Mantashe promises gas-cliff urgency but offers few details

Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe says government is “moving with urgency” to ensure security of gas supply to avert a looming “industrial cliff-edge”. Addressing a forum on... 

Export body calls for ‘proactive engagement’ as Middle East conflict puts fresh produce exports at risk

Exporters Western Cape (EWC), which promotes and supports exporters in the province, is warning that the conflict in the Middle East is creating uncertainty, especially for those South African... 

TNPA monitoring shipping diversions but says no immediate rise in berthing requests

South Africa’s Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) reports that it has not yet received any indication of additional berthing requests from shipping lines in the wake of the US-Israel attack... 

Glencore-Merafe pauses retrenchments until end-March as it weighs Eskom’s 62c/kWh offer

The Glencore-Merafe Chrome Venture has paused a retrenchment process at its ferrochrome smelters by a month to March 31 after Eskom made a 62c/kWh tariff offer on the eve of its previous February... 

Details of Eskom’s eleventh-hour 62c/kWh offer to ferrochrome smelters to be provided in Nersa submission

Eskom announced on Friday that it had extended an eleventh-hour 62c/kWh tariff offer to ferrochrome producers Glencore‑Merafe Chrome Venture and Samancor, but indicated that negotiations on the... 

Eskom stays legal action to allow Nersa-led process on trading rules to unfold

Eskom has reached an agreement to suspend legal proceedings instituted against the granting of trading licences in 2024 to allow the current regulatory process to draft new trading rules to proceed... 

Impact of lowering inflation target has ‘exceeded most optimistic expectations’

South African Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago says the spin-offs from the policy decision to lower the inflation target have “exceeded our most optimistic expectations”. On November 12,... 

Eskom says it may take trading rules on legal review as it calls for material changes

Eskom has raised a slew of legal and technical issues with the draft trading rules being considered for approval by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) and has indicated that it... 

Landmark private solar-battery hybrid project aims to enter into operation in 2028

A large-scale hybrid solar and battery project, underpinned by a landmark 25-year private power purchase agreement (PPA) with Sasol and Air Liquide, has achieved financial close and is targeting to... 

Trading spaces

Electricity trading in South Africa, as Etana Energy CEO Evan Rice explained recently, is at once active and in transition. Just how active, is reflected in a report commissioned by the South... 

Rail localisation study launched as public and private train operators gear up to meet 250Mt target

A study has been launched to assess South Africa’s existing railways manufacturing capacity and capability and to make recommendations on how policy and procurement can be leveraged to bolster... 

Infrastructure in focus as South Africa reaches fiscal ‘turning point’

Accelerating infrastructure investment emerged as a central theme of the 2026 Budget, which Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana characterised as representing a “turning point” for both debt... 

Budget outlines shift from oversight to ‘structural intervention’ to tackle municipal dysfunction

Amid growing dissatisfaction with the performance of many of the country’s 257 municipalities, 162 of which are categorised as being in financial distress, the National Treasury has outlined what... 

Treasury targets more savings after R12bn identified under TARS scheme

The National Treasury reports that R12-billion in savings has been identified for the coming three years as a result of its Targeted and Responsible Savings (TARS) initiative, which requires... 

Transalloys wants electricity tariff relief extended to full ferroalloys sector

Transalloys, which produces manganese ferroalloys at a smelter complex in Mpumalanga, has again warned that its operations are at risk of closure should the electricity tariff relief granted and... 

Sasol to begin reducing external coal purchases as destoning plant raises quality

Energy and chemicals group Sasol is aiming to begin ramping up internal coal production and reducing external coal purchases after its destoning plant reached beneficial operation in December. CEO... 

Transnet starts process to find private partner for Richards Bay Dry Bulk Terminal

State-owned freight logistics group Transnet has initiated the first stage of a process to select a private partner for the Richards Bay Dry Bulk Terminal (RBDBT), a key export terminal in... 

AMSA mulls monetisation options for assets in care and maintenance worth R5bn-plus

In parallel to “expedited” negotiations with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) over its future corporate structuring, ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) is considering partnership and... 

Infrastructure crisis highlights urgent need for engineers to occupy ‘meaningful seat at table’

Amid a national maintenance “crisis” and slow delivery against government’s R1-trillion infrastructure commitment, Consulting Engineers South Africa (CESA) believes it has now become urgent for... 

Moral hazard

There is currently a marked difference between how Eskom and Transnet are being assessed against their respective reform milestones. While the State electricity producer is being adjudged,... 

Independent transmission company ‘one of most important reforms in country’s history’

President Cyril Ramaphosa has described the move to establish a fully independent State-owned transmission company as “one of the most important reforms in our country’s history”, while confirming... 

Urgent implementation of PPP investment model needed to halt multiyear slump – Seifsa

The multiyear slide in South Africa’s metals and engineering sector, which makes up about 25% of South Africa’s manufacturing sector and 5% of GDP, continued last year, the Steel and Engineering... 

Creecy says RFPs for three big rail and port concessions on track to be issued in 2026

Transport Minister Barbara Creecy reports that Transnet is preparing to release request for proposal (RFP) documents for three large private sector participation (PSP) projects in 2026, including... 

Macpherson says property investment vehicle will unlock value from R155bn State portfolio

Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson has provided some more high-level details on a plan to use a ringfenced property investment vehicle to begin to unlock value from the... 

NUM calls for urgent talks with Necom on Eskom unbundling following SoNA directive

The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has called for urgent and structured consultations between organised labour and the National Energy Crisis Committee (Necom) task team that is deliberating... 

Report labels unbundling of Eskom as ‘most important economic reform since 1994'

A new report commissioned by the South African Energy Traders Association (SAETA) identifies the unbundling of Eskom Holdings as the most important economic reform since 1994, arguing that a new... 

Lyra Energy signs private offtaker agreements for inaugural 255 MW solar PV project

Electricity trader Lyra Energy reports that it has entered into power purchase agreements with three private offtakers that will buy a large portion of the electricity to be produced from its 255... 

Eskom will ‘fully support task team’ to deliver independent TSO

Eskom says it will fully support the task team being created to deliver the fully independent State-owned Transmission System Operator (TSO) that will have ownership and control of transmission... 

Operation Vulindlela again lists Eskom’s restructuring as a reform area ‘facing significant challenges’

The latest update on progress being made in implementing the structural reforms that have been prioritised under Operation Vulindlela has again identified Eskom’s restructuring as a reform area... 

Draft amendments to B-BBEE codes open way for Transformation Fund

Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau has Gazetted proposed amendments to the existing Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) codes of good practice in a bid to open the way... 

Big decisions loom

South Africa is weighing a range of policy measures as various manufacturing sectors – from ferroalloys and steel, to automotives – face existential threats. The causes of their eroded... 

HOPEFUL NOTE

The seasonally adjusted Absa Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose by 8.2 points to 48.7 in January, marking a significant recovery from December’s slump. Although still below the neutral 50-point... 

Ramaphosa intervenes to ensure Transmission System Operator will own grid assets

President Cyril Ramaphosa has directly intervened in the dispute over Eskom’s unbundling plan, announcing in his 2026 State of the Nation Address (SoNA) that the independent Transmission System... 

Eskom says it may take trading rules on legal review, as it calls for material changes

Eskom has raised a slew of legal and technical issues with the draft trading rules being considered for approval by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) and has indicated that it... 

Landmark private solar-battery hybrid project aims to enter into operation in 2028

A large-scale hybrid solar and battery project, underpinned by a landmark 25-year private power purchase agreement (PPA) with Sasol and Air Liquide, has achieved financial close and is targeting to... 

Discovery Green sees trader‑led wheeling becoming dominant commercial model in 2026

The head of Discovery Green, the renewable-energy trading unit of JSE-listed Discovery, is forecasting that trader‑led wheeling will become the dominant commercial model in the South African... 

Rail volumes rising but private impetus needed to reach 250Mt target

Transnet CEO Advocate Michelle Phillips insists there will be no turning back from current yearly railed volume levels of above 160-million tons. But she has also reiterated that private sector... 

Nordex supplying 33 wind turbines to private projects in Western Cape

Wind turbine technology provider Nordex Energy South Africa (NESA) is supplying 33 wind turbines to the Zen and Bergriver wind projects, in the Western Cape, which will have a combined capacity of... 

Cobalt and copper sourced from DRC artisanal miners to be transported on Lobito corridor

In a milestone for the Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR), which links the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to a deep-water port in Angola, Entreprise Générale du Cobalt (EGC) and Trafigura have... 

Dipak Patel appointed new deputy chair of Presidential Climate Commission

President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Dipak Patel as deputy chairperson of the Presidential Climate Commission (PCC) for a tenure running from 2026 to 2030 in line with Section 10 (8) of the...