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Friday, March 27, 2009.

From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Shannon O'Donnell.

Making headlines today:

State-owned freight logistics group Transnet has signed a 4-billion-rand loan agreement with the Japan Bank of International Cooperation. This is as part of its 80-billion-rand capital investment programme.

Acting chief executive Chris Wells said that the 35-billion-yen loan would be used to fund the widening and deepening of the entrance to the Durban harbour. The harbour is one the group's strategically significant projects.

The loan had a two-year drawdown and a ten-year amortising schedule during which 20 payments would be made.

Wells wouldn't be drawn on what interest rate would be paid. He said only that it was below Transnet's weighted average debt costs, which was "well below" 12%.

A Mozambican and South African consortium, Petroline Holdings, plans to start building a 620-million-dollar oil pipeline linking Johannesburg to the port of Maputo before the end of this year.

PETROMOC CEO Mateus Katupha said that the construction of the petrol and diesel pipeline would take six months. The State-run Mozambican company holds a 40% stake in the consortium.

The 450-kilometre pipeline will facilitate fuel imports through Mozambique's Maputo port, which is closer to Johannesburg than any of South Africa's major ports, including Durban.

The pipeline's construction was originally scheduled to have started in September last year. Katupha said the delay was related to problems in the approval of an environmental impact study, but he expected them to be resolved by May.

Also making headlines:

An economist advises business to pay attention to microeconomic policy shifts.
South African Internet users are predicted to grow to 9-million by 2014.
Telecoms giant MTN South Africa modifies its broadband offering.
And, a fuel-blending station at Sasol Secunda, which was damaged in a fire in early March, has been fully repaired.

That's a round up of news making headlines today. For more on these and other stories please visit engineeringnews.co.za.