State-owned defence technology company Denel is displaying its guided weapons and landward defence systems at the Defence Service Asia (DSA) exhibition this week. Its Umkhonto surface-to-air missile can be launched from naval vessels or ground-based launchers. It travels at more than twice the speed of sound, can be configured to carry up to eight missiles and can reach simultaneous targets.

In her latest weekly newsletter, Business Leadership South Africa CEO Busisiwe Mavuso warns that South Africa could face a “gas cliff” when the supply of gas to industrial users ceases in 2026. In the May 6 newsletter, she says this is a crisis for businesses that collectively employ 70 000 people and generate R500-billion a year for the economy and argues that this crisis can only be avoided with a coordinated and rapid plan between business and government.

Oil major Shell will divest its majority shareholding from a local South African downstream unit after a comprehensive review of its businesses across all regions, it said on Monday. "As a result of this review, Shell has decided to reshape the downstream portfolio and intends to divest our shareholding in SDSA ... this decision was not taken lightly," a Shell statement said. It did not specify when the decision took effect.

State power utility Eskom has said it has "no choice" but to approach the Johannesburg High Court to force City Power to pay just over R1-billion in unpaid debt. Eskom noted that City Power began to default on payments in October 2023 and that it did not receive any payment for March, this year.

Telecommunications group Telkom is preparing to support South Africa’s upcoming national elections as the information and communications technology partner to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC). South Africa’s 2024 elections are set to be held on May 29.

New-vehicle sales have finally moved into positive territory following eight gruelling months of decline. Not all market segments experienced growth, however.

KwaZulu-Natal provincial entity Dube TradePort Corporation (DTPC) has launched its Dube TradeZone 2 – the second phase of the industrial precinct and special economic zone (SEZ) adjacent to the King Shaka International Airport. Dube TradeZone 2 has, to date, attracted R1.8-billion in private-sector investment and this phase is expected to create 600 jobs within the next five years. 

Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa denies that the prevailing reprieve from loadshedding has been “stage managed” to improve the prospects of the governing African National Congress ahead of the May 29 poll, attributing it instead to “orchestrated” engineering efforts undertaken by Eskom over the past 18 months. Speaking during a briefing that coincided with the fortieth consecutive day of no loadshedding and amid growing societal cynicism about the timing of such supply stability, the Minister also strenuously denied that the improved performance was because Eskom was relying more heavily on the diesel-fuelled open cycle gas turbines that it owned as well as those operated by independent power producers (IPPs).

President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday assured that government is working to get rid of red tape that impedes and slows down investment. Ramaphosa wrote in his weekly letter to the nation that it was only through attracting higher levels of foreign and domestic investment that a swift, sustainable economic recovery could be assured. He said government had significantly reduced waiting times for water use licences and other important authorisations for getting major investment projects off the ground. Ramaphosa said since this administration took office, government had held five Investment Conferences that had attracted R1.5-trillion in investment commitments across a broad range of economic sectors. “Over one-third of these pledges have translated into job-creating businesses and business expansions in renewable energy, mining, packaging, automotive, retail, manufacturing, transportation and other sectors,” he said. He highlighted that while there was a broadly positive attitude towards South Africa among investors, the country’s net foreign direct investment as a percentage of gross domestic production was slightly lower than the global average.

JSE-listed Redefine Properties reported solid results for the six months to February 29, despite prevailing challenging economic conditions in South Africa, including the impact of high interest rates, loadshedding and consumer strain, CEO Andrew König said in a briefing on May 6. He said the group was choosing to be "mindfully optimistic" about the future, cognisant of the challenges, but also of the opportunities it could capitalise on.