Labat Africa moves into Namibia oil and gas

JSE-listed Labat Africa on Monday said it aimed to invest in five oil and gas leases in Namibia. Labat Africa had executed a letter of intent with Amicitia Holdings to purchase all the issued shares in Palatina Petroleum, thereby acquiring a...

SA at forefront of intra-Africa investment

South Africa has been at the forefront of growth in intra-African trade and broader emerging market investment during 2012, with intra-African investment showing a 33% compound growth rate, advisory firm Ernst & Young’s latest Africa...

Gauteng factory invests in R5m roof-mounted solar facility

Photovoltaic (PV) project development and construction company Soventix South Africa has been awarded an engineering, procurement and construction contract worth more than R5-million to build a roof-mounted PV plant for printed circuit board...

R232m allocated to ZA-ARMC1 satellite development in 2013

The Department of Science and Technology (DST) has allocated R232-million in funding for the development of the new ZA-ARMC1 satellite this year, Science and Technology Minister Derek Hanekom has indicated. “This satellite will greatly enhance...

SA must shift to ‘manufacturing economy’, not ‘knowledge economy’ – Merseta

Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services Education and Training Authority (Merseta) CEO Raymond Patel on Thursday challenged government’s National Development Plan (NDP) vision of shifting South Africa’s economy to be more...

Licensing Bill will give officials too much power – FMF

Government’s proposed Licensing of Business Bill would provide local government officials with unconstrained discretionary power, creating massive bureaucratic empires and eroding rule of law, Free Market Foundation (FMF) executive director Leon...

Sasol customers say lower prices will boost export competitiveness

Despite being called to testify against Sasol Chemical Industries (SCI) during the first week of the Competition Tribunal hearings into allegations of excessive pricing of propylene and polypropylene, Usabco purchasing director Julius Lebi...

TFR shuts coal line to catch up on maintenance

State-owned rail utility Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) on Monday said it would shut its coal-export line for 12 days, from May 14 to 25, to catch up on its maintenance backlog. The South African rail operator said in a statement that the lower...

African airport operators urged to collaborate with governments to foster growth

To drive economic growth and competitiveness in Africa, there was an urgent need for the continent’s airport operators and governments to collaborate, Airports Company South Africa acting MD Bongani Maseko has said. “The benefit we have, is...

Small-car sales not yet reflecting reduced consumer spending

Notwithstanding the South African Reserve Bank’s projection that the country’s gross domestic production would grow only by a marginal 2.7% during 2013, local new car sales were showing good growth of 4.1% to more than 163 000 units during the...