Новости за 05.07.2021

Alluvial diamond mining investor Yamkela Makupula has clinched an alluvial diamond mining transaction which makes her a 30% shareholder in three diamond assets that have a link with the former Rockwell Diamonds. Makupula, who leads the Africa growth strategy of international law firm Diaz, Reus, Targ as its Africa CEO, is a former partner of PwC Africa, where her role was dealing with government’s economic policy seeking to solve issues of unemployment, inequality and poverty in order to implement... Читать дальше...

The Botswana energy regulator has granted a generation licence for a 100 MW solar project to local firm Shumba Energy, a company executive said on Monday, making it the first independent power producer to set up a large scale solar plant in the country. Botswana does not currently have large scale solar power generation and its 600 MW national energy demand is met by state owned coal-fired plants and imports, primarily from South Africa and Mozambique.

Operation Sakhinzuzo, a R74-million six-year development programme funded by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (EDTEA) and agribusiness Tongaat Hulett, has, after five years, delivered benefits for 287 small-scale sugarcane growers on the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast. It has resulted in 3 000 ha of freehold and communal land coming under sugarcane production to bolster economic activity in rural KwaZulu-Natal.

Healthcare specialists at Stellenbosch University (SU) have launched a WhatsApp-based chatbot to help patients with diabetes effectively navigate risks associated with diabetes and Covid-19 from the comfort and safety of their homes. The GREAT4Diabetes chatbot is a free service that sends automated messages that provide educational information to help people with diabetes avoid Covid-19 infection, and to self-manage their diabetes, the university says.

JSE-listed real estate investment trust Attacq has appointed Michael Clampett asset and property management executive. The appointment forms part of Attacq’s strong belief in grooming talent from within the business by providing employees with growth opportunities.

Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula has reiterated the importance of African countries investing in transport networks, as it drives economic development and global competitiveness for the region. He spoke during this year’s iteration of the Southern African Transport Conference (SATC), which was hosted in the week of July 5.

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) has unveiled a comprehensive strategy to revive South Africa’s passenger rail network after a crime and vandalism over the last few years has left the network crippled. CEO Zolani Matthews addressed delegates virtually during the 2021 Southern African Transport Conference on July 5, expressing confidence that key rail corridors could be secured by partnering with all rail stakeholders – commuters, communities and businesses.

The second Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2021) will be held in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, from November 15 to 21. The Trade Fair was initially scheduled to be held in Kigali, Rwanda, from December 8 to 14.

UK-based development finance institution CDC Group has announced a R500-million commitment to affordable housing platform Divercity Urban Property Fund for housing development. This investment will fund the construction and management of more than 2 500 new affordable and environmentally sustainable residential units over the next five years, predominantly in Johannesburg.

French firms EveRé, CMA CGM Group, Elengy and TotalEnergies have joined forces to study the feasibility of creating France’s first production unit for liquefied biomethane (BioLNG), a low-carbon alternative fuel dedicated to the energy transition in the shipping industry EveRé is the operator of the multi-process household waste treatment plant commissioned by Métropole Aix-Marseille-Provence, while the CMA CGM Group is considered a world leader in shipping and logistics.

A new International Energy Agency (IEA) report on the outlook for gas presents a complex picture of the fuel’s role in the unfolding energy transition, as well as the outlook for demand. The report forecasts that there will be an immediate 3.5% recovery in demand from the Covid-afflicted 2020 year, when demand fell by 1.9%.

Liquid Intelligent Technologies (LIT) and Facebook have partnered to build a fibre network in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to help connect East and West Africa. The project will see Facebook invest in the fibre build and support network planning, while LIT will own, build and operate the fibre network, as well as provide wholesale services to mobile network operators and Internet service providers.

Airbus Defence and Space, part of the Europe-based global Airbus group, announced on Monday that it had installed the European Robotic Arm (ERA) on to the ‘Nauka’ multipurpose laboratory module (MLM) for the International Space Station (ISS). The installation included the equipping of the Nauka module with two ERA control stations. Airbus Defence and Space Netherlands oversaw the development, integration and testing of the ERA, including managing the development of subsystems across Europe. It did... Читать дальше...

Tracker has introduced a new addition to its fleet management system, Tracker Dashboards & Analytics.  The dashboards provide “a holistic, real-time overview of fleet performance, categorised in terms of key performance indices, safety, utilisation, behaviour and trips”, says the company.

Mercedes-Benz Trucks will start series production of its first battery-electric truck in Germany in October. The electric Actros (eActros) is destined for urban heavy-duty distribution haulage markets.

The European Space Agency (ESA) has reported that the first successful high-altitude drop tests for the braking parachutes for the joint ESA/Roscosmos ExoMars probe have taken place. The ExoMars mission is scheduled for launch in September 2022 and will be composed of ESA’s Rosalind Franklin rover and Russian space agency Roscosmos’ Kazachok lander, which will not only transport the Rosalind Franklin to the surface of Mars but then also function as a scientific platform in its own right. The parachutes... Читать дальше...

Tire manufacturing multinational Michelin has appointed Gaganjot Singh as Michelin Africa, India and Middle East region president. He succeeds Marc Pasquet and will be based out of Pune, India.

Despite the improvements in government’s approach to tackling the Covid-19 pandemic and associated lockdown regulations, Business Leadership South Africa CEO Busi Mavuso says government has still not embraced consultation with the private sector. She points out this has been a case in point with government’s decision to ban alcohol sales and sit-down dining, yet again, without talking to the alcohol or restaurant industries beforehand.

When Carlos Brito used to stride onto the stage at the gathering of Anheuser-Busch InBev NV’s top 100 leaders each spring, he’d bring the crowd to its feet with AC/DC’s “Back in Black” blaring from the speakers. In a choice fit for disruptive times, Michel Doukeris, who succeeded Brito as chief executive officer of the world’s largest brewer on July 1, has opted for the Australian rockers’ “TNT” as his anthem.

JSE-listed Sasol and the State-owned Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) have signed a memorandum of cooperation to jointly advance South Africa’s green-hydrogen economy. In a joint statement, the two companies said the memorandum recognised that South Africa was in a unique position to leverage its world-class renewable resources and Sasol’s Fischer-Tropsch technology and skills to position the country as a global hydrogen leader.

Development finance institution the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and various Canadian government organisations are providing a financing package for the 35 MW Kinguele Aval hydropower plant, in Gabon. Meridiam Infrastructure Africa Fund FIPS, Meridiam Infrastructure Africa Parallel Fund FIPS and the Fonds Gabonais d’Investissements Strategiques (FGIS), with the support of the government of Canada, are providing funding for the project, which is the first independent power producer project in Gabon.

Hot dip galvanising (HDG), a process that has been around for 185 years, offers corrosion-resistance properties found with few other methods, HDG expert Terry Smith has said. In a webinar hosted by Creamer Media on June 30 on behalf of the International Zinc Association, he spoke about the benefits and shortcomings of using HDG for professional users, as well as provided case studies for various HDG applications.

South African private sector activity expanded at a slower rate in June as output fell for the first time this year and growth in new orders stalled, a survey showed on Monday. IHS Markit's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to 51.0 in June from 53.2 in May, staying above the 50 level that indicates expansion but signalling a loss of momentum in the private sector economy.

The Eastern Cape Maritime Business Chamber (ECMBC) and the National African Federated Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Nafcoc) Nelson Mandela Bay (NMB) region on July 5 said that would appeal the decision by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) not to approve Karpowership South Africa’s (SA’s) environmental-impact assessments (EIA) for its three powership-based gas-to-power projects, proposed for development at the ports of Richards Bay, Ngqura and Saldanha Bay. The EIA... Читать дальше...

US-based auto giant General Motors (GM) has struck a deal to secure local and low-cost lithium for its electric vehicle (EV) batteries. The company has announced a multi-million-dollar investment in unlisted Controlled Thermal Resources’ (CTR’s) Hell’s Kitchen project, in California, giving it first rights on lithium produced by the project.