Новости за 12.10.2021

If South Africa can unlock disruptive technology, in particular green hydrogen, it could decarbonise its petrochemicals and chemicals sectors and become a leading global producer of green fuels and chemicals for both domestic use and export. The outlook for South Africa’s crude refineries, however, is less positive with the aging fleet unable to produce the cleaner fuels required by impending regulations stipulating the transition to ultra-low sulphur petrol and diesel products from September 1, 2023.

Manufacturing production increased by 1.8% year-on-year in August, Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) reports. The largest positive contributions were made by food and beverages (9.7% and contributing 2.3 percentage points); motor vehicles, parts and accessories and other transport equipment (17.7% and contributing 1.4 percentage points); basic iron and steel, nonferrous metal products, metal products and machinery (7.6% and contributing 1.4 percentage points); wood and wood products, paper, publishing... Читать дальше...

The South African National Space Agency (Sansa) and the State-owned national air traffic management company, Air Traffic and Navigation Services (ATNS), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Tuesday. The MoU will strengthen cooperation between the two agencies, Sansa having expertise in a number of areas of actual or potential importance to ATNS and its customers. “Our partnership with ATNS dates back to 2013 and the renewal of our cooperation is a testimony of this mutually beneficial relationship... Читать дальше...

South Africa’s ongoing steelworker strike is likely to lead to job cuts, further hammering an industry that’s been in decline for several years, according to the country’s main employer body. The week-long walkout by as many as 300,000 members and allies of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa has affected five provinces and disrupted supply chains to major firms, including carmaker BMW AG. The labor group is weighing a response to a renewed pay offer, spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi-Majola said Tuesday.

As part of its Sustainable Development Goal Seven (SDG7) Programme, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) announces that the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and Pimco have reached terms on their issuance of R3-billion of debt securities, which signals the first closing. The SDG7 Programme, which was launched in February 2020, is aimed at deploying private capital in Africa to support the development of renewable energy.

The International Monetary Fund has upwardly revised South Africa's growth outlook from 4% to 5%. The multilateral institution on Tuesday released its World Economic Outlook report for October 2021. Economic counsellor and director of research at the IMF, Gita Gopinath, noted that global recovery is continuing but its momentum has weakened - largely due to the pandemic and the rise of the Delta variant, which is delaying the return to normalcy. South Africa's economic recovery particularly has been helped by the commodities boom. Читать дальше...

Mid-tier South African gold mining company Pan African is building two schools for its communities, has handed over a clinic in Barberton, is planning to embed 35 MW of renewable energy, is constructing a water retreatment plant that will pretty much eliminate the use of potable water altogether at Evander, and has a large-scale blueberry project in Barberton that will create 400 seasonable jobs a year now and many more as it is expanded. All these activities point to the London- and Johannesburg-listed... Читать дальше...

The City of Johannesburg, together with Discovery Insure and Dialdirect Insurance, have launched a new ‘Pothole Patrol’ app and WhatsApp-bot to fast-track the ongoing war on potholes across the city. Launched on October 12, the smart mobility initiative is set to enable the speedy reporting of potholes for attention in Johannesburg as part of the ongoing partnership on the Pothole Patrol public-private partnership between the city and its partners.

FSD Africa, the UK government’s flagship financial sector programme in Africa, is making an initial investment of £650 000 in a digital solution connecting carbon credits from small-scale green projects across the global south with international buyers. The investment will deliver funding through the test phase of the solution being developed by Nick Hughes, who led the development of Africa’s mobile money service M-Pesa.

Together with its business partners, research, development and innovation partner VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT) has developed a solution that it says can bring a significant reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the production of cement and quicklime. As one of the ingredients of concrete, cement is the world's most used building material and is responsible for about 7% of the world's CO2 emissions.

Household appliance manufacturer Electrolux South Africa (SA) has embarked on a journey to no longer make use of electricity from the national grid and to use solar energy to power its operations. As a result, the organisation is confident of cutting the carbon footprint of its local Kwikot water heater (geyser) manufacturing plant by 40%.

Europe-based global major aerospace group Airbus announced on Monday that the 2021 flight test ‘campaign’ of its Zephyr very high altitude uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) had been successfully completed. The campaign was conducted in the southwest US, on behalf of the Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) agency of the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD). The tests involved the Zephyr S model, of which the UK MoD has acquired three. “Defence investment in cutting edge technology is key to the development... Читать дальше...

JSE-listed Allied Electronics (Altron) expects to report a 80% to 100% decline in earnings for the six months ended August 31, 2021. The company anticipates a basic loss a share of between 3c and 16c in the six months to August this year, a more than 100% decline on the basic earnings a share of 69c reported in the comparative period last year.

Global cement and concrete makers on Tuesday laid out steps to cut carbon dioxide emissions 25% by 2030 and to reach zero net emissions by mid-century, relying on more carbon-free energy, new chemistry and manufacturing technology, and carbon capture. Cement, the glue of concrete, accounts for about 7% of global carbon emissions, and the Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) accounts for 80% of concrete made outside of China, and some companies within China.

Iron-ore futures were under pressure on Tuesday, with the Singapore benchmark retreating nearly 7% after a four-day rally and Dalian contracts erasing early gains, as investor focus shifted back to steel production controls in China. The steelmaking raw material's most-active November contract on the Singapore Exchange plunged 6.9% to $126.05 a tonne.

A report by IDTechEx forecasts that the market value of on-road fuel cell vehicles will reach $160-billion by 2042, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 23.9% from 2022 to 2042. The electronics company believes that incorporating a fuel cell into an electric vehicle powertrain, generating electricity from hydrogen, offers a technology pathway that delivers the critical reduction in on-road exhaust emissions, while overcoming the potential range and charging limitations of battery electric vehicles (BEVs).

DP World and CDC Group have formed a partnership to develop ports in Africa and committed to spending $1.72-billion on infrastructure over the next few years. DP World, which is based in Dubai and is one of the world’s biggest port operators, will invest $1-billion in facilities including in Dakar in Senegal, Ain Sokhna in Egypt, and Berbera in Somaliland. CDC, a UK-based development finance group, will initially contribute $320-million and has committed an additional $400-million over the next few years.

Engineering and construction group Murray & Roberts’s (M&R’s) Clough North America subsidiary has acquired JJ White Incorporated in a transaction valued at up to $28.2-million. The group will fund the acquisition using its existing cash resources.

A survey done by industrial software multinational Aveva shows that 85% of industrial businesses plan to increase their investment in digital transformation over the next three years to tackle climate change, embrace automation and unlock the performance benefits of advanced technologies. The survey included responses from more than 850 digital transformation experts across industries, including the manufacturing, large-scale agribusiness, food and beverage, infrastructure, energy, power and chemical processing sectors.