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Friday, October 30, 2009.

From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Shannon de Ryhove.

Making headlines today:

The Eskom board and the Department of Public Enterprises were preparing a joint response on Friday morning to the "surprise" Business Day report that the Eskom board had asked CEO Jacob Maroga to step down.

Engineering News Online could not immediately ascertain whether the resignation request had indeed been formally canvassed during a board meeting that took place on Thursday, as was reported in the national newspaper.

However, it is understood that there was a high-level engagement between board members, including chairperson Bobby Godsell, and DPE officials, possibly including Public Enterprises Minister Barbara Hogan, that ran late into the night on Thursday.

Eskom spokesperson Andrew Etzinger expressed surprise at the report, but said that he was not immediately in a position to comment on whether or not it was accurate.

When contacted by Engineering News Online, Godsell's office indicated that, while he was not ready to comment right away, a joint board/DPE statement was being prepared, and was likely to be released later in the day.

About 600 people in the Kingdom of Swaziland stand to lose their jobs as paper and pulp producer Sappi plans to close down its 190 000-tons a year Usutu pulp mill and to restructure the forestry business in the Southern African country.

The company announced on Friday that it would start a consultation process with staff and other relevant stakeholders regarding the closure of the mill by the end of January.

Adverse market conditions and the "accumulative severe" impact of fire damage at its timber crops, of which 40% was destroyed in August 2008 alone, over the past few years, had led to Sappi's decision to close the mill.

Sappi noted that it would continue to seek further beneficiation opportunities for the profitable use of the Usutu forests, which might involve the introduction of new investors.

Also making headlines:

The African Development Bank lends Botswana 225-million-dollars to finance an energy project.
Mobile company MTN says that its South Africa subscribers declined by about 800 000, following the implementation of new SIM card registration regulations.
South African aerostructures firm Denel Saab Aerostructures clarifies the spending of the R192-million Treasury grant.
And, credit and PPI data rekindle the hopes for a South African rate cut.

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