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Haul trucks in operation at a West African mine

Use resources to diversify African economies, unlock sustainable growth

Published: 21 May 24

A majority of African economies, or 83%, are highly commodity-dependent and are vulnerable to external shocks, experiencing good growth when commodity prices are high, but seeing growth reversal and setbacks when prices are low. Chad, for example, experienced an average of 9% growth in GDP between 2001 and 2014, but since 2015, the GDP of the country has contracted and poverty increased. GDP per capita is decreasing and developmental gains have been reversed because of the inability to sustain economic growth.

TotalEnergies, Petronas, Sonangol to proceed with Angolan deepwater project

Published: 21 May 24

Energy company TotalEnergies (40%), along with its Block 20/11 partners, Petronas (40%) and Sonangol (20%), have announced the final investment decision (FID) of the Kaminho deepwater project to develop the Cameia and Golfinho fields, located 100 km off the coast of Angola, in 1 700 m of water. This FID has been made possible thanks to a close collaboration with the concessionaire Agencia Nacional de Petroleo e Gas (ANPG).

Zimbabwe asks miners to ramp up gold output to support ZiG currency

Published: 21 May 24

Zimbabwe has asked gold miners across the country to ramp up output to support the ZiG currency launched last month, according to Mines and Mining Development Minister Winston Chitando. “This new currency is anchored on gold production, we have to determine ways to increase production,” Chitando said Monday in a meeting with miners in the capital, Harare.

Reserve Bank warns carbon taxes may cut exports by 10%

Published: 21 May 24

South African economic growth could be severely stunted if carbon taxes are widely imposed on its exports, according to a new report by the country’s central bank. The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) said the hit could reach 10% of exports and more than 9% of gross domestic product in 2050 under a worst-case scenario in which carbon taxes are slapped on all exports by all trading partners. But it also found the impact could be much lighter, in a summary of several studies into the implications of the European Union’a new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism on South African exports.

Orange, Vodacom said in talks on African infrastructure deals

Published: 21 May 24

Vodacom Group is in discussions with France’s Orange about a strategic partnership in Africa to explore infrastructure deals to help keep down costs on the continent, people familiar with the matter said. The telecommunications companies are looking at agreements in overlapping markets including Egypt and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and reviewing where there are other opportunities to work together, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private.

NOA Group acquires early-stage Khauta solar farm in the Free State

Published: 20 May 24

Local integrated energy company NOA Group has successfully acquired the 350 MW Khauta solar PV facility, near Welkom, in the Free State, from PNE, which started the development of the facility. The addition of the solar farm brings NOA’s total grid-secured assets to 500 MW and closer to its overall target of 5 GW.

Seminar commemorates World Metrology Day, with a focus on sustainability

Published: 20 May 24

In celebration of the first Unesco-recognised World Metrology Day on May 20, as well as a global emphasis on climate change and sustainability, the National Metrology Institute of South Africa (NMISA) held a World Metrology Day seminar, focused on the theme of ‘measurement science in support of sustainability seminar’. During the seminar, Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic) chief directorate for green industries Gerhard Fourie discussed the opportunities and challenges the energy transition held for South Africa.

Speakers explore process heat supply alternatives

Published: 20 May 24

With South Africa facing an imminent gas supply cliff, and the need to decarbonise becoming increasingly imperative, industrial gas users are facing considerable challenges and may need to explore alternative solutions for process heat supply. This was outlined by speakers during EE Business Intelligence’s ‘Innovating process heat supply: Power to heat and thermal storage’ webinar, on May 20.

IAEA expert team in Uganda to support country’s uranium production plans

Published: 20 May 24

A specialist expert mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is currently in Uganda to undertake a review connected with the East African country’s nuclear energy ambitions, specialist news agency World Nuclear News reports. Uganda plans to construct 24 000 MWe of nuclear energy capacity, and has selected Russian and South Korean companies to each build a nuclear power plant (NPP) in the country. These two NPPs will have a combined capacity of 15 000 MW. The IAEA team visiting the country is an Integrated Uranium Production Cycle Review (IUPCR) mission. This type of mission serves to help IAEA member countries develop infrastructure for their own uranium production programmes, across all the stages of the uranium production cycle.

GVK-Siya Zama-constructed student accommodation block in Cape Town

GVK completes 20-storey student housing block in Cape Town

Published: 20 May 24

Privately owned construction company GVK-Siya Zama has completed construction of a 20-storey, 3 000-bed student accommodation block in Cape Town. The 77 000 m2 development also includes 6 700 m2 of retail space and a public square.