Новости за 25.06.2021

Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed coal-mining company Wescoal, which narrowed its losses in the 12 months to the end of March, is transitioning from being a coal miner to a broader energy company. “Towards the end of the new financial year, we will come back to the market in terms of our overall focus and firm strategic plan on how we plan to take a broader energy role forward,” Wescoal CFO Jubilant Speckman said on Friday. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video.)

Stakeholders from the banking sector have come together to fight financial crime through a financial information sharing partnership, called the South African Anti-Money Laundering Integrated Task Force (Samlit). Samlit has brought together the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), 22 national and international banks, the South African Reserve Bank’s Prudential Authority and Financial Surveillance Department and baking association representatives.

The Western Cape Industrial Symbiosis Programme (WISP), which identifies and links industrial companies to opportunities, has resulted in the establishment of fuel pump reconditioning business Siyavana Solutions. Under WISP, GreenCape identified that Siyavaya could develop an upcycling solution for decommissioned fuel pumps at energy multinational Shell.

Stellenbosch technology company CT Lab will deploy 1 300 Otello edge computing devices on State-owned power utility Eskom's grid to change how power is seen and managed on the grid, enabling full visibility of the power grid in real-time. Visibility is becoming a deciding factor in the development of the grid, says CT Lab CEO and lead designer Willie van Wyk.

Business for South Africa (B4SA) has welcomed the opening of the Electronic Vaccination Data Systems (EVDS) for people over 50 to register from July 1 and be vaccinated from July 15. B4SA steering committee chairperson Martin Kingston says the organisation is also pleased that the Department of Health has agreed for the country to increasingly take advantage of the growing number of private sector vaccination sites by directing and permitting uninsured people to be vaccinated there.

Agriculture digital technologies startup Omniolytics is helping to transform poultry farming through digital platforms that use sensors and information technology multinational IBM Watson running in the IBM Cloud, IBM said on June 24. The poultry industry is faced with a number challenges ranging from the quality and origins of feed, high feed prices and the recurrence of avian influenza and disease outbreaks such as listeriosis and salmonellosis.

The University of the Free State (UFS) Department of Engineering Sciences' green concrete project aims to produce user-friendly geopolymer concrete by eliminating aggressive alkali activator additives from the mixtures, says lecturer and project leader Dr Abdolhossein Naghizadeh. The potential product will be formulated by optimising mixture parameters and ingredients based on the South African industrial by-products. The green concrete project involves research aimed at producing environment-friendly... Читать дальше...

US suborbital crewed spaceflight company Virgin Galactic announced on Friday that the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had updated the company’s commercial space transportation operator licence (which was originally issued in 2016). The update allows Virgin Galactic to fly paying passengers into space. The company pointed out that this was the first time that the FAA had licenced a “spaceline” to fly customers into space. The enterprise affirmed that this was another validation of its thorough and systematic test programme... Читать дальше...

Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi has called on Cabinet to “urgently review legislation and regulations”, stating that employment equity (EE) “needs to be seen as a catalyst for change”. Upon receiving the twenty-first iteration of the Commission for Employment Equity’s (CEE’s) annual report and the 2020 EE Public Register of all designated employers on the status of workplace transformation, on June 25, the Minister lamented the “snail’s pace of transformation”.

JSE-listed Tongaat Hulett has postponed the publication of its financial results owing to continuing debt restructure negotiations. The group anticipates that it will now release its results for the period on or about July 13, instead of June 30 as previously planned.

Automotive, industrial and electrical consumable products supplier Hudaco has posted an operating profit of R357-million for the six months ended May 31, which is a notable 351% growth compared with the operating profit posted for the six months ended May 31, 2020. The company has advised shareholders that, as a result of the impact of Covid-19 in 2020, that it would be more useful to compare the six months under review to the performance achieved in the six months ended May 31, 2019.

Industry association the South African Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPVIA) has welcomed the investment decision by Italian-based firm Enertronica Santerno to expand its manufacturing activities in South Africa.  The Italian firm, which has been an active player in South Africa over the past  ten years, will be investing up to R17-million to enhance its capacity to manufacture inverters for solar photovoltaic (PV) applications, including storage solutions, with a maximum initial production capacity of more than 500 MW a year... Читать дальше...

JSE-listed building materials company Sephaku has posted a group net profit of R20-million for the financial year ended March 31, with headline earnings per share (HEPS) of 6.09c. Sephaku’s group of companies include Sephaku Holdings, Métier Mixed Concrete and Dangote Cement South Africa (SepCem).

South African natural gas and helium producer Renergen has successfully raised A$10-million through an equity raise to fund developments at its Virginia gas project, in South Africa’s Free State. The placement was subscribed to by existing and new domestic and international institutions and sophisticated investors.

Creamer Media's Chanel de Bruyn speaks to Engineering News Editor Terence Creamer about the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment's decision to refuse to provider Karpowership SA environmental authorisations for its proposed powership projects; Karpowership's response; and what this means for the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme.

Acting Health Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane announced on Friday that South Africans aged between 50 and 59 years can register for the Covid-19 vaccine from July 1, with vaccinations for this age group scheduled to begin July 15. South Africa is battling a third wave of the pandemic, with Gauteng driving the surge in infections. The province recorded 9 521 new cases in 24 hours, accounting for 59% of the cases nationally. Kubayi-Ngubane said part of government’s surge response is accelerating the vaccine rollout. Читать дальше...

Mining and quarrying equipment specialist Pilot Crushtec has renewed its distributorship with minerals and metals processing technology company Metso Outotec in Southern Africa for five years, building on a successful five years of representing the company. Speaking to Engineering News & Mining Weekly, Pilot Crushtec sales and marketing director Francois Marais acclaims that, for consumers in the market who are dealing with Metso or who aspire to own Metso products, this extension will secure their investments going forward.

State-owned power utility Eskom will implement a 1.5% basic wage increase with effect from July 1. Eskom says the offer is dependent on the efficiencies and savings realised from reviewing certain elements of employee benefits where there are excesses. The utility has identified possible adjustments in the overtime, travel and transfer benefits, besides others. These adjustments will also be implemented with effect from July 1.

A video round up of this week’s magazine, highlighting our cover story, features and Business Leader.

To fully realise the potential of Industry 4.0 and remain relevant as the way of conducting business evolves, South African organisations should consider making strategic investments in infrastructure and technology as soon as possible. However, these investments will be rendered ineffective if organisations do not simultaneously ensure that the necessary skills development takes place in parallel to support the investments. The Covid-19 pandemic has forced local organisations in both the public... Читать дальше...

The Gauteng premier's advisory committee on Covid-19 recommends the province be placed under a hybrid of Level 3 and 4 lockdown. Gauteng is currently the epicentre of the Covid-19 pandemic, having recorded 10 806 new cases on Wednesday.