Conditions challenging, but some green shoots emerging – MBA North

Last year was one of the most challenging years the Master Builders Association (MBA) North has ever experienced, with many of its long-standing members entering business rescue or closing their... 

New-vehicle sales plummet 11.7% in March, extending months-long slide

New-vehicle sales plummeted by 11.7% in March, to 44 237 units, compared with the same month last year. Sales for the first quarter of the year are now 5.3% below the same period last year. 

Record R12.1bn set aside for infrastructure in Cape Town’s R76.4bn budget for 2024/25

Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has tabled a R76.4-billion draft budget for the city for the 2024/25 financial year. The budget proposes record infrastructure investment of R12.1-billion for the... 

Metair reassures market amid huge debt, challenges at Türkiye battery business

Metair is still very much open for business and the group is able to accommodate new clients should they need automotive components or energy storage solutions, says new CEO Paul O’Flaherty.... 

GAC Motor joins inflow from China

China’s GAC Motor has appointed Salvador Caetano Auto as the distributor and retailer of GAC vehicles, spare parts and related services in South Africa (SA). GAC Motor is a subsidiary of the... 

Electric trucks too expensive? Now you can rent one from Volvo Trucks SA

Volvo Trucks South Africa (SA) has introduced an equipment-as-a-service (EaaS) model for its new electric truck rentals business. Following last year’s launch of Volvo electric trucks in South... 

VW Africa laments power outages in ECape; Patel says Electricity Minister is tackling the problem

Volkswagen Group Africa (VWA) last week suffered four power outages at its Kariega plant, says VWA MD and chairperson Martina Biene. This happened while there was no loadshedding scheduled for the... 

Volkswagen to invest R4bn to produce third model at Kariega plant

Volkswagen Group Africa (VWA) will invest R4-billion in its manufacturing plant in Kariega, in the Eastern Cape. The investment will be used to prepare the plant for the addition of a third model... 

Millennials, Gen-Zs want cars, but are struggling to afford them – WesBank

Young South Africans, aged 35 and younger, are demonstrating a growing preference for private mobility. This is evident in recent WesBank data that shows a consistent increase over the past three... 

Jaecoo launches its first cars in South Africa

China’s Jaecoo brand has launched its first vehicle in South Africa – the J7 sports-utility vehicle (SUV). Chery/Omoda & Jaecoo South Africa (SA) says the “urban off-road SUV brand” is “poised to... 

Cape Town to tighten procurement process in effort to combat extortion

The City of Cape Town (CoCT) says the yearly review of its Supply Chain Management Policy proposes additional measures to reduce the risk of extortion impacting city projects. The proposed Supply... 

Suzuki breaks through the 50 000-unit sales mark

Suzuki Auto South Africa (Suzuki SA) has broken through the 50 000-units-a-year sales barrier for the first time in its history. The year in question is the company’s financial year, running from... 

Cape Town to depoly camera-fitted aircraft in war against crime

The City of Cape Towns’ (CoCT’s) Safety and Security Directorate is enhancing its crime prevention capabilities with the inclusion of new aerial surveillance technology. The information,... 

Cape Town’s MyCiTi depot construction 65% complete

The City of Cape Town (CoCT) says construction work on two new MyCiTi depots, located on the corner of Spine Road and Mew Way between Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain, is now 65% complete. City... 

Toyota, Ford and VW shine in AutoTrader report

In 2023, Toyota took top position as South Africa’s most sold used-car brand, with 60 296 units changing hands, while the Ford Ranger reigned supreme as the country's most sold model, at 20 156... 

Toyota adds Hilux, Fortuner hybrids to its local production line-up

Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) has added the Hilux double-cab and Fortuner 48 V mild hybrids to its local production line-up at its Durban plant, in KwaZulu-Natal. The addition of the new models... 

WeBuyCars lists on the JSE

Preowned-vehicle sales specialist WeBuyCars on Thursday listed on the main board of the JSE under the share code WBC. The listing follows WeBuyCars’ unbundling from Transaction Capital, which also... 

Cape Town takes second stab at rolling out electric buses for its MyCiTi service

The City of Cape Town should have battery electric buses (e-buses) operational on its MyCiTi bus service by 2027, says Urban Mobility MMC Rob Quintas. It will be the city’s second stab at rolling... 

Zero Carbon Charge says it will build 120 off-grid e-truck charging sites

Electric vehicle charging startup, Zero Carbon Charge, has launched a new subsidiary, Zero Carbon Logistics, which it says will roll out 120 off-grid solar photovoltaic (PV) electric truck charging... 

Shoprite, four global retailers form $125m venture fund aimed at innovation

Five grocery retailers, including South Africa’s Shoprite group, have established a venture fund called W23 Global. W23 Global brings together Ahold Delhaize (US, Europe, Indonesia), Tesco (UK,... 

Reforms to cut red tape starting to bear fruit – Ramaphosa

President Cyril Ramaphosa believes that government’s efforts to cut the red tape holding back infrastructure development are beginning to bearing fruit. Delivering the keynote address at... 

Govt turns to private sector to fix public facilities

Given the current economic downturn, government does not have the resources to look after all its assets, says Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) property management trading... 

Infrastructure SA names 12 projects it will unlock in 2024/25

Infrastructure South Africa (ISA) unveiled 12 “infrastructure projects for preparation” for the 2024/25 financial year at the Sustainable Infrastructure Development Symposium South Africa 2024... 

Infrastructure SA gets R600m boost from Treasury for project preparation

The National Treasury has allocated Infrastructure South Africa (ISA) a budget of R600-million over three years to “prepare projects”, says ISA head Mameetse Masemola. Addressing a media conference... 

DP World wins big as bpSA outsources its secondary transport ops

DP World will take over bp Southern Africa’s (bpSA’s) Cape Town, Johannesburg, Pretoria and Rustenburg logistics operations as the energy group has opted to outsource its secondary transport. In... 

PRASA restores five more rail corridors partially

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) says it has restored another five Metrorail corridors across Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape. These rail services were interrupted by... 

New-vehicle sales plummet 11.7% in March

New-vehicle sales plummeted by 11.7% in March, to 44 235 units, compared with the same month last year. Sales for the first quarter of the year are now 5.3% below the same period last year. 

New online portal launched to aid Cape Town’s solar PV boom

The City of Cape Town has launched a new online application portal for solar photovoltaic (PV) installations. More than 5 000 solar PV systems have been authorised to date, totalling 126 MVA, with... 

Varsity, private firm in partnership to develop protocol for production of radiopharmaceuticals

Stellenbosch University (SU) and high-tech company Enlightened Isotopes, a subsidiary of ASP Isotopes, have entered into an R8.5-million research partnership to develop a protocol for the... 

Toyota launches expanded accessories programme in SA

Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) has launched a new programme called Associated Accessory Products (AAP). The local arm of the Japanese carmaker says this one-stop-shop offering will complement... 

Ctrack transport, freight index shows deterioration in all but one of six sectors tracked

After increasing somewhat in December, the Ctrack Transport and Freight Index (TFI) declined notably in January to a level of 119.3 – a drop of 2.1%, compared with December’s 121.9. The extent of... 

Cape Town tables R76.4bn budget; infrastructure spending at R12.1bn

Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has tabled a R76.4-billion draft budget for the city for the 2024/25 financial year. The budget proposes record infrastructure investment of R12.1-billion for the... 

Metair to tackle high debt, gauge Mutlu’s future  

Metair is still very much open for business and the group is able to accommodate new clients should they need automotive components or energy solutions, says new CEO Paul O’Flaherty. O’Flaherty,... 

China’s LDV launches in the local bakkie, commercial vehicle market

LDV is the latest automotive brand from China to enter South Africa, with the Asian country seemingly intensifying its efforts to become the world’s new automotive powerhouse. LDV forms part of... 

GAC Motor joins inflow from China; Ramsoomar appointed as MD

China’s GAC Motor has appointed Salvador Caetano Auto as the distributor and retailer of GAC vehicles, spare parts and related services in South Africa (SA). GAC Motor is a subsidiary of the... 

Toyota adds Hilux, Fortuner hybrids to its local production line-up

Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) has added the Hilux double-cab and Fortuner 48 V mild hybrids to its local production line-up at its Durban plant in KwaZulu-Natal. The addition of the new models... 

BW8 last under IRP 2019, nuclear ambitions not a pipe dream – Mantashe

Bid Window 8 of government’s Renewable Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme will be the last bid window under the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2019, says Mineral Resources and Energy... 

Grindrod to spend big at Maputo’s Matola drybulk terminal to grow capacity

Ports and logistics group Grindrod is set to invest big in its Matola drybulk terminal in Mozambique. Announcing Grindrod’s financial results for the year ended December 31 earlier this month, CEO... 

‘It’s not all doom and gloom in our space’ – WBHO boss

With a total pipeline of work of R240-billion, up from R211-billion in June, Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon’s (WBHO’s) short- to medium-term future “should be okay”, says CEO Wolfgang Neff. “It’s not... 

Cape Town completes R2bn Zandvliet Waste Water Treatment Works upgrade

The upgraded Zandvliet Waste Water Treatment Works has been handed over by the contractor to Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis. Contractors in the city are not named to protect them from extortion...