Новости за 16.02.2021

Firm belief in the climate change strategy being embarked upon by diversified mining and marketing company Glencore was expressed on Tuesday by incoming Glencore CEO Gary Nagle, Outgoing Glencore CEO Ivan Glasenberg announced in December that he would be handing over the reins of the global company in mid-2021 to Nagle, who has served Glencore for more than two decades.

A global survey of 2 801 family business-owners by advisory multinational PwC found that 55% of respondents saw the potential for their business to lead on sustainability, but only 37% have a defined environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy in place. Furthermore, European and American businesses are lagging their Asian counterparts in their commitment to prioritising sustainability in their strategy.

Development finance institution the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) on February 16 announced the 36-month debarment of civil engineering company Global Interjapan (Kenya), with effect from August 24, 2020, which renders Global Interjapan (Kenya) and its affiliates ineligible to participate in AfDB group-financed projects during the period. An investigation conducted by the AfDB Group's Office of Integrity and Anti-Corruption established that the Nairobi-based civil engineering firm had engaged... Читать дальше...

Payment technology multinational MasterCard and telecommunications services multinational MTN on February 16 announced that MTN customers in 16 African countries will be able to make e-commerce payments safely and securely using a MasterCard virtual payment solution linked to MTN's mobile money (MoMo) service. "Through this partnership, MTN customers with a Mastercard virtual payment solution linked to their MoMo wallets, can make payments to online merchants globally through a seamless and secure... Читать дальше...

This year’s budget must showcase the country’s fiscal credibility, investment bank and financial services company Citi Research head and chief economist Gina Schoeman said during the company’s pre-budget media roundtable on February 16. She indicated that fiscal credibility depends on maintaining the same fiscal strategy or plan as before, which entails holding the line on wage bill reductions and maintaining, or even improving on, the debt stabilisation plan for 2023.

Stellenbosch University economics professor Nicola Theron says the implementation of the measures set out by President Cyril Ramaphosa in the 2021 State of the Nation Address (SoNA) will be key for South Africa. With “sober realism”, she stated on February 16, that there was “not much new” said during the SoNA, and that there now needed to be “a focus on fixing the fundamentals” in the country, foremost of which should be excellence in planning and execution in government.

Surface gold recovery company DRDGold flew sky high in the six months to the end of December on financial returns never seen before. “We’ve never seen numbers like this. I mean the cash operating profit was R1.4-billion and earnings R950-million. These are numbers over a six-month period. It’s really been a period where a lot of things went right for us,” DRDGold CEO Niël Pretorius told Mining Weekly in a Zoom interview on Tuesday after the Johannesburg- and New York-listed company reported 129%-higher headline earnings a share. Читать дальше...

Nissan South Africa (SA) will delay the start of volume production and sales of the Nissan Navara one-ton bakkie to June this year, says Nissan SA marketing director Stefan Haasbroek. He says this is owing to operational issues related to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) and Eskom have reached an agreement to add R10-billion to Eskom’s allowable revenue in 2021/22, to be recovered through the tariff, pending the outcome of an appeal of a 2020 High Court ruling directing the regulator to immediately add back R23-billion of a larger R69-billion equity injection illegally deducted from the utility’s allowable revenue. Nersa confirmed in a statement that the court order would result in an average tariff percentage... Читать дальше...

State-owned power utility Eskom is preparing a pioneering request for proposals (RFP) for the repowering and repurposing of the Komati power station, in Mpumalanga, which is among the first four coal plants scheduled for decommissioning in the coming few years. Eskom just energy transition office head Mandy Rambharos reported on Tuesday that the RFP could be released within the coming two months, once all outstanding governance matters had been settled both internally as well as with government.

New-vehicle sales will show double-digit growth this year off last year’s unforeseen low base, but will also continue to show a decline in real economic terms, says vehicle and asset finance provider WesBank. WesBank CEO Chris de Kock says two considerations need to be taken into account when understanding what the new-vehicle market may do this year – firstly, what sales are expected to do compared with 2020, which will provide a skewed representation of market activity, and, secondly, how the market... Читать дальше...

A photograph in the entrance hall at Komati Power Station shows the plant in better times, its nine generating units belching steam and smoke into the night sky. Those days are never coming back: Komati’s sole remaining working unit is facing closure within two years under plans by state power utility Eskom Holdings SOC to shut about a quarter of its coal-fired capacity by 2030. Next door at the Goedehoop mine, arrays of solar panels line the main access road, a sign of what may be to come for South Africa’s coal belt.

Diversified mining and marketing company Glencore is ready to support the transition to a low-carbon economy, CEO Ivan Glasenberg said on Tuesday when the company reported finishing 2020 with earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) of $11.6-billion, Covid-19 notwithstanding. “The Covid-19 pandemic is an extraordinary challenge that continues to impact many aspects of day-to-day life. Against this backdrop, the strength of our 2020 underlying performance is a credit to our highly skilled and dedicated employees... Читать дальше...

Surface gold recovery company DRDGold has declared an interim cash dividend on soaring six-month earnings. The operating profits of the Johannesburg- and New York-listed company, headed by CEO Niël Pretorius, rose by 100% to R1.4-billion in the six months to the end of December.