yarn, the weaving of yarn into fabric, fabric dyeing and the production of garments.

Tai Yuen Textiles is, therefore, to create an entire supply chain, from the treatment of raw materials to the production of intermediate and final products.

It is envisaged that with the successful implementation of development phases one and two, the completion of phase three will result in the creation of between 1 800 and 2 630 new employment opportunities, which will effectively bring welcome economic relief to Mooi River.

With the South African and global textile industry under threat, critical initiatives such as the EU Trade Bill and the USA Growth and Opportunities Act aim to act as major stimulants for industry growth in this country. Major projects, including the Tai Yuen Textiles operation in Mooi River, will have a significant impact on the alleviation of unemployment in the industry.

‘We look forward to getting involved in workplace skills development training and see the development of a textile campus, where students can qualify at a diploma level in textiles. This would follow and action learning methodology at Tai Yuen Textiles (SA), in conjunction with the Durban University of Technology,’ said Noel Coetzee, general manager of Tai Yuen Textiles.

Contact

Perusha Naicker
Tel.: +27 31 368 9600
Email: perusha@tikzn.co.za
Website: www.tikzn.co.za