Cape Times 2024-11-19

At the hearing, Eskom cited the more than R90bn in municipal arrears debt, which it said was increasing at between R1bn to R1.5bn a month Eskom’s application for a 36.1% tariff increase in the Sixth Multi-Year Price Determination (MYPD6) was strongly opposed at the first day of public hearings by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) in Cape Town. This comes as the power utility was heavily criticised for cost overruns, including transport and travelling, that had no direct bearing on electricity production. This is on top of a 4% increase already granted by Nersa to recover losses of R8 billion in the 2021/22 financial year. The Green Connection – an eco-justice organisation advocating for sustainable and equitable energy solutions – said it was opposed to the tariff…

Telkom’s share price surged 5.5% to R30.42 yesterday after it reported market-beating results for the six months ended 30 September, driven by gains in mobile and fibre revenue while containing costs, leading to adjusted headline earnings per share from continuing operations gaining 68% 146.9 cents per share. Mobile subscribers gained 24.6% to 22.7 million, the bulk of which were pre-paid, Telkom’s results booklet showed. This led to a 10% increase in revenue from this unit to R10 billion, at an earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) margin of 30.4%. Its fibre business increased revenue 15.5%, with 1.3 million homes now passed, an increase of 11.4%. About 640 730 homes are now connected to fibre, an 18.1% increase, with these households consuming 1 389 Petabytes of data each month…

Naspers expects to lift interim headline earnings by between 103.2% and 109.6%, boosted by consolidated profitability in its Chinese e-commerce unit, Tencent. Owned by Naspers through its global investment group Prosus, Tencent has raked in the profits from video gaming while it is investing in artificial intelligence and bumping up fintech payments. “The group has demonstrated its continued commitment to deliver profitable growth, with consolidated e-commerce profitability in the first half of FY25, significantly exceeding that of the prior twelve months,” said Naspers yesterday. Core headline earnings per share and headline earnings per share for continuing operations for the period are thus expected to increase by between 87.2% and 93.8% as well as from 103.2% to 109.6% respectively. Naspers said it expected to “continue this growth path by accelerating pace…

President Cyril Ramaphosa yesterday said South Africa fully supported the Brazilian Presidency’s focus on social inclusion and the fight against hunger at the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro. Speaking at the working session on social inclusion and the fight against hunger and poverty, Ramaphosa said it was only through an integrated and comprehensive system of social support that the G20 will be able to assist the most vulnerable in society. According to the World Bank, nearly 700 million people are currently living in extreme poverty and the Sub-Saharan Africa region accounts for 67% of these people. Ramaphosa said that at the same time, countries with developing economies were faced with declining growth prospects, declining investments and rising debt. He said that these challenges had the potential to derail development…

Zimbabwe’s construction sector is on the rebound despite the effects of currency volatility and an uncertain monetary policy framework. Piniel Mkushi, chairman of Cafca - the only cable manufacturer in Zimbabwe and a unit of Reunert-controlled CBi Electric - said yesterday that “the construction sector was buoyant purred by the road construction activities, new housing and property development” projects. Nonetheless, the overall trading environment for Zimbabwe has been volatile, worsened by a decline in commodity prices for most metals and alloys as well as the impact of the drought for the 2023/2024 agricultural season, which dampened demand across the economy. Currency instability in September and earlier in the year also drove up inflation while exchange rate fluctuations remain “a challenge to value” preservation. Cafca manufactures electric cables for the Zimbabwe…

Entrepreneurship is often a path paved with grit, resilience, and a constant belief in a better future. Few stories embody this journey more powerfully than that of Dr Iqbal Survé, a South African entrepreneur, whose life’s work spans healing as a physician, building economic opportunities through business and uplifting communities through philanthropy. In this article, we explore how Survé’s journey from humble beginnings to global prominence reflects lessons for aspiring leaders and entrepreneurs everywhere. Humble Beginnings Born into apartheid South Africa, Dr Survé’s early life was defined by struggle. As a young boy growing up in Cape Town, he stood on the corner of Kenilworth Road selling the Cape Times newspapers to help his family make ends meet. Each sale represented not just survival but a step toward a future…