MANUFACTURING will start within the East London Industrial Development Zone by March 2003, according to the IDZ ceo Peter Miles. Speaking at an investor conference in Cape Town, Miles said negotiations were under way with potential joint venture partners. More than five thousand hectares are available for development in the first phase, including 20 hectares of fully-serviced land that is already available. The first investor is expected to move on-site by October 2001. Speaking at the same conference, Coega Development Corporation (CDC) executive manager business development, Graham Price, said the necessary rezoning of the land for the industrial development zone outside Port Elizabeth would take place “very soon”. Tenders for the construction of a R2-billion deep-water port would be called within the next two months. This should mean that construction of the port would get under way in the second quarter of next year and would be completed by the end of 2004.