It is named after Tshiame Kenneth Mopeli, Chief Minister of the defunct QwaQwa homeland.

The full perimeter of the industrial area is fenced in by modern technology, creating a "see-through wall" of wire mesh standing three metres tall.

The fencing-in was done as a security measure, to keep unwanted elements out as a means to curb crime perpetrated in the area.

The settlement borders the N5 national road leading to Durban and the rest of KwaZulu-Natal, and is situated just north of the Sterkfontein Dam, a major water reservoir and the second largest dam by volume in South Africa.

The large town of Phuthaditjhaba in the former QwaQwa lies further south of Tshiame.