South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) CEO Brenda Martin on Friday asserted that the renewables sector has proven its capacity to take on upfront risk and to contribute to broader national development objectives such as job creation, social development and providing new opportunities for economic ownership. In response to a statement issued by the National [...]

Cova Advisory on Friday said the 2019 Budget, presented by Finance Minister Tito Mboweni on Wednesday, was “disappointing” with regard to support for manufacturing, with the manufacturing incentives budget of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) expected to be reduced over the next three years from R3.5-billion in 2018/19 to R2.7-billion in 2021/22. Cova [...]

A whistleblower's claims that Sasol is to blame for the intentional pollution of the Vaal River, were vehemently denied by the petrochemical giant at a South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) inquiry on Wednesday. The SAHRC established the inquiry in September 2018 to determine whether the pollution of the river amounted to an infringement of basic human [...]

South Africa's support plan for struggling state-owned electricity firm Eskom will put further strain on the country's finances, rating agency S&P Global said on Thursday, although it should be offset to a degree by easing external pressures. In his maiden budget speech on Wednesday Finance Minister Tito Mboweni outlined a R69-billion, three-year bailout for Eskom, [...]

Ratings agency Moody's said on Thursday that it did not believe that South Africa's decision in its 2019 budget to raise the expenditure ceiling by around R16-billion over three years would weaken fiscal policy credibility. Moody's, the last of the big three ratings agencies to rate South Africa in investment grade, is scheduled to review [...]

National Treasury's cash injections to Eskom to the tune of R23-billion a year to help it cover its debt are likely to continue for a decade, Finance Minister Tito Mboweni told MPs on Thursday. "It will be for ten years, so R230-billion. I think in the book we put R69-billion," Mboweni said in a briefing [...]

The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) on Thursday called for minister of public enterprises Pravin Gordhan to be dismissed immediately for his alleged role in the cost overruns at struggling power utility Eskom. Last week, Gordhan said the two new multi-billion rand coal-fired power plants Medupi and Kusile were "badly designed and badly [...]

Embattled retail giant Steinhoff International said on Thursday that it has received a petition by a group of shareholders for inquiry proceedings before the Enterprise Chamber of the Amsterdam Court of Appeal. "The petition includes a request to appoint an investigator as well as an additional member of the supervisory board of the company whose [...]

Nigeria has ordered foreign oil and gas companies to pay nearly $20-billion in taxes it says are owed to local states, industry and government sources said, in a move that could deter investment in Africa's largest economy. In a letter sent to the companies earlier this year via a debt-collection arm of the government, Nigerian [...]

A bailout for struggling South African state utility Eskom could reach as much as R150-billion over ten years, a senior National Treasury official told Reuters. The Treasury said on Wednesday that it would provide Eskom with R69-billion of financial support over three years.

South Africa will increase spending on its National Health Insurance programme at an average annual rate of 36.6 percent, from R1.2-billion in 2018/19 to R3-billion in 2021/22, the National Treasury said on Wednesday. In its 2019 budget review, the Treasury said the allocations for national health insurance would be continually reviewed in tandem with policy [...]

Creamer Media's Chanel de Bruyn speaks to Engineering News Editor Terence Creamer about Finance Minister Tito Mboweni’s announcement of a R69-billion bailout for Eskom over three years, how this has impacted on the country’s fiscal framework and how it is likely to affect South Africa’s credit rating.