Star 2023-08-29

AUSTRALIAN gas explorer Kinetiko Energy, which has found shallow sandstone gas in South Africa, has started talks with petro- chemical company Sasol on a possible supply agreement, Kinetiko’s CEO said yes- terday. The natural gas deposit in Block 272, in Mpumalanga, close to Sasol’s Secunda petrochemical complex, could be a boon for Sasol, South Africa’s largest gas user and distributor, which needs to find alternative sources. Sasol currently receives almost all of its gas via the Rompco pipeline from Mozambique to South Africa, but the Pande and Temane onshore fields in Mozambique that supply it are expected to run out within a few years. Kinetiko CEO Nick de Blocq said the company was in “very early and undetailed discussions” with Sasol, which … was geographically “the natural off-taker for…

THE EU IS scouting Africa to back clean jet fuel projects under its Global Gateway infrastructure fund, an EU official said, before an anticipated boom in demand for environmentally sustainable air travel. The EU has pledged to dedicate half its €300 billion (R6.02 trillion) infrastructure plan, seen as a rival to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, to Africa. The fund has backed renewable plants, green hydrogen initiatives, vaccines and education projects in Africa, and the official said it was looking into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). “In the context of the Global Gateway, the commission is currently looking into possible co-financing mechanisms and guarantee instruments,” said Stefan De Keersmaecker, a European Commission spokesperson. “SAF production in the African continent has great potential.” SAFs are low-carbon fuel alternatives for the…

THE BUSINESS industry in South Africa has expressed satisfaction at the successful hosting of the 15th BRICS Summit as business can do much to support and facilitate the business opportunities that BRICS presents. Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) said yesterday that BRICS member nations were focused on how they could support each others’ development and a rules-based multilateral system. BLSA CEO Busi Mavuso said she was impressed by how Brazil, China, India, Russia and South Africa (BRICS) spoke of the importance of the energy transition and the need to build the infrastructure to support the growth of their economies and adaptation to climate change. Mavuso said the BRICS nations also spoke of the importance of trade between the nations and putting in place the right regulations and facilities to achieve…

Financial markets in South Africa held firm yesterday in spite of the significant exposure of some Top40 companies in the JSE to China’s economic meltdown. The JSE All Share Index rose more than 1% to stay just above the 75 000 index points mark yesterday while the rand remained almost unchanged at R18.61 against the US dollar. The share price of China’s largest property developer, Evergrande Group, plunged more than 80% as the company delayed crucial restructuring meetings with creditors and revealed first-half losses of $4.5 billion (R83.7bn), with liabilities of $328bn. The world’s second-largest economy is currently experiencing stalled economic activity, with foreign investment and the property crisis worsening and leaving developers Evergrande and Country Garden facing severe financial difficulties. Analysts warned yesterday that the financial…

78 new contract grower houses are being constructed in R400m investment by the growers LOCAL employment and chicken were in the spotlight yesterday after Rainbow Chicken, a division of RCL Foods, opened its second processing plant at Hammarsdale, west of Durban. This marked a return to full production, which was welcomed by the government and poultry industry. In 2017 Rainbow had to close half of the Hammarsdale operation and retrench some 1 200 workers as cheap chicken imports decimated the poultry sector. Rainbow said it had invested R220 mil- lion in their Hammarsdale abattoir and 78 new contract grower houses were being constructed at an investment by the growers of another R400 million. The investment was announced in April during the South African Investment Conference at the Sandton…

ITALTILE said yesterday that difficult trading conditions and internal inefficiencies impacted negatively on the group’s performance, with disappointing results in its South African businesses although its East African and Australian operations reported better results. In its group results for the year ended June 30, 2023, the retailer and manufacturer of tiles, bathroom ware, and related products said its results failed to meet expectations as profits had decreased leading to a cut in dividend. The group reported that earnings per share were down 13% to 132.6 cents, while headline earnings per share were down 13% to 132.3c. Trading profit was down 15% to R2.3 billion. The group said the ordinary dividend per share was down 13% to 53c. Group revenue improved by 2%, while selling price inflation was…