Pylons carry high voltage electricity cables from the Grootvlei power station. South Africa's cable manufacturers are applying for interim import tariff protection against imports they allege are being dumped in the local market from Asian producers.
Image: Dean Hutton/Bloomberg
Urgent government enforcement is needed to enforce existing standards on cables, proper investigation of suspiciously low-priced shipments, and the implementation of targeted duties on dumped products.
This call was made by South Ocean Electric Wire (SOEW) CEO Andre Smith, who has warned the continued flood of low-priced imports is accelerating the hollowing out of South Africa’s cable manufacturing sector, and is also posing serious risks to infrastructure safety and job security.
SOEW, a subsidiary of JSE-listed South Ocean Holdings, is one of South Africa’s largest manufacturers and distributors of low-voltage electric wire, cable, and accessories.
“Data confirms what we have been seeing on the ground for some time. China has almost doubled its exports to South Africa, and we are now seeing individual shipments entering at prices as low as R3.00 per kilogram, levels that are simply not commercially viable for any legitimate, locally compliant manufacturer,” said Smith.
The latest Commodity Trade Observer report on low-voltage cable imports from March 2024 to February 2026 indicates that low-voltage cable imports have jumped 18% year-on-year to 19,27 million kilograms. Average prices have fallen sharply to R129/kg from R161/kg despite worldwide raw material and logistics cost increases.
“One trader alone brought in nearly 985 tons at R3/kg, which the report itself describes as a clear indication of illicit trade,” he said.
Mishak Matlsa, Aberdare Cables executive director, said they were struggling to load their production lines to full capacity because the market was so weak, the main cause of which was the recent surge in cable imports.
While South African cable manufacturers were globally competitive with similar import parity costs such as for copper and aluminium, imports were coming in at well below local manufacturing cost, which also raised questions about standards and safety compliance of the imported cable, he said.
He said the cable manufacturers had submitted an application to Itac (International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa) in January for interim import tariff relief, and they were awaiting the outcome.
South Africa imported 35,57 million kilograms of low-voltage power cables over a two-year period, valued at R5.12 billion.
In the March 2024 to February 2025 period: 16,30 million kg's were imported at a value of R2.63bn at an average of R161/kg.
In the March 2025 to February 2026 period: imports rose to 19,27 million kg, an increase of nearly 3 million kilograms – valued at R2.49bn at a significantly lower average of R129/kg.
Smith said the report also indicated that China had dramatically strengthened its position as the dominant supplier of suspected inferior and non-compliant products.
“While Chinese exports almost doubled year-on-year, Portugal, Italy, Zambia, and Poland followed in terms of kg exported into SA. Durban remained the primary port of entry, handling the vast majority of these imports,” he said.
He said the report drew attention to concerning patterns among individual traders. While the top 10 importers accounted for the bulk of volume, one trader imported 984,877 kg at an average price of just R3/kg, which was flagged in the report as "a clear indication of illicit trade" that "should be investigated in greater detail and reported to SARS for further review".
Another trader imported at R85/kg, about 50% below the overall average.
“Many (imports) are entering the market without proper SABS compliance, using inferior materials and failing critical local safety standards,” said Smith.
He said they had already documented widespread failures in household installations, commercial buildings, and critical mining infrastructure among others, caused by non-compliant cables.
“The human and economic cost of these failures, from fires and downtime to lost productivity, is enormous,” he said.
“South Africa’s electrical cable industry supports thousands of direct and indirect jobs, from raw material suppliers to drum manufacturers and logistics service providers.
“Local manufacturers have the capacity here in South Africa to supply most of the country’s needs with safe, fully tested, SABS-compliant cables. What is missing is decisive government action to protect the local industry,” he said.
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