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Neasa asks Patel, Itac to stop imposing upstream steel import duties

Published: 24 May 24

The National Employers' Association of South Africa (Neasa) says government’s duties on imported steel only serve to support ailing primary steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA). Neasa said the duties would not only fail to save AMSA in the long run, but were also gradually eroding the entire steel industry.

AU signs new agreement on Earth observation cooperation with a European organisation

Published: 24 May 24

The African Union Commission (AUC) and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (much better known by its acronym, EUMETSAT) have signed an agreement to reinforce their cooperation in the sphere of Earth observation (EO). This follows the start of the deployment of the third generation of EUMETSAT’s Meteosat weather- and climate-focused EO satellites. This third generation is known as the MTG satellite system. “The Memorandum of Understanding represents ...

Brikor anticipates more than 100% improvement in full-year earnings

Published: 24 May 24

AltX-listed construction materials provider Brikor expects to post earnings a share of between 0.9c and 1.1c for the financial year ended February 29, compared with a loss a share of 0.7c in the 2023 financial year. This equates to a more than 100% year-on-year increase in earnings a share.

IATA African aviation conference to be held in South Africa in July

Published: 24 May 24

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), the global representative body for the airline industry, has announced that its second Wings of Change Focus Africa Conference (WOCFA) will take place in Johannesburg, South Africa, on July 2 and July 3 this year. The host airline for the conference will be South African Airways (SAA). WOCFA forms part of IATA’s Focus Africa initiative, and serves as a platform to examine and review the initiative’s priorities. Focus Africa is intended to reinforce the role of aviation in the continent’s development, social as well as economic, including through improving safety, reliability and connectivity, for both people and cargo.

Shipping losses hit all-time low, shadow fleet growing, says new report

Published: 24 May 24

The 2024 Allianz Safety and Shipping Review notes that 26 large ships were lost worldwide last year – down by a third year-on-year, and the industry’s lowest ever total. Around 90% of international trade is transported across the globe’s oceans.

Staff often have to work on outages at night

Cape Town’s water and sanitation staff victims of 22 hijackings, 52 robberies

Published: 24 May 24

The City of Cape Town (CoCT) says its Water and Sanitation staff have been the victims of 22 hijackings and 52 robberies since July 1, last year. Of the hijackings, seven were in Khayelitsha, six in Philippi and three in Mfuleni.

Tourism Transformation Fund has approved R272m of financing assistance

Published: 24 May 24

The Tourism Transformation Fund (TTF) has approved transactions to the value of R272-million since its inception in 2017. The TTF was launched as a collaborative effort between the Department of Tourism and the National Empowerment Fund (NEF) to foster economic transformation and empowerment in the tourism sector.

Desert to Power Initiative to transform Africa’s most vulnerable region into an energy hub

Published: 24 May 24

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has emphasised its role in delivering the Desert to Power Initiative, which aims to energise one of the least developed and most marginal parts of the continent. The Sahel region, which is one of the most vulnerable regions in the world, will become a solar energy hub, targeting 11 countries: Burkina Faso, Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Sudan. Desert to Power seeks to generate 10 GW of solar power by 2030 by ...

Crime, corruption keep South Africa’s S&P rating in check

Published: 24 May 24

S&P Global Ratings said it is closely monitoring the outcome of South Africa’s elections next week and subsequent government policies to address issues from crime to energy supply that have deterred investment. “We have seen investors being a little bit more cautious this year because of the election uncertainty,” S&P’s Zahabia Gupta said in an interview. “Post-elections, more political and policy stability could lead to increased investment activity.”

Solar PV facilities made up 99 of the registrations, with total capacity of 499 MW and an investment cost of R9.9-billion

Nersa confirms registration of 105 more generators as overall number rises to 1 415

Published: 24 May 24

The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) reports that it registered a further 105 generation facilities during the period from January to March 2024, raising to 1 415 the number of facilities registered since the system was introduced in 2018. In a statement, Nersa said the newly registered facilities had a combined capacity of 788 MW and a total investment value of R18.4-billion, increasing the overall capacity of registered projects to 7 158 MW and the total investment value to R131-billion.