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Covid-19

Aspen says it can produce generic Covid-19 vaccines in SA amid US support for patent waiver

By: News24Wire Updated 4 hours ago On Thursday, the US shocked many by announcing that it would support a temporary patent waiver on Covid-19 vaccines. Currently, only pharmaceutical companies that own the patents for the vaccines are allowed to manufacture the jabs. But lifting the patent rights means that they will lose this... →

Gold Fields on track to deliver on guidance

By: Martin Creamer 6th May 2021 Notwithstanding the impact of Covid-19, gold mining company Gold Fields produced attributable equivalent gold production of 541 000oz, which was largely flat year-on-year and down 9% quarter-on-quarter. The Johannesburg- and New York-listed company stated on Thursday, when it provided an... →

Photo by Creamer Media
Gold Fields CEO Chris Griffith

SA Novavax vaccine trial shows efficacy against B.1.351 Covid-19 variant

By: Sane Dhlamini 6th May 2021 Results from the University of the Witwatersrand Novavax coronavirus vaccine trial show 51% efficacy against the B.1.351 variant in a South African study with HIV negative participants. A group in the trial, which included people who are HIV positive, showed 43% efficacy. Novavax is a... →

Rapidly spreading variants compound Africa’s coronavirus woes

By: Bloomberg 5th May 2021 New coronavirus variants have proliferated across southern and eastern Africa, exacerbating the challenge of bringing the pandemic under control, analysis of the genomics data shows. A strain first detected in South Africa late last year is “completely dominating all infection in southern Africa... →

Even if Covid-19 vaccine IP is waived, Africa does not have the capacity to produce at scale – expert

By: News24Wire 5th May 2021 A University of Cape Town professor says if the intellectual property rights of vaccines are lifted, the African continent will still not be able to scale up the production of Covid-19 vaccines. Countries and activists in the Global South have been asking pharmaceutical companies to waive IP... →

J&J vaccine study to resume in South Africa on Wednesday, ministry says

By: Reuters 26th April 2021 A research study in South Africa further evaluating Johnson & Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine in the field will resume on Wednesday, the health ministry said, after the study was paused over rare cases of blood clots in people given the vaccine. During the pause, it had been established that there is... →

Engen to shut refinery and repurpose KZN site as an import terminal

By: Terence Creamer 23rd April 2021 South African petroleum products group Engen announced on Friday that it would shut the Engen Refinery and convert the site, located south of Durban, into an import terminal and product storage facility by the end of 2023. Engen said the refinery-to-terminal (RTT) repurposing initiative was based... →

Sahpra launches app for the reporting of adverse drug reactions

By: Schalk Burger 22nd April 2021 Medical products regulator the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (Sahpra) has launched the Med Safety mobile app for self-reporting of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) by the public and healthcare professionals, it said on April 22. The app is designed to simplify and... →

WHO warns Africa not to let its guard down amid pandemic

By: Sane Dhlamini 22nd April 2021 The World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Director for Africa Dr Matshidiso Moeti has encouraged African countries to sustain Covid-19 prevention measures and urged countries not to let their guards down as the world races to vaccinate their populations. Moeti said on Thursday that despite the... →

Cabinet welcomes recommendation on lifting of J&J vaccine pause, says Mkhize to announce recommencement details

By: Terence Creamer 22nd April 2021 Cabinet has welcomed the recommendation by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority regarding the lifting of the temporary pause placed on the Johnson & Johnson Sisonke Vaccination Programme, but did not immediately announce an end to the suspension following its Wednesday meeting,... →

Vodacom, AUDA-Nepad launch mVacciNation digital toolbox

By: Natasha Odendaal 21st April 2021 Telecommunications giant Vodacom Group and the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-Nepad) have joined forces to deploy a mobile technology platform that manages vaccination appointments and stock availability. Developed by Vodacom Group member Mezzanine, the mVacciNation digital toolbox will... →

DPD Laser to buy 110 Cryo-Vacc Covid-19 vaccine containers from Renergen

By: Simone Liedtke 21st April 2021 Domestic natural gas and helium producer Renergen and local express courier partner DPD Laser have inked an agreement for Renergen to manufacture the first 110 Cryo-Vacc units for supply to DPD. The Cryo-Vacc is suitable for both air and ground transportation. Liquid nitrogen is used to keep the... →

The Cryo-Vacc

Carbon emissions set to surge in 2021 as coal rebound eclipses record renewables growth

By: Terence Creamer 20th April 2021 Global energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions could surge by 1.5-billion tonnes in 2021 to 33-billion tonnes, reversing most of last year’s decline caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, as rebounding coal demand in the electricity sector more than offsets record renewables deployments. This... →

Energy expert writes to government calling for overhaul of RMIPPPP ahead of July financial close

By: Terence Creamer 19th April 2021 An energy expert has written to the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) and the Independent Power Producer (IPP) Office to highlight the expensive shortcomings of the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (RMIPPPP), which he says should be replaced by a... →

South African company partners with Unicef to support global vaccine rollout

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 19th April 2021 South African Internet of things (IoT) solutions provider Beyond has recently entered into a long-term agreement with the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) to supply its remote cold chain monitoring solution in support of Unicef's global vaccination programme. Unicef will be responsible for... →

Business outlines strategy for supporting ramp-up to daily vaccination tempo of 250 000 by September

By: Terence Creamer 16th April 2021 Business for South Africa (B4SA) has outlined its strategy for a steady upscaling of the private sector’s capacity to administer the Covid-19 vaccine and position the country’s public and private health sectors to reach a daily vaccination rate of more than 250 000 by September. B4SA health... →

$100bn bled from emerging markets during onset of Covid-19 in 2020 – Afreximbank

By: Donna Slater 16th April 2021 A survey and subsequent report ‘Survey of Impact of Covid-19 on African Trade Finance’ by the Africa Export-Import bank (Afreximbank), shows that outflows from emerging market economies in the first quarter of 2020 accounted for more than $100-billion. The report was a joint production between... →

Majority hopeful that pandemic will be contained within the next year – global survey

By: Simone Liedtke 12th April 2021 A new Ipsos and World Economic Forum (WEF) survey found that there are wide variations in post-Covid ‘return to normal’ expectations, with almost 60% of respondents expecting a return to pre-Covid normal level within the next year. Another 6% of respondents already believe this to be the case and... →

US supports South Africa’s vaccine roll-out strategy with $3m

By: Thabi Madiba 8th April 2021 The US is supporting South Africa’s Covid-19 vaccine strategy by providing $3-million, or R45-million, in funding for vaccine distribution, field hospitals and data surveillance, through the US Agency for International Development. United States chargé d'affaires Todd Haskell said on Thursday... →

Global energy leaders say jobs must be at heart of people-centred energy transition

By: Terence Creamer 31st March 2021 Employment creation for workers and communities at the highest risk of disruption as a result of the shift to greater climate-resiliency was identified during a gathering of global energy leaders on Wednesday as essential to ensuring that the transition was not only people-centred but also... →

Silver is smart metal that fits Sibanye-Stillwater's green space – Froneman

By: Martin Creamer 31st March 2021 Silver is a smart high-technology metal that fits into Sibanye-Stillwater’s green metals space. This was made clear by Sibanye-Stillwater CEO Neal Froneman during Wednesday’s Mining Indaba gold roundtable, moderated by Nedbank CIB lead analyst Arnold van Graan and covered by Mining Weekly. →

Photo by Creamer Media
From top left, clockwise, Jeff Quartermaine, Arnold van Graan, Neal Froneman, Christine Ramon and Mark Bristow.

World Bank report highlights big economic benefits of an accelerated South African vaccination roll-out

By: Terence Creamer 31st March 2021 An analysis published in a new World Bank report shows that vaccinating 60% of South Africa’s population to induce so-called “herd immunity” against Covid-19 would have a benefit-cost ratio of more than 29, and that the economic benefits would be amplified by an accelerated vaccination roll-out.... →

Anglo collaborating on feasibility study for South Africa’s ‘hydrogen valley’

By: Martin Creamer 31st March 2021 Diversified mining and marketing company Anglo American on Wednesday announced a collaboration agreement to complete a feasibility study to develop a ‘hydrogen valley’ anchored in South Africa’s platinum group metals- (PGMs-) rich Bushveld geological area. Spearheaded by South Africa’s Department... →

The Mogalakwena platinum group metals mine in Limpopo.

Bara500 ICU hospital handed over after six months of construction

31st March 2021 With the surge in hospital admissions brought about by the global Covid-19 pandemic, the Gauteng departments of Health and Infrastructure Development embarked on a project to increase its ICU capacity through a national refurbishment and additional build programme. Enza Construction was... →

Bara500 ICU hospital handed over after six months of construction

J&J to produce 220m vaccine doses for Africa

By: Yvonne Silaule 30th March 2021 US multinational corporation Johnson & Johnson has signed a contract to deliver 220-million vaccine doses to Africa, with South Africa to receive 30-million doses. President Cyril Ramaphosa made the announcement this week, saying he was pleased that J&J had signed a contract with the Africa... →

South Africa continues to be G20 coal outlier, report shows

By: Terence Creamer 29th March 2021 With 86% of the country’s electricity produced from coal, South Africa continued to have the highest reliance on the energy mineral among all G20 countries in 2020, with the global average standing at 34%. The ‘Global Electricity Review 2021’, published on March 29, indicates that the G20 country... →

First hydrogen and movement by third quarter – Anglo American Platinum

By: Martin Creamer 29th March 2021 Anglo American Platinum executive head: project and environment Prakashim Moodliar has outlined what the company refers to as its smart power project, which is the development of the hydrogen fuel cell and battery-powered module, retrofitted on to a large haul truck, for deployment at the... →

Anglo American Platinum executive head: project and environment Prakashim Moodliar.

Big business to approach government with solutions for accelerating infrastructure spending

By: Terence Creamer 26th March 2021 Big business in South Africa plans to approach government with a series of solutions aimed at narrowing the ever-widening gap between the country’s fixed-investment spending targets and the dismal reality of declining spending on both social and economic infrastructure. Through the National... →

Global wind installation step change required to meet net-zero goal

By: Terence Creamer 25th March 2021 Despite Covid-afflicted 2020 emerging as the best-ever year for global wind-energy installations, a new industry report argues that the rate of yearly deployments will have to more than double before the end of the current decade if onshore and offshore wind generators are to make their rightful... →

Shift in Solidarity Fund's approach to combating Covid-19

By: Simone Liedtke 25th March 2021 Nonprofit organisation the Solidarity Fund has shifted its focus to Covid-19 vaccines as “the year has seen a lot of devastation”, CEO Tandi Nzimande said during a media briefing on March 25. However, while she was grateful that the fund had "been able to be part of the solution”, she emphasised... →

Master Drilling in muted but resilient 2020 performance

By: Martin Creamer 23rd March 2021 Drilling services company Master Drilling, which operates in 23 countries and which is continuing to grow its presence in new global markets, on Tuesday reported a “muted but resilient performance” for the full year ended December 31, thanks to what it described as a “flexible business model and... →

Photo by Creamer Media
Master Drilling CEO Danie Pretorius.

Pandemic’s implications will continue to depend on the evolution of macroeconomic conditions - Unctad

By: Simone Liedtke 19th March 2021 Although warnings about the spread of viruses have become more frequent in recent years, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) laments in its latest trade and development report update that “nobody anticipated the arrival of Covid-19 or its dramatic global impact”.... →

Mboweni warns third wave of Covid-19 could hurt country's ratings

By: Reuters 19th March 2021 South Africa's finance minister said on Thursday that a third wave of the coronavirus could destabilise the government's efforts to control its finances and avoid a further downgrade of the country's sovereign rating. Two of the top three rating agencies - Moody's and Fitch - downgraded South... →

Finance Minister Tito Mboweni

Northam earnings soar, operational performance pumps cash

By: Martin Creamer 19th March 2021 The earnings of platinum group metals (PGMs) mining company Northam Platinum soared in the six months to the end of December when 54% more cash was generated. Operational growth projects, initiated in a period of lacklustre metal prices, are now coming on track, and delivering valuable... →

Photo by Creamer Media
Northam Platinum CEO Paul Dunne

Bidding for renewables finally opens as powership-heavy ‘emergency’ projects are unveiled

By: Terence Creamer 18th March 2021 Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe released the names of the eight preferred bidders – including three powership projects – selected as part of government’s 2 000-MW ‘emergency’ procurement programme and also launched the much-anticipated fifth bid window (BW5) for the... →

Photo by Creamer Media's Donna Slater
Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe

Return2Work launches vaccine-centred workplace information

By: Marleny Arnoldi 18th March 2021 The Return2Work public private growth initiative has launched new resources to assist in raising awareness among workers and employers across the country related to the Covid-19 vaccines. The initiative was launched in collaboration with the Solidarity Fund last year to facilitate collaboration... →

Bara500 ICU hospital launched

By: Donna Slater 18th March 2021 Construction company Enza Construction recently completed a new Covid-19 hospital wing – the Bara500 unit – in the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital complex using innovative building technology which enabled the company to significantly reduce construction time in comparison to conventional... →

Photo by Creamer Media's Donna Slater
The triage area of the new Bara500 ICU hospital

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