BUSINESS - The African Mirror

May

07

2024

Namibia bets on Africa’s green hydrogen with US$267M export harbour

BUSINESS

NAMIBIA is gearing up its logistics infrastructure to handle future shipments of green hydrogen, with a planned US$267 million hydrogen harbour at the port of Walvis Bay, according to the country's port authority, Namport. Port of Antwerp Bruges will build the facility over the next three years, billed as a hub for shipping hydrogen and its byproducts to energy-hungry markets in Europe. These regions are actively seeking to reduce carbon emissions and are looking towards innovative solutions like green hydrogen, which cannot be achieved through electrification alone. The Namibian Ports Authority (Namport) and Port of Antwerp will equally own the…

May

07

2024

By The African Mirror

Shell to exit South Africa’s downstream businesses

BUSINESS

OIL major Shell (SHEL.L) will divest its majority shareholding from a local South African downstream unit after a comprehensive review of its businesses across all regions, it said on Monday. "As a result of this review, Shell has decided to reshape the downstream portfolio and intends to divest our shareholding in SDSA ... this decision was not taken lightly," a Shell statement said. It did not specify when the decision took effect. Shell Downstream SA (SDSA) was formed after Shell South Africa and black empowerment company, Thebe Investment Corporation, agreed a decade ago to merge Shell South Africa Marketing and Shell South…

May

04

2024

By FELIX NJINI

Anglo CEO meets S.Africa mines minister after BHP’s takeover proposal

BUSINESS

ANGLO American CEO Duncan Wanblad is meeting South African mines minister Gwede Mantashe for the first time since the miner rejected BHP Group's $39 billion takeover bid, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. BHP, the world's biggest-listed mining group, is privately talking to investors as it weighs up its next move after Anglo's rejection of its initial proposal. Commodities giant Glencore is also studying an approach for Anglo, sources told Reuters, a development that could spark a bidding war for the 107-year-old mining company. Anglo declined to comment on the meeting with Mantashe. The source did not give details of the meeting.…

May

03

2024

By SETH ONYANGO, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Coca-Cola to end IPO dry spell with US$8 billion Africa bottler listing

BUSINESS

COCA-COLA Co. is advancing plans for a significant initial public offering of its African bottling arm as soon as 2025, with a valuation that could exceed US$8 billion. This major financial move is set to end a period of sluggish activity on African securities exchanges and would be a significant morale boost for the continent's stock market landscape. According to insiders, the beverage giant is again eyeing a dual listing in Johannesburg and Amsterdam, after shelving these plans in 2022. Experts believe that this move by Coca-Cola could spearhead a series of similar high-value listings by Africa-focused companies, breaking an…

May

03

2024

By LIBBY GEORGE

Does Zambia’s bondholder deal mean it has resolved its default?

BUSINESS

COPPER producer Zambia is on the cusp of moving on from its debt default after a nearly four-year-long process. Along with Sri Lanka and Ghana, the southern African nation fell into debt distress and then defaulted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Does its deal with bondholders mean its economy is back on track, or that it is now out of default? WHAT HAPPENS WITH THE DEFAULTED DEBT? When a country defaults, it must negotiate new terms that all lenders will accept that will make repaying manageable again. This can happen by cutting the outright amount of debt, reducing the interest paid, stretching the repayment timeframe -…

May

03

2024

By The African Mirror

Libyan parliament approves 2024 budget of $18.5 bln to its installed government

BUSINESS

LIBYA'S eastern-based parliament unanimously approved the 2024 budget for the government it installed of 90 billion Libyan dinars ($18.5 billion), excluding an item for development projects, three MPs told Reuters. The budget is for the Benghazi-based government of Osama Hamad, who came to power in March 2023 and is allied with the military commander Khalifa Haftar, who controls the east and large parts of the southern region of Libya. Libya's separate Tripoli-based Government of National Unity is headed by interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah, who was installed through a U.N.-backed process in 2021. House of Representatives (HoR) member Aisha Tublqi…

May

02

2024

By SETH ONYANGO, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Startup success, investor confidence thaws Africa’s funding freeze

BUSINESS

AFRICA'S venture capital activity is heating up as investor optimism in startup performance breathes new life into the lingering chill of a prolonged funding freeze. “It’s because they’re seeing healthier numbers in a lot of these companies than they’re seeing in their own market,” Lexi Novitske, Norrsken22's general partner told Bloomberg. “I think investors will start coming back and investing with a lot more due diligence, hopefully, more concentrated positions where they’re much more involved in operations of companies and with a much more reasonable valuation.” Last year, the African startup ecosystem experienced a notable funding drought, mirroring global economic…

May

02

2024

By DUNCAN MIRIRI

Ethiopian Airlines sees 30% surge in passengers this year, CEO says

BUSINESS

ETHIOPIAN Airlines expects to carry 30% more passengers in the year ended June than the year before, its chief executive told Reuters, buoyed by new routes and a rebound in global travel. Africa's biggest airline, however, faces risks from delayed aircraft deliveries and the grounding of some planes due to engine shortages caused by supply chain disruptions, Mesfin Tasew Bekele said in an interview. "We have a lot of challenges. For example, today we have aircraft shortage since the manufacturers, particularly Boeing, are delaying aircraft deliveries," he said. The delivery problems mainly affect narrow-body passenger jets from Boeing, he said,…

May

01

2024

By BHARGAV ACHARYA

South Africa views BHP bid for Anglo as ‘normal market activity’

BUSINESS

SOUTH Africa views BHP Group's proposed bid for Anglo American as "normal market activity" and is following the process as it unfolds, President Cyril Ramaphosa's spokesperson said. BHP is considering making an improved offer for Anglo American after its $39 billion initial proposal was rejected by the London-listed miner, a source told Reuters last week. "It is still early days in terms of the proposal that BHP has submitted to Anglo," spokesperson Vincent Magwenya told a media briefing. "We will follow like everybody else the process as it unfolds. We don't as a country go out of our way to block market activity," Magwenya added. BHP has…

Apr

30

2024

By DUNCAN MIRIRI

African leaders seek record World Bank financing to combat climate change

BUSINESS

AFRICAN leaders called for rich countries to commit record contributions to a low-interest World Bank facility for developing nations that they rely on to help fund their development and combat climate change. Donors will make their cash pledges to the International Development Association (IDA), a World Bank institution that offers loans with low-interest rates and long tenures, at a conference to be held in Japan in December. "We call on our partners to meet us at this historic moment of solidarity and respond effectively by increasing their IDA contributions... to at least $120 billion," Kenya's President William Ruto told a…