Exxaro likely to move more coal in FY2015; cuts expansion capex

Coal and heavy minerals miner Exxaro expects coal production and sales volumes for the 2015 financial year to top that of the prior 12 months, noting in a market update this week that the scheduled... 

R300m fund for SMMEs in renewable-energy sector launched

Specialist risk finance group Business Partners has launched a dedicated R300-million fund earmarked for the financing of new or existing small, medium-sized and microenterprises (SMMEs) in the... 

DoE says fossil fuels to play prominent, but declining, energy mix role

As South Africa continues to await the tabling of the country’s Integrated Energy Plan (IEP) by Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson, Department of Energy (DoE) energy planning chief director... 

Technology agency lifts third party funding 168% in 2014/15

In its first yearly report launch on Friday, Innovation and technology funder the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) revealed that it had boosted third-party financing by 168.8% year-on-year,... 

Lobby group moves to oppose ‘unequal’ steel antidumping duties

Industry body, the National Employers Association of South Africa (Neasa) has launched a South African Steel Lobby that will advocate for the shelving of the antidumping application by primary... 

Harmony names former COO Steenkamp CEO

Following a four-month headhunt prompted by the retirement of company head Graham Briggs, Harmony Gold Mining has appointed its former COO and current Sasol Mining senior VP Peter Steenkamp as CEO,... 

A third of S Africans still lack access to safe, private toilets – report

As the globe marks World Toilet Day on November 19, recent analysis revealing that 33.6% of South African citizens lack access to safe, private toilets has prompted international charity WaterAid... 

TÜV SÜD South Africa to sell 26% stake in BEE deal

Within the scope of a strategic transaction aimed at boosting the group’s local black economic-empowerment (BEE) threshold, global testing, certification, inspection and training provider TÜV SÜD... 

Keaton swings to H1 loss as troubled Vaalkrantz asset weighs on profits

While consistent year-on-year output from thermal coal producer Keaton Energy’s stalwart Vanggatfontein operation bolstered the junior’s productive performance in the first six months of the... 

Silver supply to fall 3% in 2015 on flat FY production

Market analyst Thomson Reuters GFMS expects overall global silver supply to fall 3% to 1.02-billion ounces in 2015, driven largely by flat mine production, a 5% drop in scrap return and net... 

StratMin to receive first-tranche payment from Bass before year-end

ASX-listed Bass Metals has informed London-listed graphite production and exploration company StratMin that it will complete the remaining payments for the first tranche of the company’s £2-million... 

Metallon narrows FY guidance 30% on power, equipment troubles

Equipment breakdowns, increased power interruptions and grade challenges have scuppered gold miner Metallon Corporation’s hopes of increasing production in the third quarter ended September 30,... 

Arrowhead boosts FY distributions 13%, plans listed offshoot in 2016

Real estate investment trust (Reit) Arrowhead Properties has grown its yearly distribution by 13%, declaring 150.30c per combined A and B share for the year ended September 30, it said on... 

Q3 business conditions, sentiment once again retract

Tenuous domestic and global economic conditions continue to weigh on the business confidence of domestic manufacturers, with 26% and 49% of those polled as part of industry body, the Manufacturing... 

Nedbank, DBSA ink R120m financing deal for affordable green housing

Nedbank Corporate and Investment Banking’s (NCIB’s) Affordable Housing Development Finance division has concluded an agreement with the Development Bank of Southern Africa’s (DBSA’s) Green Fund to... 

Delta, Pivotal partner to form African ‘property powerhouse’

Multilisted property fund Delta Africa has inked a deal to merge with JSE-listed development-focused investment fund, the Pivotal Fund, to create “property powerhouse” Mara Delta Property Holdings.... 

Kamoa PFS on track for early 2016 completion – Ivanhoe

TSX-listed Ivanhoe Mines expects to finalise the prefeasibility study (PFS) for its Kamoa copper project, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), in early 2016, aligning with the project’s first... 

AltX welcomes financial technology newcomer M-FiTEC

Only three months after its formation on August 19, financial technology (fintech) investment group M-FiTEC International has listed on the JSE’s AltX, under the board’s specially designated... 

Barloworld posts modest FY revenue uptick on currency, automotive gains

Industrial brand management giant Barloworld has posted a 1% gain in revenue for the year ended September 30, attributing overall earnings of R62.7-billion to resilient performances from its... 

S African wine exports to China hit 11m litres a year

Becoming South Africa’s sixth-largest export market for packaged wines by volume, Chinese imports of South African-produced wines continue to accelerate, hitting 11-million litres in 2014, the... 

CHP plants at water treatment works capable of knocking 60% off elec bill

Municipalities that introduce combined heat and power (CHP) plants at wastewater treatment works (WWTW) are likely to narrow their energy consumption by some 60%, WEC Projects biogas-to-energy... 

Existing building performance rating increasing in popularity, says GBCSA

While initially targeting sustainability and energy efficiency in new constructs, the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) says it is now observing an accelerated uptake in the... 

S African technologies emerging in response to local energy challenges

As South Africa continues to battle electricity shortages, the threat of load-shedding and imposed load curtailment on large industrial users, the country’s research and development fraternity is... 

Uncoupling of energy costs, productivity possible, expert argues

Amid a domestic industrial environment in which energy prices continue to increase above inflation and electricity spend constitutes up to 40% of a mining or heavy industrial company’s overall... 

Esco model still central to Eskom’s DSM strategy, says Etzinger

The Energy Services Companies (Esco) model funding programme remains integral to efforts by energy utility Eskom to promote the retrofitment and replacement of energy-intensive technologies with... 

Growthpoint, Investec, IFC launch Pan-African property fund

In a move that will create a diversified Pan-African third-party institutional real estate investment vehicle, real estate investment trust Growthpoint Properties has entered into a 50:50 joint... 

Quality, not quantity, of financial inclusion key – report

While a recent Finscope survey has found that financial inclusion in South Africa remains stable, with 87%, or 31.2-million people served by domestic financial services, the report has suggested... 

Quartile Capital acquires 30% stake in SDS

Financial services and investment group Quartile Capital has acquired 30% of South African-owned and managed transfer secretary (TS) and related business company Stakeholder Data Services (SDS).... 

Murray & Roberts oil and gas CEO resigns

Engineering and construction services group Murray & Roberts has announced the resignation of its oil and gas CEO Kevin Gallagher, who will be taking up the position of CEO of Australian oil and... 

Kibo appoints Tractebel to complete Mbeya DFS

Dual-listed Kibo Mining has appointed project engineering group Tractebel Engineering to conduct the definitive feasibility study (DFS) for the Mbeya coal-to-power project (MCPP), in Tanzania, and... 

Harmony names former COO Steenkamp CEO

Following a four-month headhunt prompted by the retirement of company head Graham Briggs, Harmony Gold Mining has appointed its former COO and current Sasol Mining senior VP Peter Steenkamp as CEO,... 

Neasa’s Steel Lobby to take on ‘unequal’ antidumping duties

Industry body, the National Employers Association of South Africa (Neasa) has launched a South African Steel Lobby that will advocate for the shelving of the antidumping application by primary... 

Afrimat credits diversification thrust with 24% surge in H1 earnings

Openpit mining group Afrimat has credited an understanding of the cyclical nature of the construction industry, coupled with the intentional diversification of its industrial minerals and... 

Technology Innovation Agency lifts third party funding 168% in 2014/15

In its first yearly report launch on Friday, Innovation and technology funder the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) revealed that it had boosted third-party financing by 168.8% year-on-year,... 

Northam, Heraeus extend platinum offtake agreement

Platinum producer Northam Platinum has agreed terms to extend a cooperation agreement with offtake partner Heraeus Deutschland and Heraeus South Africa (HSA), the terms of which will see Heraeus... 

600 MW KiPower coal project given environmental go-ahead

The Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) has granted an integrated environmental authorisation (IEA) for the construction of the 600 MW KiPower coal-fired independent power plant near Delmas,... 

Govt announces paper, packaging recycling plan

South Africa is soon to introduce a Paper and Packaging Industry Plan that will require separation-at-source from a household level, bringing about a significant change in the current waste... 

Feasibility completed for underground OR Tambo tunnel

Black-owned engineering consulting firm Gibb Engineering has completed a feasibility study (FS), commissioned by the Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA), that investigates the construction and... 

$400m injected into South African CSP plant

As part of US State secretary John Kerry's Climate and Clean Energy Investment Forum, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) has signed an agreement with US-based energy developer... 

IPPs could have competition case for lack of grid access

Independent power producers (IPPs) active in South Africa could well have a legal case against energy utility Eskom, should the parastatal be found to have breached the ambits of the Competition...