Cape Times 2023-07-28

LIBERTY Group, part of the Standard Bank Group, intends to buy out the minority shareholders in Liberty Two Degrees (L2D) and de-list the group that owns some of the most iconic properties in the country. L2D’s share price leapt to narrow the gap, with the offer price gaining 41.79% to R5.53 on the JSE yesterday morning. Liberty Group is offering minority shareholders R5.55 per share. Liberty Group and its parent Standard Bank hold about 58.5% of L2D. The offer price is over 35% below the last reported net asset value of R7.51, as at December 31, 2022. However, the offer price represents a 46.4% premium to the volume-weighted average price at which L2D has been trading over the past 30 days. The move represents further consolidation of the Standard Bank…

This is expected to streamline regulatory processes for private investment INDEPENDENT Power Producers (IPPs) in South Africa could soon see their applications for new renewable energy projects approved in record time if the government succeeds in implementing the newly-launched facility to fast-track processes. The Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Ebrahim Patel launched the Energy One-Stop Shop (EOSS) and the Energy Resilience Fund yesterday to mitigate the ongoing energy crisis as part of the Energy Mitigation Strategy. The EOSS is expected to streamline regulatory processes for private investment in electricity generation, facilitate pre-investment screening for all energy projects and fast-track the approval of energy applications. This is part of the government’s wider efforts to refocus resources and increase the supply of energy available to the grid, mainly through additional…

SPUR CORPORATION is taking a 60% stake in the Doppio Group, owners of the speciality restaurant brands Doppio Zero, a further indication of the recovery of Spur since the lows of the Covid pandemic. The acquisition, the price of which was not disclosed, did not appear to set the market alight, as Spur’s share price increased only 0.43% to close at R23.60 on the JSE yesterday. However, it is worth considering the price has already gained more than 70% from the lows it reached during the Covid pandemic in the latter part of 2020. Also, in the six months to March 31, Spur Corporation increased headline earnings per share a very strong 198.5% to 136.65 cents and it lifted the interim dividend 67% to 82c. The Doppio’s other restaurant…

ROYAL Bafokeng Platinum (RBPlat) yesterday said it expected its earnings to drop by double-digits in a trading statement for the six-month period ended June 30 on the back of lower platinum group metal (PGM) prices. RBPlat said it was in the process of finalising its financial results. A weaker PGM pricing environment, coupled with lower 4E ounce production and inflationary pressures contributed to a decrease in the mining firm’s earnings. Basic earnings per share (Eps) and headline earnings per share (Heps) regressed into estimated basic loss per share (estimated LPS) and estimated headline loss per share (estimated HLPS) from the previous corresponding period, it said. RBPlat said estimated LPS for the period amounts to 117 cents, a decrease of 115.3% compared to a basic Eps of 765.4c for…

CHINESE investors racing to secure lithium supplies could help Zimbabwe rise to become the world’s fifth biggest primary producer of the material that’s vital to battery electric vehicles and the green revolution, mining consultancy CRU said. The lithium industry in Africa’s top producer has rapidly expanded, buoyed by about $1 billion (R17.62bn) of investments during the past two years by Chinese companies including Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt, Sinomine Resource Group, Chengxin Lithium Group and Yahua Group. The Chinese companies, faced with production constraints at home, have focused on Zimbabwe to lock-in future lithium supplies. The investments could boost capacity to 192 000 tons of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) per year of petalite and spo- dumene in 2027, from 13 000 tons per year LCE in 2022, Cameron Hughes,…

DIVERSIFIED mining giant Anglo American delivered lower earnings in the six months to June as lower commodity prices and higher costs took a toll. In its interim financial results for the six months ended June 30, 2023, the group yesterday reported a 41% decrease in underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation, which amounted to $5.1 billion (R90bn), largely due to weaker product prices. The group flagged that attributable profit dropped by 66% to $1.26bn, while total group production increased by 10%, but average prices for its basket of products decreased by 19%. Anglo said this led to a 13% decline in revenue. As a result the group slashed its dividend by 55.6% to $0.55 from $1.24 the previous year, a $700 million payout. Group production was…