Saldanha is a town in the province of Western Cape in South Africa. It is on the west coast, 56 miles (90 kilometers) northwest of Table Bay.
Saldanha has the best natural harbor on the South African coast. Iron ore mined in the province of Northern Cape passes through Saldanha Bay. A specially constructed 530-mile (860-kilometer) rail link carries trains that are more than 11/4 miles (2 kilometers) long to and from the Sishen Mine near Kathu.
Saldanha is a major fishing center with many canneries and factories. A nuclear power station is about 50 miles (80 kilometers) to the south. The town has a military academy. The town is named in honor of António de Saldanha, a Portuguese admiral who anchored in Table Bay in 1503.
Since 1975, Saldanha and the nearby town of Vredenburg have been part of the same municipality. In 2000, Saldanha and Vredenburg were merged with the towns of Hopefield and Langebaan, as well as other nearby communities and rural areas, to form the Saldanha Bay local municipality. The municipality has a population of 154,635.
