Pick n Pay to list Boxer unit in Africa’s biggest IPO this year
Pick n Pay Stores said it will list its low-cost Boxer business on the Johannesburg bourse by the end of the year and that the South African grocer will raise as much as R8-billion in the process, making it the continent’s biggest offering this year. Amid a revamp of South Africa’s third-largest grocer by revenue, [...]
Ramaphosa wants 250Mt of freight moved by rail by 2029, as he notes progress in the sector
The seventh administration aims to push rail as the “backbone of transport” in the country, with President Cyril Ramaphosa urging that rail lines transport at least 250-million tonnes of freight a year by 2029. With Transnet set to finalise its Network Statement by year-end, Ramaphosa noted that this would help increase the volume of goods transported [...]
New Just Energy Transition matchmaking platform aiming for R600m in grant disbursements in 2025
A new matchmaking platform to directly link providers of grant funding pledged to South Africa’s Just Energy Transition Investment Plan (JET-IP) with domestic beneficiaries is aiming to ensure the disbursement of at least R600-million in grant funding to 20 projects in 2025 and facilitate disbursements of R1.5-billion to 50 projects in 2026. Grant recipients could [...]
UP, ARM open virtual conference centre
The University of Pretoria (UP) and African Rainbow Minerals (ARM) have announced the official opening of the UP-ARM Virtual Conference Centre, aimed at enhancing collaboration between academia and industry. “This innovative centre will empower staff and students to connect and engage virtually with local and international institutions of higher learning, academic communities, research organisations and [...]
South Africa in talks with energy partners on loan guarantees
South Africa is in talks with its international climate-finance partners over the provision of guarantees for loans for the construction of energy-related infrastructure. “We are managing, in particular, issues with our international partners” around guarantees, said Joanne Yawitch, head of the project management unit for the $9.3-billion pact within the South African presidency, at an [...]
First shipments of graphite concentrate from Madagascar mine to Germany, US
The first commercial shipments of graphite concentrate from the Molo graphite mine in southern Madagascar to Germany and the US have been completed, Toronto-listed NextSource Materials has announced. Container loads of coarse flake graphite concentrate were exported from Madagascar’s Tulear port under existing offtake agreements.
Afrimat posts 45.4% drop in operating profit after ‘extremely stressful’ first half
Although mid-tier mining and materials company Afrimat recorded a year-on-year revenue increase of 44.3%, from R2.8-billion to R4.1-billion for the six months ended August 31, its operating profit fell by 45.2%, from R534.1-million to R292.7-million. This followed Afrimat’s efforts to bolster its long-term growth strategy by expanding its asset base in the mining, quarrying and [...]
Petroleum Products Bill released for public comment
The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has published the draft Petroleum Products Bill for a 60-day public comment period, which was launched on October 21. The DMRE says the Bill, which seeks to repeal and replace the Petroleum Products Act of 1977, aims to expand and streamline the licensing and appeals processes.
Mutual investment, regional value chains can support more African capital equipment manufacturing
All countries in Africa are pursuing localisation initiatives for some goods and products, and the capital equipment manufacturing industry should focus on making investments in countries to develop and deepen regional value chains for long-term sustainability. South Africa imports billions of rands worth of capital equipment each year, but also has an established components and capital [...]
Harmony delivers gold recovery project with 30% of building work going to locals
With the streaming agreement between Franco-Nevada and Mine Waste Solutions (MWS) over, Harmony Gold will from now on benefit fully from the soaring gold price that is coinciding with the delivery on time and on budget of Phase 1 of the 15-year-life Kareerand tailings retreatment facility (TSF), a high-margin gold-from-dumps project. Consequently, MWS's free cash [...]
Families welcome South African Parliament’s call for two engineers to be released from …
The families of Frik Potgieter and Peter Huxham, the two South African engineers who have been illegally imprisoned in Equatorial Guinea since February 9, 2023, say they are "deeply grateful" to the South African Parliament, which on October 22 adopted a unanimous motion calling for the engineers' immediate release. The two South Africans were arrested [...]
Water power is there for the taking in many underground mines
Water power is there for the taking across a broad spectrum of many of South Africa’s hard-rock underground mines. At a time of high electricity price, the availability of cooling reservoirs at mining operations presents a chance to harness gravity pressurised water that can be used to energise underground impact rockbreaking machinery, former Gullick South [...]