Table of contents for 2025-01-14 in Cape Times

Eskom, which has plans to set up 14 000 kilometres of new transmission lines, is reviewing the impact of ArcelorMittal South Africa’s closure of its longs steel business unit, which could impact its plans to roll out transmission lines across the country. Amsa announced this month that it will be closing down its longs steel operations at Vereeniging and Newcastle, a move set to result in about 3500 employees losing jobs and a loss of capacity of about one million tons. The closure, apart from impacting other industries such as South Africa’s automotive sector, will likely have an effect on Eskom, especially its transmission division, the National Transmission Company South Africa (NTCSA). In November last year, NTCSA said it had identified priority programmes that include “the Additional Transformation Programme providing…

Farming associations and experts welcomed the announcement on the formation of SA’s Agricultural Conditions Assessment Committee. This follows the reporting of a sharp decline in South Africa’s agricultural performance in the third quarter of 2024, with a quarter-on-quarter decrease of 28.8%. The committee will include the Department of Agriculture, Agri SA, Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz), and the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP). . In a joint statement, Agbiz and Agri SA said that the committee will meet regularly to assess the state of agriculture in South Africa and release brief insights following their discussions. Wandile Sihlobo, the chief economist of the Agricultural Business Chamber of SA, said that the committee will be formed and start its work this month. “It will be housed at…

At a press conference at the fifteenth session of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Assembly in Abu Dhabi, Kandeh Yumkella, Chairman Presidential Initiative on Climate Change, Renewable Energy and Food Security, Sierra Leone said Africa has huge energy potential and the Accelerated Partnership for Renewables in Africa (APRA) can help finance this. APRA was launched at the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference or Conference of the Parties 28 (COP28) held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) by African countries and international partners and is designed to help realise Africa’s vision for sustainable socio-economic development and provide access to funding. At present APRA members are Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe. Africa received less than 2% of the global investment in renewable energy projects in 2024,…

The South African agriculture industry continues to face difficulties that threaten its viability, while also pursuing exciting new growth prospects. As a bank dedicated to agricultural financing, assessing these developments both from risk management and opportunity point of view on how they will impact the well-being of our farmer clients and the sector overall is critical. Perhaps, one of the most pressing issues is the problems at the Port of Cape Town, which are disrupting fruit exports during peak season for crops like table grapes and deciduous fruits. Container throughput has dropped compared to last year due to reported operational inefficiencies and weather patterns resulting in delays in the movement of goods at the ports. These persistent challenges amplify the industry's anxiety, especially as most fruit consignments are en route…

Despite improved performance at its South African operations, Leon Coetzer, the CEO of Jubilee Metals, says the company is experiencing challenges - mainly centred around electricity supply deficits - with its operations in Zambia. Jubilee Metals mines copper in Zambia as well as PGMs and chrome in South Africa. Coetzer said on Monday that the challenges to do with power supply in Zambia are beyond the company’s control. “Over the past quarter, we have experienced significant challenges in our Zambian operations brought on by a combination of extraordinary circumstances outside of our direct control. We have addressed the power supply challenge by entering into an additional power supply agreement that sources power across a broader generation network to avoid localised exposure to network instabilities and a single power generation plant,”…

Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro is thrilled with his team’s march to the CAF Champions League quarter-finals – but he’s not getting carried away. Pirates beat CR Belouizdad of Algeria 2-1 in the penultimate round of the group stage at Orlando Stadium on Sunday as they climbed to the top of Group C with 11 points. With that having been enough to secure them a quarter-final berth for the first time since reaching the title decider in 2013, Pirates’ last game will be all but academic. Pirates will visit Al Ahly in Cairo on Saturday (6pm kick-off) in the last game of the group stage. Both teams have already secured their last-eight spot as they are first and second on the log respectively. Pirates are one of the unbeaten teams…

SA REITs (Real Estate Investment Trust) are likely to deliver an 8%-9% income return in 2025, after outperforming all other classes in 2024, said Merchant West Investments head of listed property and portfolio manager Ian Anderson. He said the return would likely be a solid starting point for investors. Commenting on the December Chart Book, which he compiles, Anderson said on Monday: “With limited company-specific news, investors focused on broader macroeconomic issues likely to shape 2025, including concerns over tariffs, the Federal Reserve’s actions, and escalating geopolitical risks." These factors weighed on investor sentiment, contributing to a decline in the South African equity market. While the bond market followed suit, the South African REIT sector defied the trend, rising by 1%. For 2024, SA REITs delivered a 35% return, while…

Despite apparent political headwinds and an oft-cited ESG (environment, social, governance) backlash in some parts of the world, investor demand for impact investing strategies has continued to grow. This has been driven by potential for positive diversification and the opportunity to access return opportunities across the global energy transition and via private markets. According to the Global Impact Investing Network’s (GIIN) Sizing the Impact Investing Market 2024 report, there is currently close to $1.6 trillion (R31trl) in impact investing assets under management (AUM) globally, being managed by more than 3 900 organisations. For the first time, GIIN was also able to calculate a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for impact investing AUM since 2019. At 21%, this rate is well above that for the wider asset management industry and outstrips…

South Africa’s agricultural sector is a key component of the economy, creating jobs and providing food security. The past year was a challenging one, characterised by droughts and the lingering impacts of animal diseases. The year ahead will be focused on navigating and mitigating the risks of climate change to achieve growth. Agricultural production declined in the third quarter of 2024, leading to the economy unexpectedly contracting by 0.3%, after growing in the second quarter. GDP from agriculture decreased to R85 698 million from R120 386 million in the second quarter. Although the Agbiz/IDC Agribusiness Confidence Index recovered by 10 points to 48 in the third quarter of 2024, it remained below the neutral 50-mark, indicating that although political concerns have eased in the wake of the formation of…

There is little debate about the rand's reputation as a weak currency. Decades of structural economic challenges, political uncertainty and a volatile global market have entrenched this perception. Yet, a closer look at recent currency movements reveals that over the past year, while the dollar index (DXY) has strengthened 6.5% against a basket of global currencies, the rand has weakened only 2% against the dollar. Historically, the rand has depreciated at an average rate of 8% per year since 1980, and notwithstanding recent strength I expect this weakness to continue as South Africa’s fundamentals of state interference remain largely unchanged. This long-term trajectory underscores the currency’s susceptibility to global shifts and domestic headwinds. US policy under Trump—characterised by measures fuelling inflationary pressures—has influenced expectations of fewer rate cuts, thereby reinforcing…

As Brent crude oil prices pushes higher on lower supply impacted by geopolitical concerns affecting Russia in its war on Ukraine and a colder winter in the northern hemisphere, some commentators believe it could push through $85 (R1 628) a barrel. Bianca Botes, a director at Citadel, said that crude rose above $81 barrel after a 4% surge on Friday, driven by US sanctions targeting Russian oil exports, insurers and tankers. “Higher oil prices could further complicate central banks’ inflation control efforts,” she said. This morning, it was trading at $81.29, a 1.92% gain on yesterday. Chris Weston, the head of research at Pepperstone, noted that, with lower supply, many commentators were now questioning whether the Brent crude price could push past $85 to the barrel. He said, “The…

TOP achievers from schools across KwaZulu-Natal thought they were being “pranked” when they received calls from officials in the Department of Basic Education inviting them to a breakfast event with Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube. One pupil said that for two days, she had serious doubts about the invitation and only believed it was true when she received the plane tickets. The KZN pupils were among 39 pupils who joined Gwarube as her guests at the Ministerial breakfast, held in Fairlands, Johannesburg yesterday. One of the top achievers, Gift Mlambo said hard work, proper planning, and prayer was behind his success in the matric year. Gift, from the Mandla Mthethwa School of Excellence in uMkhanyakude, was one of several pupils from KZN who were celebrated as top achievers at a national…

While the world’s attention is focused on the devastating wildfires sweeping through Los Angeles, South Africa is battling its own escalating wildfire crisis. Data from Working on Fire (WoF) shows that wildfire incidents in December 2024 nearly doubled compared to December 2023, which WoF said reflects a disturbing global trend driven by climate change. In December 2024, WoF teams attended 100 wildfires, compared to 51 in the same month the previous year - a 96% increase. Out-of-season fires also rose by 67.6%, from 105 incidents in 2023 to 176 in 2024. The Western Cape remains the most affected, recording 42 wildfires in December 2024 alone, while the Eastern Cape also faced significant fire activity. These trends mirror the alarming frequency and intensity of wildfires seen worldwide, WoF said. “These numbers…

Stellenbosch FC bravely ground out a convincing 2-0 victory over Stade Malien at Loftus Versfeld on Sunday to reach the quarter-finals of the CAF Confederation Cup in their maiden attempt. It was a stellar achievement since the ebullient Cape Winelands outfit had played their third game away from home in a week. Two of the matches were Confederation Cup Group B encounters played in a near-empty stadium at Loftus in Pretoria, some 1 500km from their Stellenbosch base, and they unable to call on crowd support or home-ground advantage. They were up against the Mali champions Stade Malien, an experienced club side who have played Champions League and Confederation Cup many times. They are 27-time Premier League champions of Mali, and they won the Confederation Cup once. Afterwards, Stellenbosch coach…

Utility forward Sinelitha Noxeke of the Bulls Daisies was a late withdrawal from the week-long Springbok Women training camp in Stellenbosch as they kick-started their preparations for the Women’s Rugby World Cup in England in August. The South Africans will be looking to build on their performance in last year’s WXV2 tournament in Cape Town, where they impressively beat the higher-ranked Japan 31-24 in their opener, with a master-class in grit and determination on defence, before losing 36-23 to eventual champions Australia and 23-19 against Italy in a nail-biter that ended their title hopes. Judging by the way they have started their World Cup preparations, the Bok Women are determined to become more of a force to be reckoned with on the biggest stage of all. “It’s the beginning of…

The agreement is to sell 100% of LHC’s interest in LMI for $350 million (about R6.48 billion) Life Healthcare Group’s (LHC) investors had valued the group’s Life Molecular Imaging (LMI) business at zero two years ago, and Monday an agreement was announced to sell it for $760 million (R13.9 billion) to US-based Lantheus Holdings, CEO Peter Wharton-Hood said yesterday. The agreement is to sell 100% of LHC’s interest in LMI for an upfront payment of $350 million (about R6.48bn and earn-out terms of a potential further $400m, linked to future sales milestones. “Two years ago our investors valued LMI at zero. Essentially, what we did was take a small company, invest in it, and grow it,” Wharton-Hood said in an online interview. He said LMI had also reached a…

At a press conference at the fifteenth session of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Assembly in Abu Dhabi, IRENA Director-General, Francesco La Camera, said that investment in renewables had reached a tipping point and the world was moving in the right direction to create a new energy system. He noted that this year’s conference had a record attendance with more than 2 000 people charting the direction for the year ahead. “Investment in renewables has reached a tipping point and what needs to be determined is the speed and scale of transformation. This is why 2025 is so important as countries submit their updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) next month,” he said. NDCs are national climate action plans by each country under the 2015 Paris Agreement. A country's NDC…

Flying remains essential to global trade and tourism, but the aviation industry is under intense pressure to reduce carbon emissions. Facing an existential threat from rising environmental concerns, airlines committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 during the 77th International Air Transport Association (IATA) Annual General Meeting in 2021. A key strategy to meet these ambitious targets is the adoption of sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs), which promise significant reductions in CO2 emissions. IATA estimates that 65% of the planned emissions reductions will come from fuel changes. Critically, SAFs must be designed to work with existing aircraft engines, eliminating the need for costly modifications. Derived from waste materials or non-essential crops, SAFs could offer as much as an 80% reduction in emissions compared to traditional jet fuels with which they are…

Tharisa endured a significantly tougher start to its 2025 financial year, with output of chrome and platinum group metals (PGM) down, impacted by erratic availability of drilling equipment while pricing weakness for its commodities persisted despite of supply and demand deficits. Chrome production for the quarter to December fell from about 47 000 tons in the September 2024 quarter to about 374 000 tons against the backdrop of average metallurgical grade chrome concentrate prices dropping from $314 (R6013) per ton to $271 per ton. PGM production for the company also sagged from 37 000 ounces in September quarter to 30 000 ounces in the December quarter. PGM prices for the last quarter averaged $1 381 per ounce compared to $1 370 per ounce in the earlier quarter. Tharisa attained a…

A story of canine devotion has won the hearts of the Gugulethu SAPS office and their dedication, along with the Cape of Good Hope SPCA (CoGH SPCA), to find a forever home for their furry friend affectionately known as “Sergeant”. Sergeant or Serg for short, a grieving dog, has become Gugulethu’s very own Hachikō Japan’s faithful Akita who waited for the rest of his life for an owner who could never return. Sergeant’s story began in mid-December when an elderly man arrived at the SAPS Gugulethu station seeking medical help, accompanied by his faithful dog. The man was taken to the hospital but tragically passed away, leaving his devoted companion behind to do the only thing he could do - wait. The dog remained outside the station, waiting at the…

PROTEAS white-ball coach Rob Walter has risked his team’s ICC Champions Trophy success in Pakistan by selecting two injury-prone fast bowlers. Walter named both Anrich Nortjé and Lungi Ngidi in his 15-man squad yesterday, despite both only recently returning from injury. Ngidi played his first competitive match last Saturday since suffering a long-term groin injury, which has kept him on the sidelines since October. He certainly looked rusty, with the Royals not even utilising him with the new ball and preferring teenager Kwena Maphaka instead, as he returned the uninspiring figures of 0/42 from four overs. Nortjé, meanwhile, who last played for the Proteas in the ICC T20 World Cup final, is also on the comeback trail after suffering a toe injury. The 31-year-old has yet to feature in the…

Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim said his team are still improving as Sunday’s dramatic FA Cup penalty shoot-out victory over Arsenal points to a more positive future after a difficult start to life at Old Trafford. United fans have suffered several false dawns in recent seasons, with development under Amorim’s predecessors Erik ten Hag and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer largely a case of one step forward and two steps back. Amorim may have wondered if he had taken on a poisoned chalice when a three-game unbeaten run to begin his reign was followed by a woeful run of results, with an unlikely victory over Manchester City in the middle. But having outperformed expectations with a brilliant display against Liverpool last weekend, United followed that up at Arsenal to keep their FA…

Novak Djokovic survived a first-set scare yesterday to begin his quest for an 11th Australian Open title and record 25th Grand Slam crown in shaky fashion. The 37-year-old was flat-footed and out of ideas early on against teenage American wildcard Nishesh Basavareddy, who was making his Grand Slam main draw debut. The 19-year-old stunned Djokovic by winning the first set in front of a shocked Melbourne Park crowd. But the Serbian slowly began to get his measure, battling through 4-6 6-3 6-4 6-2, with new coach Andy Murray sitting quietly courtside on Rod Laver Arena in one of the newly introduced “coaching pods”. The win put Djokovic into the second round in Melbourne for an 18th consecutive year. “At the end, it was great – but I think he was…