Cape Times 2022-02-04

Dieketseng Maleke dieketseng.maleke@inl.co.za STEINHOFF’S shares surged by 6 percent yesterday morning after its subsidiary, Pepkor, said it was acquiring an 87 percent stake in a Brazilian retailer, Grupo Avenida, for about R3.2 billion. While Pepkor – the owner of Pep, Incredible Connection, and Ackermans – was mum about the price of the acquisition, it did, however, say the purchase was less than 4 percent of the group’s R80.4bn market value, placing the deal at roughly less than R3.2bn. The shares later closed the day 2.07 percent up at R22.20. “Avenida operates a variety of sizes and locations with a presence in both large cities and small towns. It is a ‘one-stop shop’ for home, apparel, footwear and cellular to the average Brazilian family,” Pepkor said…

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za WESBANK and Toyota Financial Services face the possibility of being fined up to 10 percent of their turnovers if the Competition Tribunal concurs with allegations of collusion stacked against them by the Competition Commission. The commission said yesterday it has referred motor vehicle finance institutions, FirstRand Bank, Wesbank, and Toyota Financial Services South Africa (TFS) to the Competition Tribunal for prosecution on allegations of dividing the market by allocating customers or suppliers. “This type of collusive conduct is harmful to the consumers as it deprives them of the benefits which arise from competition. The commission has asked the Tribunal to fine the companies 10 percent of their turnover,” the commission said. The commission said its investigation revealed that Wesbank and TFS had entered into an…

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za THE UK’s HOUSE of Lords heard an impassioned plea yesterday by Lord Peter Hain for the UK and the US governments to immediately suspend all public sector contracts with Bain & Company for its role in South Africa’s state capture. Hain said: “I, therefore, find it completely unacceptable that Bain is licensed to operate commercially in the UK, the US or anywhere else in the world – at least until it has repaid all its fees earned from the South African state during the Zuma/Gupta years, and answered charges in the courts there.” In the wake of the first part of the Zondo report released by Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, Bain’s consulting work at the SA Revenue Service has been in the public spotlight. Hain yesterday…

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za CRITICS yesterday poked holes in South Africa’s ambitious gas masterplan base case report released by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) this week. The report, which is open for public scrutiny and response up to February 15, is meant to facilitate liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and natural gas as alternatives to power Eskom’s Open Cycle Gas Turbines (OCGT), revive mothballed coal stations, ignite the public transport system and facilitate industry. The masterplan outlines a fledging industry which, though largely with foundations on a 2004 bilateral agreement with war-torn Mozambique, has the potential to ease South Africa’s Just Transition as the grease in the shifting of gears from fossil to renewable energy, a factor counter-argued by the high levels of carbon emissions from gas…

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za AMID ONGOING load shedding, the controversial Karpowership floating power plants project, which had been delayed by a court application against it, has been approved by the High Court, a statement from the Turkey-based Kar- powership said yesterday. The three Karpowership SA projects in Saldanha, Coega and Richards Bay aim to provide 1 220MW of electricity directly to the power grid. DNG Energy, which was seeking to supply power from gas plants for the government’s Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme, had its application to halt the process dismissed by the High Court on Sunday. DNG had demanded its bids replace those of Karpowership. Karpowership said its floating power plants could deploy to South Africa immediately upon approvals and provide power to South Africa within one year…

Edward West edward.west@inl.co.za THE ONELOGIX Group’s headline earnings per share fell 89 percent or 1.1 cents per share in the six months to November 2021 after it suffered a four times whammy of global supply chain woes, damage from a freak hail storm, the civil unrest and a post-Covid destocking trend that’s probably not going to change soon. The earnings slide was in spite of a 21 percent increase in revenue to R1.49 billion, that the group’s businesses were trading well, with that the balance sheet remained well capitalised and liquid, chief executive Ian Lourens said in an interview yesterday. Earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortisation was up 14 percent to R213.7m, while core headline earnings per share fell 82 percent to…