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PetroSA targets Mozambique gas in new sales deal

Published: 17 Apr 24

PetroSA expects the first flows of gas into the country from a deal with Mozambique's national energy company ENH later this year, officials said, amid efforts to shore up supplies ahead of a potentially crippling shortage. Handed a gas trading licence by regulators in March, state-owned oil and gas company PetroSA has moved quickly to secure a deal for an initial 2 petajoules of gas a year (PJ/a), with scope to rise to 200 petajoules eventually.

Boeing makes dramatically increases its sustainable aviation fuel purchases

Published: 17 Apr 24

American aerospace giant Boeing has announced that it is to buy 35.6-million litres of blended sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), for use by its US commercial operations this year. This is its biggest annual SAF purchase to date, and is more than 60% greater than the amount it bought last year. This will help reduce the company’s carbon emissions. “As our focus remains on safety and quality, sustainability continues to be a priority,” assured Boeing VP Environmental Sustainability Ryan Faucett. “[SAF] is essential to decarbonise aviation. About 20% of our fuel usage is a SAF blend, and we continue to increase our use of this fuel to encourage growth in the SAF industry. We are also working to make SAF more available and affordable to our commercial airline customers through collaboration, investment, research and policy development.”

South Africa inflation slows slightly more than expected in March

Published: 17 Apr 24

South Africa's headline consumer inflation fell to 5.3% year on year in March from 5.6% in February, statistics agency data showed on Wednesday. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast that inflation would slow to 5.4% in annual terms. The South African Reserve Bank kept its main interest rate unchanged at 8.25% last month, saying its policy stance needed to remain restrictive to tackle higher inflation expectations. It expects headline inflation to reach the midpoint of its target range of 4.5% only near the end of 2025. SARB Governor Lesetja Kganyago told Reuters earlier in April that South African policymakers were in discussions to lower the bank's current inflation target range of between 3% and 6% to bring it more in line with peers. On a month-on-month basis, inflation was at 0.8% in March compared to 1.0% a month before, Statistics South Africa said.

MTN, Huawei launch joint technology innovation lab

Published: 17 Apr 24

Telecommunications giant MTN Group and information and communication technology group Huawei have jointly launched Technology Innovation Lab to accelerate digital transformation and sustainable development across Africa. The establishment of the lab at MTN’s headquarters in Roodepoort, marking a significant advancement in the parties’ ongoing collaboration across diverse digital fields, followed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding in February.

Eskom says modest R9m RCA request not a signal of alignment with Nersa on calculations

Published: 17 Apr 24

The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has initiated consultations on Eskom’s latest Regulatory Clearing Account (RCA) application for the 2022/23 financial year, where Eskom is requesting R9-million, its lowest RCA application since the utility began making yearly submissions under the claw-back mechanism. Given that the amount is less than 2% of Eskom’s allowable revenue for the year, Nersa is not required to undertake public hearings. Nevertheless, a consultation document has been published, with virtual hearings scheduled for August 2 and 4 and a decision expected by December 2.

Namibia sees final investment decision on oil find by end 2024

Published: 17 Apr 24

Namibia will invest a big chunk of any revenue it gets from a potentially massive oil discovery into a sovereign wealth fund, and expects to learn if the find is commercially viable later this year. “We understand that the quantities are large but we still have to test the commercial viability of this oil,” Finance Minister Ipumbu Shiimi told Bloomberg in an interview Tuesday in Washington. “We expect them to reach a final investment decision probably by the end of this year.”

Impact manager Acre raises $100m for African climate infrastructure

Published: 17 Apr 24

Two former BNP Paribas bankers have raised almost $100-million for a new fund which aims to unlock billions of dollars of funding for climate-aligned infrastructure projects in Africa. Acre Impact Capital, a private-debt impact investment manager, is looking to address the estimated $100-billion annual infrastructure financing gap on the continent by providing a portion of the unsecured funding for export finance projects.

Cape Town technology enterprise incubator celebrates birthday with launch of new products

Published: 16 Apr 24

Cape Town-based ‘techpreneur’ incubation hub The Creative Lab has announced that it would mark its first anniversary with the launch of a diverse array of cutting-edge products, developed by a number of South African innovators, using the hub’s facilities. The Creative Lab is an initiative of EvansWerks. “Opening The Creative Lab was a leap of faith for my family,” highlighted EvansWerks CEO and founder Justin Eugene Evans. “Today, we’re witnessing the dividends of that investment, proving the abundance of tech talent in South Africa. They simply lacked a facility designed to bring their ideas to life.”

University of Pretoria inaugurates new immersive technology lab

Published: 16 Apr 24

The University of Pretoria’s Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology has launched a new immersive technology lab at the Department of Information Science as a way of further integrating advanced immersive technologies into its curriculum and research initiatives. The immersive technology lab has its roots in the early integration of virtual reality (VR) technology within the department, dating back to 2013. The acquisition of early VR headsets allowed honours students to immerse themselves in the forefront of technological innovation.

UNTD calls for more fiscal flexibility to help developing countries reach SDGs

Published: 16 Apr 24

While the global economic slowdown in 2023 was less severe than expected, intergovernmental organisation United Nations Trade and Development (UNTD) has warned that a further deceleration in global economic growth can be expected this year. UNTD secretary-general Rebeca Grynspan has called for concerted multilateral action and a balanced policy mix to safeguard the global economy amid shifting trade patterns, soaring debt and mounting costs of climate change, particularly in developing countries.