Public infrastructure spending is budgeted at R1.06 trillion over the 2026 to 2029 medium-term expenditure framework, with 63 public-private partnership projects in development and PPP spending rising toward R7.8 billion by the end of 2026.

There is work. The constraint is capacity to fund it, not to find it.

Infrastructure spend is forecast at approximately R157 billion with industry growth projected between 3% and 5.8% for 2025/26.

A recovering market, but not a boom. Growth must be won from competitors as well as from the pipeline.

The industry has lost several of its largest players.

Capacity has left the market. Mid-tier contractors face less competition on medium-sized work than five years ago.

Gross fixed capital formation sits just above 14% of GDP against a global average around 28%.

Structural under-investment. Long-run demand is supported, but projects stall on cost of capital before reaching site.

Payment cycles have extended to 75 days or more in practice, and the CIDB has reported 60% of payments delayed beyond the 30-day statutory requirement.

The single largest operating risk. Section 6 is the response.

Clients are offloading an increasing share of contractual risk onto contractors with little flexibility in return.

Contract terms must be read and priced, not accepted. A risk transferred is a cost.

Gauteng’s Infrastructure Master Plan allocates 62% of a R65 billion three-year pipeline to Grade 5 to 9 contractors, and introduces a Contractor Sustainability Score penalising downgrading.

The grade ladder is where the work is, and holding a grade matters as much as reaching it.

The skills shortage is described as very problematic, with thin margins making training hard to fund.

A contractor that can retain skilled site staff has a durable advantage.