Megan van Wyngaardt

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Megan van Wyngaardt

Megan van Wyngaardt is Creamer Media Senior Contributing Editor Online for Engineering News and Mining Weekly.

Tel: +2711 622 3744

Email: newsdesk@engineeringnews.co.za

Davies assures DTI will weather budget constraints

16th February 2018 While the South African fiscus will face a tough Budget – to be tabled by Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba next week – Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies said his department would rise to the challenge and “work with whatever resources we get”. Speaking to Engineering News Online on the... →

Air Liquide launches €200m air separation unit at Sasol

16th February 2018 Gas company Air Liquide has launched a €200-million air separation unit (ASU) at energy and chemicals company Sasol's Secunda plant. Said to be the biggest oxygen production unit in the world, the ASU has a production capacity of 5 000 t/d of oxygen. Owned and operated by Air Liquide, it is the... →

Joburg teams up with private sector on recycling scheme

16th February 2018 Adcock Ingram Critical Care, Netcare, Johannesburg Mayor Herman Mashaba and the City of Johannesburg, this week launched a project that recycles used, nonhazardous intravenous infusion drip bags and tubing made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) to produce soles for school shoes. As part of the... →

AfDB renews its commitment

16th February 2018 The African Development Bank (AfDB) plans to provide 29.3-million people on the continent with access to electricity by 2020. Speaking during meetings of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, in Addis Ababa, at the weekend, AfDB president Akinwumi Adesina pledged support for the New... →

Commission proposes conditions for Scaw acquisition

16th February 2018 The Competition Commission has recommended that the Competition Tribunal approve the proposed transaction, with conditions, whereby Barnes Southern Palace intends to acquire steel maker Scaw from the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). Barnes Southern Palace is a consortium involving the... →

Botswana Diamonds undertakes scoping study at Thorny River

15th February 2018 Aim-listed Botswana Diamonds has started a scoping study to determine the commercial potential of the Thorny River diamond project, which is a consolidation of the Frischgewaagt, Hartbeesfontein and Doornrivier properties, in Limpopo. The six-month study will further refine the volumes of... →

JRA to convert Jan Smuts avenue to a dual carriageway

15th February 2018 The Johannesburg Road Agency (JRA) has developed a draft design for the future upgrading of Jan Smuts avenue to a dual carriageway from Northwold drive to Bolton drive and from Eighth avenue to Kent road in Rosebank, to improve mobility and decrease congestion on the main arterial route. The... →

DRDGold lifts H1 profit on higher production

15th February 2018 Dual-listed gold recovery company DRDGold on Thursday posted a 27% year-on-year increase in operating profit to R219.9-million for the six months ended December 31, on the back of an 11% year-on-year increase in gold production to 75 267 oz. The company, which is working to add... →

Pretorius sees WRTRP transaction as an investment

15th February 2018 Johannesburg-focused gold processor DRDGold is hoping that the addition of the West Rand tailings retreatment project (WRTRP), currently the subject of a R13-billion deal with Neal Froneman-led Sibanye-Stillwater, will attract longer-term investors, which might still be deterred by "extreme... →

Photo by Duane Daws
DRDGold CEO Niël Pretorius

GBI takes steps to further expand Chesanyama footprint

14th February 2018 JSE-listed franchising company Gold Brands Investments (GBI) has entered into a development agreement with a master franchisor, who will have the exclusive right of developing the Chesanyama brand in all countries outside Africa. The master franchisor will own the exclusive rights to roll out and... →

PwC forecasts 'pain' for the public amid prospects of tax hikes

14th February 2018 The nature of fiscal revenues and expenditure in the 2018/19 fiscal year so far indicate that the fiscal deficit will likely expand to R250-billion, unless prudent spending cuts are implemented, financial services firm PwC warned on Wednesday. As such, South Africans can potentially expect the... →

Emira returns to positive distribution in H1

14th February 2018 South African real estate investment trust (Reit) Emira Property Fund on Wednesday declared an interim dividend of 70.65c a share for the six months ended December 31 - a 2.5% year-on-year increase. The fund returned to positive distribution growth in the period owing to the significant leasing... →

Sasol Chemicals completes alumina capacity expansion project in Germany

14th February 2018 Sasol Chemicals' inorganics and catalyst division has completed a 15 000 t/y expansion of alumina capacity at its Brunsbuettel site, in Germany, enabling the company to meet growing global demand. The expansion involved debottlenecking the alumina slurry feed capacity by installing an additional... →

SARB stays abreast of latest fintech developments

13th February 2018 The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has established a financial technology (fintech) programme to strategically assess the emergence of fintech in a structured and organised manner, and to consider its regulatory implications. The central bank explains that the programme is aimed at tracking... →

Kumba profit up 12% in 'royal flush' year – CEO

13th February 2018 In a year that CEO Themba Mkhwanazi describes as a "royal flush", Kumba Iron Ore posted a 12% increase in headline earnings to R9.7-billion. Headline earnings reached R30.47 a share, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation increased by 6% year-on-year to R19.6-billion... →

Westgold, S2R shake hands on gold tenements

13th February 2018 ASX-listed companies Westgold Resources and S2 Resources (S2R) have entered an agreement, whereby Westgold would acquire S2R's interest in the Polar Bear project, its 80% interest in the Eundynie joint venture and the Norcott project, in Western Australia. The company would take over all the... →

Middle Island to exit West Africa as focus shifts to Australia project

13th February 2018 ASX-listed Middle Island (MDI) has signed a heads of agreement (HoA) to sell its remaining gold interests in West Africa, as its focus shifts to Western Australia. The HoA with TSX-V-listed Tajiri Resources grants that company an option to acquire a 100% interest in the Reo gold project, in... →

PFS outlines 'compelling case' for Pilgangoora expansion – Pilbara

13th February 2018 Australian lithium developer Pilbara Minerals has delivered a prefeasibility study (PFS) for its flagship 100%-owned Pilgangoora lithium/tantalum project, in Western Australia. The company reported on Tuesday that the PFS outlined a "compelling business case" for the expanding the project to... →

Pilbara Minerals CEO Ken Brinsden

Savannah's Mina do Barroso drilling programme shows good results

12th February 2018 Aim-listed Savannah Resources on Monday said that it had identified significant widths of lithium mineralisation through the ongoing reverse circulation (RC) drill programme at its Mina do Barroso lithium project, in northern Portugal. A total of 87 holes for 7 081 m have been drilled to date... →

Oracle Power gets approval for next step in coal, power plant development

12th February 2018 The Private Power and Infrastructure Board (PPIB) of Pakistan has approved the issue of notice to proceed (NTP) and letter of intent (LoI) for a coal mine and mine-mouth power plant in Block VI of the Thar desert, UK-based Oracle Power reported on Monday. The project is being developed in a... →

RCL Foods reports uptick as chicken processing business improves

12th February 2018 South African food producer RCL Foods expects to report an upswing in its financial results for the six months ended December 31, with its headline earnings a share to be between 46% and 66% higher year-on-year at between 69.5c and 79c. Earnings a share are expected to increase by between 93.5%... →

Wind energy installations continue to grow – WWEA

12th February 2018 The overall capacity of all wind turbines installed worldwide by the end of 2017 reached 539 291 MW, preliminary statistics published by World Wind Energy Association (WWEA) has shown. A WWEA report, released on Monday, further showed that 52 552 MW of wind energy capacity were added last year,... →

Top mining companies' value increased by 15.5% y/y

12th February 2018 The 25 top global mining companies were worth an aggregate $818.2-billion at the end of January, a 15.5% increase compared with their value in the corresponding month in 2017, when the same companies held a value of $708.5-billion, research firm S&P's Global Market Intelligence said on Monday. A... →

Maiden resource estimate declared for Kapunda copper project

12th February 2018 Terramin Exploration (TEL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Terramin Australia and its joint venture (JV) partner, Environmental Copper Recovery (ECR), have completed the maiden on site recovery (ISR) resource estimate for the Kapunda copper project, near Adelaide, South Australia. The JV is now... →

Cooper Energy swings to H1 profit as it executes gas strategy

12th February 2018 Australian gas producer Cooper Energy has grown its net profit, operating cash flow, production and reserves by 200% in the first half of the 2018 financial year, as the company realised gains from the delivery of its three-year gas strategy. The ASX-listed exploration and production company... →

QRC, Aurizon at loggerheads over coal line maintenance

12th February 2018 The Queensland Resources Council (QRC) on Monday said it was "extremely disappointed" by Aurizon's move to pre-empt the state's regulatory process by moving to change its maintenance programme before the Queensland Competition Authority (QCA) process was completed. Aurizon has announced that it... →

Kumba expects FY17 earnings to soar as production improves

9th February 2018 Kumba Iron Ore's headline earnings for the year ended December 31 are likely to increase by 7% to 15% year-on-year to between R9.3-billion and R9.98-billion and its headline earnings per share (HEPS) to between R29.13 and R31.27. "The increase in headline earnings is largely attributable to... →

AfriBusiness believes new competition legislation will harm large businesses

9th February 2018 The proposed Competition Amendment Bill will transform South Africa's competition authorities into instruments for black economic empowerment (BEE), argues business lobby AfriBusiness. CEO Piet le Roux said the Amendment Bill was "explicitly crafted with transformation in mind. It significantly... →

Budget is watershed moment for South Africa's economy - economist

9th February 2018 While there are early signs of a recovery in the local economy, with expected business conditions improving, government now needs to show - through its Budget later this month - that it has the credibility to take the country forward and build business and consumer confidence. Speaking at a... →

New petroleum pipelines regulator appointed

9th February 2018 The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has appointed Muzuvukile Mkhize as full-time regulator member responsible for petroleum pipelines regulation, following Cabinet approval. Mkhize will fill the role for a five-year term from January 16 this year to January 15, 2023. His... →

CompCom suspends advisory services pending appeal

9th February 2018 The Competition Commission has suspended its advisory opinion services pending the finalisation of the case against Hosken Consolidated Investments (HCI). This follows a Competition Appeal Court (CAC) judgment ruling against the regulator on the matter. In August last year, HCI request the... →

Signs of manufacturing recovery, despite ongoing metals industry pressures

8th February 2018 The latest preliminary production data for the metals and engineering sector, released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) on Thursday, reflected a slowdown in production in December, despite a 2% increase in the broader manufacturing production during the same period, Steel and Engineering... →

Gold Fields expects up to 12% decrease in FY17 HEPS

8th February 2018 Dual-listed Gold Fields on Thursday said it expected as much as a 12% drop in its headline earnings per share (HEPS) for the 2017 financial year. HEPS would be between $0.23 to $0.26 apiece. →

Limpopo roads agency seeks funding from mining sector

8th February 2018 Roads Agency Limpopo (RAL) will, on February 16, host a stakeholder engagement and fundraising session with the mining industry in the Sekhukhune district municipality. The session is aimed at building cofunding relationships between RAL, the mines and local communities, RAL CEO Maselaganye Matji... →

South African professor receives prestigious award

8th February 2018 University of South Africa (Unisa) Unesco-Unisa chair in nanosciences and nanotechnology Professor Malik Maaza has been awarded the African Union (AU) Kwame Nkrumah Award for Scientific Excellence (Auknase), recognising his pioneering work in science and technology. The award is the AU's the... →

Miranda Minerals gets prospecting right for base metals project in Northern Cape

8th February 2018 The Department of Mineral Resources has granted Miranda Minerals a prospecting right in respect of the remainder of Rozynenbosch farm No 104, measuring 6 483 ha, in the Northern Cape. The right is effective from February 5, this year, until February 4, 2021, and relates to the... →

New R14m slipway, truck arrestor bed being built at Sir Lowry's Pass

8th February 2018 The Western Cape Department of Transport and Public Works (DTPW) has started a R14-million project to build a new slipway and truck arrestor bed on the downward slope of the N2 near Sir Lowry's Pass road, in Cape Town. The project is expected to be complete by August and construction will take... →

Peabody delivers best result in five years, eyes continued growth

8th February 2018 Reflecting a strong operational performance, significant cash generation and debt repayment, NYSE-listed coal miner Peabody on Thursday reported adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) of $416.2-million for the fourth quarter ended December 31, its best... →

The North Goonyella operation, in Australia.

Orca Gold gets water use permit for Sudan project

8th February 2018 TSX-listed Orca Gold has received an exclusive permit for the exploitation of water from the Area 5 aquifer, first discovered by the company in May 2017, from the government of Sudan. The water permit is a strategic permit in the development of a gold mine on Block 14 and entitles the company to... →

Troy Resources delivers sizeable production in January

8th February 2018 South America-focused gold miner Troy Resources achieved gold production of 6 124 oz of gold in January, in line with budget and at a similar level to the previous month's production of 6 224 oz. The production for both these months was impacted by a mill closure for two days to undertake the... →

Basil Read CEO upbeat about capital raise, company prospects

7th February 2018 Although still in the grips of a financial predicament, owing to poor construction prospects in South Africa, paired with bad debts and cash-depleting projects, local construction company Basil Read’s CEO Khathutshelo Mapasa tells Engineering News Online that he is confident about company’s... →

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