Energy

5 important things happening in South Africa today

Staff Writer

 ·18 Apr 2023

Here’s what is happening in and affecting South Africa today:

• No stage 8: Electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says reports suggesting that South Africa was recently plunged into stage 8 load shedding are false, as citizens would have been informed. Ramokgopa said that he would be transparent with the public and take every opportunity to share information regarding progress to solve the energy crisis. He noted that Eskom had prepared a winter plan for increased electricity demand. [News24]

• New SAA chair: Former Minister of Tourism Derek Hanekom is the new interim chairperson of South African Airways (SAA). The previous interim chair John Lamola will continue as interim CEO and director. The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) said that Hanekom’s experience in dealing with the government and the private sector would be extremely valuable in guiding SAA’s restructuring and revitalisation. [News24]

• Casino drama: Sun International’s long-term plan to fully own SunWest International and Sun Slots has become more complex, with GMB Liquidity Corporation now the majority shareholder of Grand Parade Investments (GPI). GPI currently has 30% and 15% stakes in Sun Slots and Sunwest, respectively. In 2022, Sun International Limited acquired 22.6% of the issued share capital in GPI but did not sell any shareholdings in GPI to GMB. [Moneyweb]

• Tshwane to sell assets: Tshwane Mayor Cilliers Brink says the city will sell its underutilised assets to earn extra revenue. Brink said the city could make at least R100 million from selling its underutilised assets. He added that the city is losing large sums of money on the upkeep and security of the empty buildings and unused land. He said the city needs to prioritise income over services, with everything unrelated to electricity, water, sewerage, parks, roads, safety, and public lighting being reconsidered. [EWN]

• Markets: The South African rand fell on Monday as the dollar gained on global markets, while stocks were down at the day’s close. Greg Davies, head of wealth at Cratos Capital, said the rand remained weaker due to investors’ concerns over load shedding during the South African winter. On Monday, Eskom said it would rotate between stage 5 and stage 6 load shedding. On Tuesday (18 April), the rand was trading at R18.30/$, R20.00/€, and R22.62/£. Brent crude is trading at $84.68 a barrel. [Nasdaq]