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Mercedes-Benz SA says pilot solar project a success; plans expansion

By: Irma Venter 29th June 2022 Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA) has declared its pilot solar energy project a success. MBSA piloted the project in order to evaluate the solar yield for the East London manufacturing plant, in the Eastern Cape. →

Image of the solar panel roof installation at MBSA plant

Nothing more important than growing the economy and creating jobs – Cape Town Mayor

By: Sane Dhlamini 29th June 2022 Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has acknowledged that creating employment and being a jobs-focused and entrepreneur-friendly administration are important measures needed to resuscitate the country’s ailing economy. In an exclusive interview with Polity, the Mayor said he was doing all he could... →

City of Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis discusses his plans and vision for the city. (Camera & editing: Darlene Creamer)

Digital transformation of manufacturing expected to improve efficiencies

By: Schalk Burger 29th June 2022 The transformation of manufacturing processes and operations into connected, integrated, automated and smart operations, collectively known as Industry 4.0, will reduce the amount of low skilled positions but also create new skilled positions, assurance and advisory services multinational PwC... →

Court ruling pushes out digital migration wrap-up

By: Natasha Odendaal 29th June 2022 The Constitutional Court of South Africa has upheld an appeal to set aside the High Court decision to switch off South Africa’s analogue signal and complete the long-delayed digital migration by June 30. In April, e.tv lodged an urgent appeal to the Constitutional Court against the judgment and... →

Sasol concludes major equity divestment from Rompco pipeline

By: Marleny Arnoldi 29th June 2022 JSE-listed petrochemicals group Sasol says South African gas development company iGas and Companhia Mocambiçana de Gasoduto (CMG) have exercised their pre-emptive right to acquire a 30% equity interest in the Republic of Mozambique Pipeline Company (Rompco) pipeline. The companies exercised... →

South Africa imported record volumes of steel in 2021, new report shows

By: Terence Creamer 29th June 2022 At close to 1.7-million tonnes, South Africa imported record volumes of primary steel in 2021, constituting about one-third of all steel used in the country, a new Steel Report published by the South African Iron and Steel Institute (SAISI) confirms. The report, which is the inaugural edition of... →

Opinion: Existing regulatory framework provides good backbone for development of South Africa’s green hydrogen sector

29th June 2022 In this article, Bowmans South Africa’s head of public law and regulatory, Claire Tucker, looks at regulation and incentives for the hydrogen economy. She concludes that, while incentives for developing the sector have not yet been finalised, the existing regulatory framework for these industrial... →

Claire Tucker

147 MW Karusa Wind Farm enters commercial operation

By: Creamer Media Reporter 29th June 2022 The 147 MW Karusa wind farm, in the Western Cape, has entered into commercial operation, raising Enel Green Power South Africa’s installed capacity to 1.2 GW across ten wind and solar projects. Located in a remote part of the Laingsburg local municipality, the €200-million wind farm incorporates... →

The 147 MW Karusa wind farm

Kganyago says half-point South Africa rate hike possible in July

By: Bloomberg 29th June 2022 Traders tempered expectations for the largest South African increase in borrowing costs in almost two decades after the head of the nation’s central bank said it may consider raising interest rates by only half a percentage point in July. Annual inflation that surged above the Reserve Bank’s... →

DPWI undertaking bulk infrastructure installation at new mixed-use development

By: Donna Slater 29th June 2022 The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) is building and installing bulk and internal infrastructure at the Salvokop Precinct Development – a mixed-use precinct project, which forms part of the greater Tshwane Inner City Regeneration Programme. Located in close proximity to the... →

An image of sod-turning at the Salvokop Precinct Development

Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia de Lille (middle-left) is joined by Home Affairs Minister Dr Aaron Mostoaledi (middle-right) and Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu (second-right) at a sod-turning ceremony of the Salvokop Precinct Development.

South African food inflation rose sharply in May

By: Rebecca Campbell 29th June 2022 Food inflation in South Africa rose sharply in May, in both year-on-year (y-o-y) and month-on-month (m-o-m) terms, the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) has reported in its latest Food Inflation Brief. In y-o-y terms, food and non-alcoholic beverage prices last month were up 7.6%. In... →

Hyprop reduces LTV to 40%, repositioning portfolio for sustainable growth

By: Schalk Burger 29th June 2022 JSE-listed real estate investment trust Hyprop's current consolidated loan-to-value (LTV) is about 40%, down from a historic 47%, the company said in a pre-close update on June 29. This is owing to several interventions, including the completion of the disposal of the Delta City Mall in... →

Volvo Trucks starts testing hydrogen vehicles

By: Irma Venter 29th June 2022 Volvo Trucks has started testing commercial vehicles powered by hydrogen technology. The Swedish manufacturer already offers battery electric trucks and trucks that run on renewable fuels, such as biogas. The goal is now for hydrogen trucks to be added to its product portfolio in the second half... →

Sappi achieves EcoVadis platinum rating for third time

By: Marleny Arnoldi 29th June 2022 Pulp and paper manufacturer Sappi has, for the third consecutive year, achieved a platinum rating in the EcoVadis Corporate Social Responsibility assessment for its manufacturing operations in Europe, North America and Southern Africa. This places Sappi in the top 1% of all 90 000 companies... →

European Space Agency awards new satellite project to Airbus

By: Rebecca Campbell 29th June 2022 The European Space Agency (ESA) has awarded Airbus Defence and Space a €160-million contract to develop the agency’s Far-infrared Outgoing Radiation Understanding and Monitoring (FORUM) satellite. The work will be led and largely undertaken at the Airbus facility in Stevenage in England. The... →

Photo by Airbus
Artist’s impression of FORUM in orbit

Eskom offers workers 7% increase after illegal protests

By: Bloomberg 29th June 2022 Eskom offers workers 7% increase after illegal protests Eskom Holdings is offering workers a 7% wage increase, after the utility lost units during illegal protests that plunged South Africa into the worst blackouts since 2019, according to people familiar with the information. →

Amid load-shedding pain, more than 50% of Soweto residents are illegally connected to grid – Eskom

By: News24Wire 29th June 2022 As Soweto residents marched to the office of Johannesburg Mayor Mpho Phalatse last week to demand a more sustainable and consistent electricity supply, they did so against the backdrop of an area plagued by illegal connections and residents who can't or won't pay for power. Eskom says 50% of... →

Britain extends steel tariffs, breaching WTO rules

By: Reuters 29th June 2022 Britain on Wednesday extended a package of tariffs and quotas on five steel products by two years to protect local steelmakers, in a move that will breach international trade rules. Trade minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan told parliament the safeguards would help defend a strategic industry and that... →

'It's unfair' to blame me or govt for Eskom crisis - Mantashe on defensive at urgent Cabinet meeting

By: News24Wire 29th June 2022 A Cabinet committee was meeting urgently on Wednesday to deliberate on the crises at Eskom after the power utility plunged the country into stage 6 load-shedding on Tuesday. No Cabinet meeting had been scheduled for Wednesday. Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe told News24 it... →

Stage 6 load-shedding from 16:00 as maintenance backlog could take 'weeks to clear'

By: News24Wire 29th June 2022 Stage 6 load-shedding will kick in again from 16:00 until 22:00 on Wednesday evening, Eskom said in a statement. This is despite the fact that striking employees have started returning to work. Stage 4 load-shedding will be implemented from 22:00 until midnight, and then reduced to Stage 2 until... →

Consumer confidence plummets to record low

By: News24Wire 29th June 2022 South Africa’s consumer confidence plunged to its lowest level in over three decades in the second quarter of 2022, barring the sharp drop during the height of Covid-19. The economic ramifications of Russia’s war in Ukraine, soaring petrol prices, escalating inflation, high interest rates and the... →

Eskom nears completion of rectification of major boiler defects

29th June 2022 Eskom’s newest coal-fired power stations, Limpopo-based Medupi and Mpumalanga-based Kusile have suffered setbacks since their commissioning, some of which are yet to be finalised. Because Eskom ordered boilers of such a high capacity – at about 800 MW a unit – this meant that the power utility... →

Eskom nears completion of rectification of major boiler defects

Capital raise under way to progress copper/zinc mine in Northern Cape

By: Martin Creamer 29th June 2022 An opportunity to subscribe for new shares in parcels starting from R20 000 to a maximum of R330 000 is being offered to eligible shareholders by Orion Minerals. The capital raise is being undertaken to fund the Sydney- and Johannesburg-listed Orion’s Prieska copper/zinc mine, as well as other... →

Photo by Creamer Media
Orion Minerals CEO Errol Smart

Eskom employees start returning to work amid speculation of a higher wage offer

By: News24Wire 29th June 2022 As reports and speculation about Eskom's new wage offer to unions were in full swing, the power utility confirmed that employees were returning to work at various stations and other operations on Wednesday morning. After a week of protest disruptions due to a wage negotiation deadlock, Minister... →

Stage 6 fiasco: Ratings downgrade may now be on the cards, economists warn

By: News24Wire 29th June 2022 Stage 6 load shedding – the worst since 2019 – sparked by a wildcat strike at ailing power utility Eskom could stamp out the SA economy's recent tentative green shoots, analysts have warned. Amid spiralling unemployment, high inflation and rocketing fuel prices, there have been small pockets of... →

Airbus highlights its key role, through ESA, in Nasa’s Artemis crewed space programme

By: Rebecca Campbell 28th June 2022 With the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) having declared that the testing programme for the Artemis I Moon mission had been concluded and that its Space Launch System (rocket) and Orion spacecraft would be readied for launch in late August, Europe-based aerospace giant... →

The Orion spacecraft on top of the Space Launch System rocket on the launch pad, with the ESM in the centre of the photo, immediately under the gantry.

Photo by Nasa
The Orion spacecraft on top of the Space Launch System rocket on the launch pad, with the ESM in the centre of the photo, immediately under the gantry.

South Africa is back in contention for the birthplace of humankind

By: Bloomberg 28th June 2022 Fossils of early human ancestors in South Africa may be 1 million years older than previously thought, according to a new study, putting the country back in contention for the place where humankind may have originated. The study of hominin remains from the Australopithecus genus found at the... →

Satrix launches smart city infrastructure feeder ETF

By: Darren Parker 28th June 2022 South African index investment business Satrix, a division of Sanlam Investment Management, has announced that its new smart city infrastructure feeder exchange-traded fund (ETF) will offer investors access to the rapidly growing investment opportunity of smart cities. The fund’s initial public... →

Motus secures R6.8bn in sustainability-linked finance from Standard Bank

By: Schalk Burger 28th June 2022 Automotive group Motus Holdings has secured a syndicated R6-billion sustainability-linked facility, facilitated by financial services firm Standard Bank, as well as an R800-million sustainability-linked working capital facility from Standard Bank. This South African rand-denominated... →

South Africa in a position to export energy – Anglo American Platinum

By: Martin Creamer 28th June 2022 South Africa is one of only four countries that has more renewable energy available to it than what it needs for itself, which places the country in a very strong position to be able to export energy, with hydrogen in the form of ammonia, hydrogen gas or liquid hydrogen among the best ways of... →

Anglo American Platinum CEO Natascha Viljoen.

Bill Gates-led fund backs startup with cheaper way to move hydrogen

By: Bloomberg 28th June 2022 A hydrogen molecule is tiny. So tiny, in fact, that trying to store and transport it via existing tanks and pipes can end up causing cracks in steel. If hydrogen is to become a clean fuel of the future, urgent technological solutions are needed to keep it in place and move it at will. Enter... →

Anglo investing in expansion of organic waste upcycling company Sanergy

By: Schalk Burger 28th June 2022 Diversified mining multinational Anglo American is leading the latest investment round of organic waste upcycling business Sanergy, which has operations in Kenya. Sanergy's solutions are helping to transform how fast-growing cities in the developing world manage waste by upcycling it into... →

Three South African technologies pitch for Innovate UK funding

By: Schalk Burger 28th June 2022 During a briefing by energy technology innovation and funding network Innovate UK for technology innovators and entrepreneurs on June 27, three South African technology companies presented their innovations for potential funding from the UK organisation. The three companies also served as... →

Mitochondria Energy to build a fuel cell manufacturing facility in the Vaal SEZ in 2023

By: Donna Slater 28th June 2022 Hydrogen fuel cell developer Mitochondria Energy is planning to build a hydrogen fuel cell manufacturing facility in the Vaal Special Economic Zone (SEZ) forming part of the wider Hydrogen Valley development concept, with sod turning to start in 2023. In 2018, Mitochondria entered into a... →

An artist's impression of five 50 kW Mitochondria Energy fuel cells in a 250 kW generator, and related equipment.

South Africa's FDI inflows increased to R27.2bn in the first quarter

By: Reuters 28th June 2022 South Africa recorded foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows of R27.2-billion in the first quarter of 2022, up from R22.7-billion rand in the fourth quarter of 2021, the central bank said on Tuesday. The South African Reserve Bank said in its Quarterly Bulletin that the increase was due to... →

US to help fund study for deployment of small modular nuclear reactors in Romania

By: Rebecca Campbell 28th June 2022 The administration of US President Joe Biden is to provide 50% of the funding for a Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) study for the deployment of a small modular nuclear reactor (SMR), designed by US company NuScale, in Romania. The US contribution will be disbursed through the US Trade and... →

Gordhan says Eskom, unions reach wage agreement; hopes second day of Stage 6 load-shedding can be avoided

By: Chanel de Bruyn 28th June 2022 Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan on Tuesday evening said he was hopeful that Eskom would be able to avoid implementing Stage 6 load-shedding for a second day on Wednesday, after the power utility and unions had reached a wage agreement earlier in the day. Eskom on Tuesday afternoon... →

Photo by Creamer Media's Donna Slater
Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan

Power trip: While Stage 4 drags on some unions want Pravin, but Eskom heads to CCMA

By: News24Wire 28th June 2022 While Eskom has put its plans in motion to end protests that have disrupted its operations and break the deadlock at its wage talks, unions in the negotiations are split on whether the impasse may need an intervention from Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan. Historically, an intervention... →

Photo by Bloomberg
Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan

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Rockwell Automation named a Visionary; Plex Systems named a Leader in 2022 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Manufacturing Execution Systems

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