The South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) says it will carry out blasting to remove rock outcrops near the Camperdown Overpass bridge at 14:00 on Tuesday March 14 for the construction of the stormwater system, as well as pavement layers. This forms part of the ongoing N3 upgrades from the Cato Ridge Interchange to [...]

Following the declaration of a National State of Disaster to address the energy crisis, Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Ebrahim Patel on March 8 published draft exemptions from certain parts of competition laws, to enable companies to collaborate on energy matters. Patel has, in terms of Section 10(10) of the Competition Act, gazetted a notice [...]

Engineering News editor Terence Creamer discusses the appointment of Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa as Minister of Electricity in the Presidency; immediate steps taken by the Minister to diffuse possible tensions with Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan and Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe; what South Africans can expect from Ramokgopa in the weeks and months [...]

Amid the current energy crisis, declared to be a state of disaster during last month’s State of the Nation Address by President Cyril Ramaphosa, battery energy storage systems (BESS) could potentially provide some near-term relief in areas of grid constraint, while also allowing households some protection against loadshedding. The ‘Understanding Energy Storage’ handbook – released [...]

Precious and green metals mining company Sibanye-Stillwater said on Thursday that it had completed consultations to minimise job losses in restructuring its South Africa gold operations. The consultation took place under Section 189A (S189) of the Labour Relations Act, 66 of 1995, amid ongoing financial losses at the Beatrix 4 gold mine shaft in the [...]

Following numerous appeals to national government to act against a scourge of violence and intimidation against Intercape in recent years, the long-distance coach company has now called on newly appointed Transport Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga to urgently intervene. This follows a renewed attack on the bus operator by taxi operators.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels could result in an environmental hazard in 30 years’ time, as only 10% of the most widely used panel types are recycled in the US, while this data is unknown in South Africa, Stellenbosch Business School Institute for Futures Research (IFR) research assistant Francois Pretorius says. South Africa imported more than [...]

A circular economy in the concrete and cement industry could produce €110-billion in net value and avoid or mitigate two-billion tons of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions by 2050, driven by the capture, storage and use of CO₂ from cement and concrete production, the re-use of energy from waste material and the recirculation of materials and [...]

The largest share of Gauteng’s R493.4-billion over the medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF) is set to support social services, the township economy, job creation and the energy crisis, said Gauteng Finance MEC Jacob Mamabolo on Thursday. Presenting the province’s budget for 2023/24 to the legislature, he said that 83% of the provincial budget, amounting to R412-billion [...]

Civil rights organisation AfriForum has submitted a formal Promotion of Access to Information application to the Gauteng High Court, requesting State-owned freight utility Transnet to provide information on some of its operations. The organisation is seeking transparency from the entity on all active contracts that Transnet or its subsidiaries have concluded with any logistics or [...]

JSE-listed Tongaat Hulett says the recent rains and flooding caused by tropical cyclone Freddy has had an impact on the company’s Mozambique sugar operations. The extent of the damage has yet to be determined owing to high water levels across the Xinavane Estate. The impact on the Mafambisse Estate is said to be minimal.

South Africa's current account balance switched to a deficit of 2.6% of gross domestic product (GDP) in the final quarter of 2022 from a small surplus in the third quarter, central bank data showed on Thursday. In rand terms the current account deficit for the October to December period was R174-billion from a surplus of [...]