South Africa and the New Development Bank (NDB) have signed a USD 200 million loan agreement for Stage 1 of the Olifants Management Model Program. National Treasury listed the announcement in a September 25, 2026 statement. The NDB identifies USD 200 million as its financing limit for this stage of the water infrastructure project.
The project is intended to supply bulk raw water to industrial users and treated potable water to communities in Mogalakwena Local Municipality, Limpopo. It will use water abstracted from Flag Boshielo Dam. Those two intended uses give the investment a direct relevance to both industrial water supply and community access to potable water, although the sources describe project objectives rather than completed deliveries.
Financing for Stage 1
The signed loan agreement establishes the NDB financing announced for Stage 1. On its project page, the bank lists ZAR 6,555 million from other project funding sources in addition to its USD 200 million financing limit. The amounts are stated in different currencies; the project page presents them as separate funding figures, not as a combined total.
The agreement concerns a project with two specified water-supply purposes: bulk raw water for industrial users and treated potable water for communities. For industrial users, the commercial relevance lies in the planned raw-water supply, rather than in any confirmed change to current availability. For communities, the stated purpose is a supply of treated potable water.
Who is responsible for delivery
The NDB identifies the Republic of South Africa as the borrower. It assigns overall execution responsibility to the Department of Water and Sanitation, while naming the Badirammogo Water User Association as the implementing agency for design, procurement, construction and commissioning. These roles distinguish responsibility for the programme from the work of implementing its first stage.
Procurement is among the implementing agency’s responsibilities, but the cited project information does not establish specific procurement opportunities. The confirmed development is the loan agreement for Stage 1, alongside the NDB’s description of the project’s purpose, financing and delivery responsibilities. No procurement timetable or contract award is established by those details.
Project timetable
The NDB project page targets completion by the end of 2028. That is a target for Stage 1, not a statement that the proposed water supplies are already operating. The project’s stated scope remains the delivery of bulk raw water to industrial users and treated potable water to communities in Mogalakwena Local Municipality.
The financing agreement and published target provide a basis for tracking the project, but they do not establish when individual users or communities will receive water. For now, the documented position is that the sovereign borrower has signed the NDB loan agreement, other funding sources are listed, and the responsible bodies have been identified for execution and implementation.
