South Africa

Anglo American chose a preferred bidder for its De Beers stake, and Botswana is weighing up whether to exercise its first refusal right on its own or with Anglo American's selected bidder. Anglo sold De Beers in May 2024, as part of an overall restructuring that was prompted by the 'falling diamond prices' and the growing popularity for synthetic diamonds. Private buyers and the government of Botswana (which already owns 15%) have shown interest in this business. Moeti Mohwasa, Botswana’s Minister of State President, Defence and Security, told lawmakers that Anglo American had conducted a competitive bid process with three...

De 'Beers announced on Monday that it will pause production at its Venetia Mine in South Africa for a period of two years. This is part of an overall effort to streamline operations and reduce costs in order to cope with the continued weakness in rough diamond trading. Anglo American is the majority owner of the diamond producer. The company said that the move would delay and reduce some expenditures on an underground mine project, but maintain investment in infrastructure for a higher level of production when the market conditions improve. Venetia is South Africa's biggest diamond mine in terms...

ADNOC Distribution is a subsidiary owned by Abu Dhabi’s state oil giant. It announced on Tuesday that it had signed a definitive agreement to purchase 100% of Shell’s downstream business in South Africa, as the company pursues its expansion abroad. The company stated that the implied enterprise value for 100% of the shares capital was about $1 billion, before adjustments for working capital and net debt at closing. ADNOC Distribution announced that the deal for Shell Downstream South Africa, which includes wholesale fuel, aviation, and lubricants operations as well as 580 company and dealer owned fuel stations, will close in...

Bogolo Joy Kenewendo, the mines minister of Botswana, said that a'soft recovery' in demand for diamonds is taking place in important?consumer?markets like the U.S. Kenewendo stated that Botswana will maintain its supply discipline in order to support a struggling global gems industry, despite the early signs of demand recovering on key markets. Global market is in a long-term downturn because of 'economic uncertainty' and the popularity of lab grown stones. Debswana Diamond Company - Botswana’s joint venture with DeBeers?which accounts for 90% the country's sales of diamonds - temporarily halted production last year at some mines. Kenewendo said: "We will...

Vodacom Group, a South African mobile telecoms company, announced on Monday that it had upgraded its long-term customer growth target following the addition of millions of?customers in the last year. The group focused on Africa, owned by Britain's Vodafone in majority, has cited its rapidly growing financial services business as well as its mobile core business. Vodacom has announced that it will increase its total number of customers to 275 millions by 2030, up from the previous goal of more than 260 million. Its customer base had reached 237.3million in the financial year ending March 31. Vodacom is 'enforcing its...

Two sources familiar with the matter said that Trafigura, a global commodities trader, is "among" three companies competing for a 36.36 percent stake in Natref Refinery of South African petrochemical giant Sasol. After the British-based Prax group, which bought the minority stake in South Africa's sole inland crude oil refining plant from TotalEnergies two years ago for an undisclosed amount, went into bankruptcy in 2025, the remaining shares in the 108.500 barrels per daily plant are up for sale. South?African fuels are among the biggest in Africa, and analysts predict that it will continue to grow for?the near future. This...

South Africa said on Tuesday it would extend the fuel tax cut 'for two more months' to cushion the impact of the iran war on household budgets. However, the relief will end after this period and the country will recoup lost revenue through other means. According to the?International Energy Agency, the U.S. and Israeli war on Iran has led to the largest oil supply disruptions in history. This has hurt countries like South Africa, which import most of their fuel, as global energy prices are rising. The government announced a reduction of one month in the general fuel tax for...

A senior executive at the South 'African petrochemical firm Sasol said that the company has received certification for its sustainable aviation fuel from a German agency. This will allow it to export to the European Union. TUV SUD in Germany awarded ISCC Plus sustainability certification to Sasol's SAF, which is made using cooking oil and vegetables oils at its 108,500 barrels/day?Natref facility. Sasol stated that the agency also certified sustainable chemicals produced by Sasol's sister Secunda compound. Sarushen Pillay is Sasol's Vice President of Strategy and Technology. He said that South Africa had a large amount of used cooking oil....

Bloomberg News, citing sources familiar with the situation, reported that Shell has advanced talks with Abu Dhabi state oil company ADNOC about a possible deal to sell its retail fuel stations in South Africa. The transaction is likely to be worth around $1 billion. ADNOC was named as the preferred bidder, after Shell's failed negotiations with commodity traders Gunvor Group. A deal could be reached as soon as this quarter. The British oil giant has lowered its expectations for first-quarter production of gas due to the "volatility" in the energy markets following the Middle East conflict. Bloomberg reported that Shell...

Preliminary figures released on Wednesday showed that South Africa collected net tax of 2.01 trillion Rand ($119.73 Billion) in the fiscal period that ended on March 31. This was 8.4% more than the previous year. SARS (South African Revenue Service) reported that the amount collected was 24 billion rands higher than the budgeted amount for 2025. In a statement, the agency stated that the increased collection reflected its focus of compliance initiatives, improved efficiencies?and contribution from the mining sector. The statement said that "these results were achieved despite the challenges of a sluggish economic, geopolitical conflicts, global supply-chain interruptions, and...

African governments have increased fuel prices sharply as global oil 'prices are surging due to the Iran War. This could spark inflation on the continent. Most African countries import a large amount of petroleum products. This leaves them vulnerable to disruptions in supply. South Africa, the continent's biggest economy, reduced its fuel tax for a month on Tuesday to curb future price increases in April. This came after business and trade union groups pressed the government to act. CONSIDERING FURTHER ACTIONS The National Petroleum Authority in Ghana raised the'mandatory minimum prices floors' for the April 1-15 price window. This pushed...

The Congo Republic held a presidential election on Sunday, which was expected to extend the reign of Denis Sassou Nguesso - one of Africa's most experienced leaders. A low turnout highlighted the lack of suspense about the result. Sassou is facing a "weak" field of opponents, as two of the most well-known opposition leaders are in prison or exile. Many opposition parties boycotted this election because they felt the process was untrustworthy. Analysts and civil society groups predict that the turnout will be lower than the 68% in 2021 when Sassou was elected to his five-year term with 88.4%. A...

Kumba Iron Ore, South Africa, said on Tuesday that its half-year profits fell by 41%. This was mainly because of a'strong rand and lower prices for the steelmaking ingredient. Anglo American's headline earnings were 13.24 rand ($0.79) per share in the six-month period ended June 30 compared to 22.26 rand during the same time last year. The top African iron ore miner reported a 11% drop in revenue to 30,88 billion rands after the Rand strengthened by 11% against the U.S. Dollar. Kumba reported a marginal 1%?decrease of the average realized price as well as lower sales volumes. Iron ore...

The Iran War has impacted crude oil and natural gas markets. However, the impact on coal prices has been muted. Prices for thermal grades are quietly rising to multi-year highs. The conflict between the United States of America and Iran has led to the loss of about 10% of crude oil and a fifth of LNG. However, the thermal coal supply has been largely unaffected by the conflict, despite the fact that the cost of shipping and producing has increased due to higher fuel prices. Coal prices are likely to be driven by a number of factors, including the Iran...

Union representatives reported on Thursday that two of South Africa's largest labour unions have accepted the state utility Eskom's offer for a 7% wage hike, while another has rejected it and declared a deadlock by requesting a higher increase. Eskom started pay talks with the National Union of Mineworkers, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa and Solidarity last year. Utility's final offer was a 7% increase in pay for each of the three years under negotiation, starting July 2026. Gideon du Plessis, general secretary of Solidarity and Khangela Baloyi, coordinator for NUM's energy sector, said that their members...

Angola wants to buy a 20-30% stake in Anglo American De Beers' diamond division. This proposal is currently being discussed with other African diamond producing nations, according to a senior official of the Angola mining ministry. Anglo has put De Beers up for sale amid the falling prices of diamonds and the rise of synthetic diamonds. Angola made a bid in October 2025 for a majority share in De Beers, although it originally sought a minor stake. Paulo Tanganha is the national director for mineral resources in Angola. He said at the African mining conference held in Cape Town that...

Anglo American, a global miner, announced on Thursday a 10% decline in its?copper output last year, to 695,000 tons. This is the lower end of their guidance. They also cut their 2026 forecast for?the transitional metal. The London-listed company now expects copper production in 2026 to range between 700,000- 760,000 tons. This is down from the previous forecast of 760,000-820,000 tonnes, due partly to lower production at its Chilean mine, Collahuasi. Anglo expects to record charges of around $200 million for the second half 2025 in relation to "rehabilitation provisions" at its Chile copper operation. The London-listed company announced in...

BHP Group, the mining company, has renewed its takeover bid for rival Anglo American, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. This comes just months after BHP and Teck Resources, the Canadian miner, agreed to merge to form a global heavyweight in the copper industry. Anglo American refused to comment. BHP didn't immediately respond to an outside normal business hours request for a comment. Bloomberg News, citing sources familiar with the situation, reported that BHP made overtures to Anglo American recently. The report added that discussions are still ongoing and a deal is not certain. Anglo American has...

According to delegates, no consensus was reached in Geneva during the talks on the first legally-binding treaty for combating plastic pollution. "South Africa regrets that this session was unable to reach a legally binding agreement and the positions are still far apart", its delegate said at a meeting on Friday morning. After a failed meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee in South Korea at the end of last year, more than 1,000 delegates gathered in Geneva to begin the sixth round. The United Nations Environment Assembly established the INC in 2022. Its mandate was to create a global, legally-binding treaty...

Peabody Energy announced on Monday that if it is not satisfied with the resolution of issues surrounding Anglo American's Moranbah North Mine, then they may terminate their pending agreement to purchase some Australian steelmaking coal assets from this British mining company. Peabody shares rose over 4% at the opening of trading. An underground fire at Anglo American’s Moranbah North Coal Mine, located in Queensland, Australia's Bowen Basin, has caused the suspension of production. The assets agreement signed by the two companies last year includes the mine. Peabody has informed Anglo American that it has sent a Material Adverse Change notice...

Anglo American, a global miner, reported on Thursday a 15% drop in its production of copper for the first three months of the year. However, the company left the yearly forecast unchanged. The London-listed company said that copper production dropped to 169,000 tons in the first quarter of this year. It attributed the drop in production in Chile. The copper production in 2025 is expected to range between 690,000 - 750,000 tonnes. As the world shifts to cleaner energy sources, it is expected that metals will be used more for electric vehicles and renewable facilities. Prices for industrial metals have...

The environment minister announced on Monday that South African coal-fired electricity stations had received some exemptions from the air quality laws, and regulations aimed at reducing harmful emissions. However, he stressed that these measures were not a "blanket respite". The government struggles to find a balance between the calls to reduce carbon emissions and to stop them and the need to supply electricity to Africa's largest economy which is stagnant due to power outages. Eskom, the power utility that generates South Africa's majority of electricity from its fleet of coal-fired plants, applied to exempt 8 of these plants from air...

A South African government agency that is influential recommended Thursday that the country phase out its coal-fired energy stations. It published a study over ten years which showed people who lived near these power plants were 6% more susceptible to dying than those living elsewhere. South African officials, as well as citizens, are arguing over how quickly the country should implement a programme partly funded by donors to move away from coal and towards solar and wind power. The fossil fuel is responsible for three-quarters of the country's power, and 90,000 jobs are supported by it. The South African Medical...

Anglo American CEO Duncan Wanblad stated on Monday that the company is working hard to maximize its value in case a new M&A bidder comes along. He also expects significant progress on a much-anticipated spin-off of De Beers' diamond business this year. Anglo American, a London-listed company, rejected a hostile bid of $49 billion from BHP in May. BHP was focusing on Anglo’s copper assets. Anglo has since streamlined its operations by selling coal assets and agreeing on the separation of its platinum business. It still needs to find partners for the UK fertiliser project, which requires massive amounts of...