Новости за 18.11.2021

The South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (SAREM) is expected to be finalised for adoption before the end of March, following which it will become the country’s implementation plan for the industrialisation of the renewables value chain. Work is still under way to achieve consensus between labour, business, civil society and government on what the priority actions should be and a complete first draft of the document should be released early next year.

Glencore has set the ‘just transition’ in promising motion with a highly successful winter wheat pilot project in Mpumalanga, South Africa’s province of coal mining and coal-fired power generation. The programme, which began in April has been described as being hugely successful in demonstrating the value of the combination if remediated coal-mine land, mine water and agriculture.

Tutuka power station GM Sello Mametja is hopeful Eskom will be able to improve the energy availability factor (EAF) of the power station, near Standerton, Mpumalanga, above 70% by June next year. Mametja took over as GM of the power station nine months ago and told media during a site tour on November 18 that Tutuka was the worst-performing of Eskom's power stations, with an EAF of only 34%.

European consumer electronics rental company Grover's 'Electronic Price Index 2021' showed that South Africa has the ninth most expensive electronics out of the 50 countries included in the study. Further, the study also found that graphics cards had recorded the highest deviation above the median price of the 26 consumer electronics items in the study at 166.84% above average in Argentina.

FNB and Balwin Properties have concluded a funding deal that will make R450-million available for the residential development of Balwin’s Thaba-Eco Village, which is under construction in Johannesburg South. The funding will be used for the first 480 apartments, as well as infrastructure for the entire development.

Agriculture, forestry and other land use (Afolu) in South Africa is significantly threatened, with export earnings, farm and plantation workers' livelihoods and food availability at risk. This is particularly the case in the Western and Northern Cape, which are expected to face the worst water stress, and account for about 95% of South Africa's deciduous fruit exports, about 25% of national agricultural earnings and about 35% of national agricultural employment.

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has raised the repo rate by 25 basis points, to 3.75%. This is the first rate hike in three years.

Africa-based security and medical response marketplace Aura has secured R62-million in a Series A funding round, led by MultiChoice Group (MCG), KLT Holdings and Buffet Investments.  Aura says this funding will boost its global expansion plans.

Rand Water on November 17 successfully completed the installation of the two valve rigs on the B11/B19 pipeline. The B11 raw water pipeline is now back in commission supplying water to the Vereeniging Water Treatment Works (WTW), which was restored to fully supply Rand Water’s Eikenhof pump station, which is supplying some municipal customers.

Water experts at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) have joined calls by government and other organisations urging South Africans to exercise caution when using water, as supply in the country is under great pressure and demand continues to rise. Communities need to adopt positive behavioural changes that would yield beneficial impact and become more sensitive to the realities of South Africa’s depleting water resources, said CSIR Water Research Centre manager Dr Rembu Magoba.

The all-electric Fuso Canter (eCanter) has arrived in South Africa for local testing, says Daimler Trucks & Buses Southern Africa (DTBSA) CEO Michael Dietz. Earlier testing at the beginning of 2020 of a prototype light-duty eCanter with AB InBev Africa was interrupted by the arrival of Covid-19.

French multinational utility company Engie has completed the acquisition of Abengoa’s indirect stake in Xina Solar One. Following completion of the transaction, Engie now holds a 40% equity stake in the Xina Solar One 100 MW concentrated solar power (CSP) plant, as well as a 46% stake in the Xina Operations & Maintenance Company.

Multilateral financial institution the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has signed a $1.04-billion facility with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to finance the exploration of petroleum. The transaction comprises a pre-export/shipment finance facility underpinned by a forward sale agreement (FSA) and offtake contracts from the NNPC acting as the borrower and seller.

The Municipal Operations App for Water Management solution, developed by a KwaZulu-Natal-based small enterprise Khanyisa Projects, provides managers of municipal departments with a fully integrated operational tool that enables the detection of water leaks by field workers. The development of the app was funded by innovation commercialisation organisation the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) and allows for measurement and recording of bulk meters, fault identification, repairs, verification and customer satisfaction measurement.

An oil spill has occurred in Algoa Bay, with around 80 litres of fuel entering the sea. The South African Maritime Safety Authority (Samsa) and other stakeholders have started clean-up efforts and an investigation is under way.

The Chinese government has confirmed that the country will no longer be funding a new 3 GW coal-fired power plant in the planned Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone (MM-SEZ) in South Africa’s Limpopo province. Chinese Premier Xi Jinping announced China’s end to funding of overseas coal projects in an address at the United Nations on September 21.

The Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency (ECPTA) has partnered with the Eastern Cape Liquor Board (ECLB) for the launch of the Eastern Cape Craft Brewing, Distilling & Wine route. The route will offer a tourism experience including visits to several Eastern Cape breweries and distillers based in Tsitsikamma, Humansdorp, Jeffreys Bay, Gqeberha, Makhanda, Port Alfred, East London and Chintsa.

Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter reports that overt and covert security is being beefed up in and around the utility’s power stations following suspicious incidents at Matimba and Lethabo on November 17 that are suspected of not being “entirely coincidental”. In a briefing on the state of the system, which descended into load-shedding again on Wednesday, De Ruyter emphasised that he was typically wary off attributing to “malice what could be explained by incompetence”.

South Africa’s energy department has said it will start preparing for the end of coal-for-power use in the country but cautioned that a retreat from the dirtiest fossil fuel must take account of the impact on the economy and the people who depend on it for a living. In a presentation to a small group of business, government and research representatives on November 15, the department said it plans to set up a Just Energy Transition unit to help deliver an outcome “which delivers social justice,” according to a copy of it seen by Bloomberg. Читать дальше...

Telecommunications giant MTN Group has transferred, effective November 17, its majority shareholding in MTN Yemen to Emerald International Investment. Emerald is a subsidiary of Zubair Investment Center, an affiliate of Zubair Corporation, which is the minority shareholder in MTN Yemen.