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

‘Housing delivery an attractive opportunity’

23rd March 2018 Local construction company Basil Read has received permits from the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) to start building top structures at its housing developments, such as its Savanna City Estate mixed-use development, near Orange Farm, in Gauteng. The top structure would be... →

Clover not overly concerned about land expropriation debate

23rd March 2018 Despite concerns about the recent controversial calls for land expropriation without compensation and the possible effect this could have on South Africa’s economy and food security, JSE-listed foods and beverages group Clover believes it is not all doom and gloom. Speaking to Engineering News... →

Standard Bank PMI improves to 51.4 in February

16th March 2018 For the first time in 11 months, business activity expanded in the South African private sector in February, with the Standard Bank Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) increasing from 49 in January to above the crucial 50-point mark, at 51.4 points. This was after being in contraction for six months.... →

RCL Foods eyes greater market share as new pet food facility opens

16th March 2018 Fast-moving consumer goods manufacturer RCL Foods on Thursday launched its new R150-million pet food manufacturing facility, in Randfontein. Through the establishment of the 1 500 m2 facility, which employs around 700 people, the company aims to take a greater share in the R5-billion a year South... →

Eastplats secures financing deal for Crocodile River Mine retreatment project

16th March 2018 Dual-listed Eastern Platinum (Eastplats) and its subsidiary Barplats Mines have entered into an agreement with Union Goal Offshore Solution for the construction, mining and processing of the tailings resource, and the subsequent offtake of chrome concentrate from the Barplats Zandfontein Upper... →

Tsodilo says DMS plant delivering results

13th March 2018 TSX-V-listed Tsodilo Resources has processed 724.7 t through the dense media separation (DMS) plant at its BK16 kimberlite project in Botswana, since commissioning the plant on January 18. This represented 141 samples out of a total of 243 or 6% of the tonnage. These 141 samples have generated 2... →

Vedanta dividend payout hits record

13th March 2018 LSE-listed Vedanta Resources’ subsidiary Vedanta Limited on Tuesday declared a record interim equity dividend of $1.2-billion. Vedanta Resources would receive $600-million of this dividend, the company said, sending its shares in London up 2.6% to £7.82 a share. →

Anglo Asian set to start $6m, three-year exploration programme

13th March 2018 Aim-listed gold, copper and silver producer Anglo Asian Mining on Tuesday said that it would shortly embark on a $6-million three-year rolling exploration programme of near mine, brownfield and greenfield areas at its operations in Azerbaijan, to replace mined ounces. The miner noted that it... →

New Congolese mining code rattling mining companies

13th March 2018 Beyond raising costs for domestic miners, a new mining code signed into law by Congolese President Joseph Kabila last week, poses downside risks to the investment outlook of the country’s mining industry over the coming years, as a result of heightened government intervention and regulatory... →

Savca launches industry awards

13th March 2018 The Southern African Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (Savca) is launching the inaugural Savca Industry Awards, aimed at recognising portfolio companies that have thrived from private equity and venture capital investment in Southern Africa. All investee companies headquartered in... →

Jarana defends SAA’s poor performance, lack of turnaround

13th March 2018 State-owned South African Airways (SAA) on Tuesday said it was again taking “urgent steps” to address issues raised by the Auditor-General’s (AG’s) office in its 2016/17 audit report, which was released last week. “The AG has given us a comprehensive diagnosis into key areas of our business and... →

Durban on track to open public transport network

13th March 2018 The City of Durban is on track to start its GO!Durban integrated public transport network from Pinetown’s central business district (CBD) to KwaMashu’s Bridge City in the latter part of this year. Aligned to the eThekwini municipality’s vision to be Africa’s most caring and liveable city by 2030,... →

Gem sells 910 ct Lesotho Legend for $40m

13th March 2018 The “exceptional quality” 910 ct D-colour Type IIa diamond recovered from LSE-listed Gem Diamonds’ Letšeng mine, in Lesotho, in January, achieved a price of $40-million on tender in Antwerp, on Monday. Reflecting its significance, the diamond, which is the fifth-largest gem-quality diamond ever... →

Photo by Gem Diamonds
The Lesotho Legend

PwC puts great store in Ramaphosa Presidency

12th March 2018 Financial institution PwC believes that President Cyril Ramaphosa holds the key to unlocking economic growth and investment in South Africa, which it says is set to rebound following several years of economic and political decline. “The country remains a promising investment destination with a... →

Growthpoint lists first local green bonds

12th March 2018 JSE-listed real estate investment trust Growthpoint Properties has issued a Green Bond on the JSE, the first local company to do so. The Growthpoint Green Bonds will be available in terms of five, seven and ten years and are aimed at raising capital solely allocated for funding projects that... →

New energy, environment partnership to further continental economy

12th March 2018 A new Energy and Environment Partnership (EEP) trust fund, covering Southern and East Africa was launched on Monday, with a combined commitment of €25-million from Finland and the Nordic Development Fund (NDF). The EEP is a multidonor fund providing early-stage grant and catalytic financing to... →

Scientists call for greater action on climate change

12th March 2018 The Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) has joined the global science community in calling on the Commonwealth Heads of Government to use the best available science to guide action on climate change. The call forms part of a Consensus Statement on Climate Change, launched on Monday by 22... →

Confidence in agriculture ticks up, but land expropriation yet to weigh in

12th March 2018 The Agbiz/IDC Agribusiness Confidence Index for the first quarter painted an encouraging picture of the South African agricultural sector, as it improved by nine points to 58, after declining to levels below the 50-point mark in the last quarter of 2017. The survey, which was conducted between... →

Stellar Diamonds agrees to acquisition by Australia’s NWF

12th March 2018 Australian exploration company Newfield Resources (NWF) and Africa-focused miner Stellar Diamonds have reached an agreement regarding NWF’s proposed acquisition of Stellar’s entire issued and to be issued share capital for £7.74-million. The ASX-listed company owns an advanced diamond project in... →

NUM calls for removal of Optimum business rescue practitioners

12th March 2018 The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has called for the removal of business rescue practitioners (BRPs) at the Optimum coal mine, as it claims that their appointment was unlawful. The NUM has approached Kruger & Co Attorneys to represent it and its 500 members at the mine to set aside the... →

South Africa commits to new continental trade agreement

12th March 2018 The African Ministers of Trade (Amot) last week considered and approved – for submission to the extraordinary summit of the African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government – an agreement establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), as well as the protocols on trade in goods and... →

Continental Gold intensifies focus on Buriticá advancement

12th March 2018 TSX-listed Continental Gold will focus on completing detail engineering and finalising major mill and infrastructure procurement in the year ahead, to advance its Buriticá project, in Colombia, to its first gold pour in 2020. “We want to be well advanced with both earthworks and concrete work,... →

Katoro remains focused on Imweru amid Tanzanian mining legislation changes

9th March 2018 Tanzania-focused gold exploration and development company Katoro Gold has completed all the technical aspects of the prefeasibility study and is now assessing the economic feasibility of the Imweru gold project, in Tanzania. The company said that, despite the potential impact of new mining... →

Bakwena upgrading N1N4 at a cost of R1bn

9th March 2018 Road construction and maintenance company Bakwena on Friday said it was investing R1-billion to maintain and upgrade road infrastructure along the 385 km of the N1N4 it manages as part of its concession contract with the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral). An estimated... →

Bauba swings into the black in H1

9th March 2018 JSE-listed chrome miner Bauba reported a profit before tax of R46.7-million for the six months ended December 31, against a loss of R6.8-million in the six months to December 31, 2016. Profit attributable to equity holders of the parent was R15.89-million, resulting in diluted headline earnings a... →

Vast extends completion date for Mercuria agreement

9th March 2018 Aim-listed copper and zinc miner Vast Resources said on Friday that, while it continued to make good progress with Mercuria Energy Group to finalise a $9.5-million prepayment offtake agreement for the construction of the metallurgical complex near the Manaila mine, and in restarting the mining... →

Tanzania grants Magnis approval to operate graphite processing plant

9th March 2018 Tanzania has granted Australia’s Magnis Resources approval for a graphite processing plant in a designated special economic zone (SEZ) to process graphite mined from the Nachu mine. The SEZ is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Industry, Trade and Investment, and is not subject to the... →

Oracle receives Sichuan backing for coal-to-power project

9th March 2018 The Sichuan Provincial Investment Group (SCIG) has formally approved to proceed with UK energy developer Oracle Power’s combined lignite coal mine and mine-mouth power plant project, located in Block VI of the Thar desert in the south-east of the Sindh province of Pakistan. The approval for the... →

BCI appoints drilling contractor for Buckland’s Kumina tenements

9th March 2018 JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed BCI Minerals has contracted Core Drilling Services for an upcoming major drilling programme at its Kumina tenements, a component of the Buckland iron-ore project, in the West Pilbara region. The Kumina tenements comprise 480 km2 and were acquired from... →

Native title laws cause uncertainty in mining circles – MCA

9th March 2018 Australian minerals companies have called for urgent amendments to native title laws to remove uncertainty created by court decisions which cast doubt over the status of mining leases and tenements, the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) said on Friday. The MCA’s submission to the... →

New power line to keep OZ Minerals connected

9th March 2018 Copper/gold miner OZ Minerals on Friday unveiled its power strategy, which includes a new high voltage power transmission line to secure electricity for the Prominent Hill and Carrapateena mines, as well as any future developments in South Australia. “Infrastructure in the region does not support... →

Drilling programmes at Ramelius projects encouraging

9th March 2018 Recent resource development and exploration drilling programmes at ASX-listed Ramelius Resources’ Edna May and Mt Magnet gold operations, in Western Australia, have delivered encouraging results. The Edna May results – which showed high-grade gold intersections between 2 g/t and 28 g/t over 24... →

Peel spin-out Saturn Metals starts trading on ASX

9th March 2018 West Australian gold explorer Saturn Metals started trading on the ASX on Friday, following an oversubscribed A$7-million initial public offering (IPO). The miner is a successful spin-out of ASX-listed Peel Mining’s West Australian gold assets encompassing the Apollo Hill project, which contains... →

Thor zones in on three projects

9th March 2018 Dual-listed Thor Mining on Friday said it would intensify its focus on its Pilot Mountain tungsten/silver/copper project, in the US; as well as the Kapunda copper project and the Molyhill tungsten project, in Australia. “Our main business investment decisions will be strictly focused on [these]... →

Hulamin sees possible upside to proposed US tariff increases

9th March 2018 The proposed aluminium import tariffs that are currently being considered by US President Donald Trump's administration could have a positive impact on South African aluminium products manufacturer Hulamin's operations, CEO Richard Jacob said on Monday. Speaking to Engineering News Online in a... →

Green shoots seen in construction industry, despite tight conditions

9th March 2018 The South African construction sector is still facing "very tough and difficult" conditions, with the 2.5% inflation rate creating an even tighter environment, Econometrix chief economist Dr Azar Jamine said on Friday. Speaking to industry representatives during an Afrisam-hosted post-Budget... →

Afrox optimistic about recent regional economic developments

9th March 2018 JSE-listed African Oxygen (Afrox) on Thursday reported yet another year of strong results, with revenue for the 12 months to December 31 up 6% to R5.69-billion. Headline earnings a share rose by 32.3% year-on-year to 201c and basic earnings a share by 30.7% to 203.6c. →

AECI to focus on integrating acquisitions in 2018

9th March 2018 Explosives and specialty chemicals group AECI on Tuesday reported its highest recorded headline earnings per share (HEPS) to date, at 959c, for the financial year ended December 31. HEPS were up 17% year-on-year, while earnings a share increased by 22% year-on-year to 900c. →

Study elevates importance of Orion’s Jacomynspan deposit

8th March 2018 A geological reevaluation of the ultramafic intrusive hosted Jacomynspan nickel/copper/cobalt deposit, undertaken on behalf of dual-listed Orion Minerals, has highlighted important findings that elevate the importance of this district as a compelling target for exploration. Orion MD and CEO Errol... →

Resgen making slower-than-expected progress in securing Boikarabelo funding

8th March 2018 Dual-listed Resource Generation (Resgen) on Thursday said it continued to make progress on its funding plans for the Boikarabelo coal mine, in the Waterberg, but conceded that this was taking longer than anticipated. “In particular, numerous hurdles have been cleared with the various proposed... →

Anglo American renews shipping contract with Vuka Marine

8th March 2018 Global miner Anglo American has renewed its various full-time ocean freight contracts with local maritime company Vuka Marine. Under these freight contracts, Anglo American will transport bulk iron-ore and coal products, primarily from the Saldanha Bay port to its customers around the world. →

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