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PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT, ENGINEERING
AND CONSTRUCTION
La
Mercy airport may fly on arms spin-off
Durban - The government is considering funding the construction
of a new airport at La Mercy, north of Durban, using the offset
programme linked to the R43 billion arms deal. Sources close to
the department of transport said yesterday that Saab and BAE Systems,
the suppliers of Gripen fighter aircraft to South Africa, were interested
in investing in the planned R893 million relocation of Durban International
Airport to La Mercy to meet their inward investment obligations.
However, no deal had been sealed and other funding options for the
initiative were under consideration.
(©www.busrep.co.za)
Northern
Province projects will boost residential demand
Demand for residential property in Northern Province centres is
set to increase as new commercial and industrial projects worth
billions of rands come on stream in the region, says Jack Schofield,
regional convener for the Homenet estate agency group. Projects
worth more than R2,5bn are under way, including a maximum security
prison and a platinum ore smelter, he says.
(©www.bday.co.za)
Cape
Town to become a mini-Hollywood
Two Hollywood-style film studios, which could generate up to R500-million
a year for Cape Town, are in the pipeline for Century City and the
Good Hope Centre. And Paramount Pictures has also approached the
unicity to run a script-writing competition in Cape Town, adjudicated
by the international film-making company.
(©www.bday.co.za)
Thousands
of jobs from Coega
The government is hoping phase one of the Coega development in the
Eastern Cape will create up to 35 000 jobs in the construction industry
and as many as 6 000 in manufacturing.
(©www.news24.co.za)
Value
of industrial stands still declining
Values of vacant industrial stands in major cities are continuing
to decline a trend property consulting group Rode says is cause
for concern. The latest Rode Report on the SA property market focuses
on the declining value of industrial stands in the central Witwatersrand
area over the past decade. It points out that this has been a result
of a slowdown in demand for industrial vacant stands, which in turn
paints a bleak macroeconomic picture.
(©www.bday.co.za)
The
ironic tale of two S African steel mills
It could be described as the tale of two steel mills. One is old,
the other new. The first is landlocked, the other coastal. One a
symbol of blast- furnaces past, the other the epitome of the new
mini-mill age. Indeed, it should have been a simple chronicle of
the old yielding to the new, but reality has veered quite radically
from the script. The old mill in question, Iscor's Vanderbijlpark,
in Gauteng, is confounding the sceptics, growing stronger and more
efficient by the hour, while its infant sibling, the Iscor–Industrial
Development Corporation (IDC) joint venture Saldanha Steel, struggles
for its very life.
(©www.bday.co.za)
M&R
gets ready to hit the acquisition trail
Construction group Murray & Roberts is on the acquisition and
expansion trail, as it comes to the end of a radical internal overhaul.
CE Brian Bruce told analysts this week that the group had approved
a R475m capital expenditure programme for the year, representing
a jump of 87% on the previous annual figure. Bruce said that Murray
& Roberts had "significant capacity" to take on new
acquisitions. The company generated R500m cash in the year to June,
and financial director Roger Rees said that net cash has risen to
R850m from about R400m a year ago.
(©www.bday.co.za)
SA
prickles with industrial-zone initiative
In line with the South African government’s commitment to foster
sustainable industrial development in areas where poverty and unemployment
are at their highest, Trade and Industry Minister Alec Erwin has
published his intentions to designate an industrial development
zone (IDZ) at East London in the Eastern Cape and has issued an
invitation for written comments on the decision.
(©www.engineeringnews.co.za)
R3,2bn
paves way for hi-tech road
Johannesburg - Leo Rohrig, the chief executive of Bakwena Platinum
Corridor Concessionaire (BPCC), confirmed yesterday that the company
had received the R3,2 billion in funding for South Africa's first
electronic toll highway, which would stretch for about 290km. BPCC
had a 30-year concession to toll the highway running on the N1 north
from Pretoria to Warmbaths and on the N4 west from north of Pretoria
to the Botswana border. Making the highway "electronic" would involve
business transport companies using electronic tags rather than cash
at toll stops.
(©www.busrep.co.za)
Green
light for platinum highway
SA's third big toll road project, the R3,2bn Platinum Toll Highway,
has been given the green light after local and foreign investors
finalised a new funding arrangement which will see R300m in direct
foreign investment flowing into the country.
(©www.bday.co.za)
Southern
African railways : is it sunrise or sunset?
The SADC railway network is a regional physical communication
and integration network of enormous importance and potential, but
which faces major challenges and needs radical reform.
(©www.engineeringnews.co.za)
Road
versus rail – the war continues
The Road Freight Association is lobbying hard to ensure that road
transport continues to be the preferred haulage method. It has already
had four meetings with Minister Dullah Omar, the last of which was
intended to discuss his position that overloading is damaging road
infrastructure and is, as a result, the hidden cost behind the road
freight industry.
(©www.engineeringnews.co.za)
NEWS
FROM AFRICA
Work
starts on $3bn Angola oil platform
Italian energy giant Eni has started work on a $3-billion offshore
Angola deepwater oil plant, in which it has a 20% stake. “Eni
has started constructing plants for the largest deepwater development
project in West Africa,” Eni said in a statement. The Kizomba
A deepwater oil project offshore of Angola, owned by Eni, Esso,
a division of Exxon, BP and Statoil, contains a billion barrels
of recoverable reserves and is targeting production of 250 000 barrels
per day (bpd).
(©www.engineeringnews.co.za)
Contracting
firm still high on Dubai
South Africa’s biggest contracting company, Murray & Roberts,
has won $300-million-worth of construction work in Dubai, Engineering
News Online can today report. Chief operating officer Andre J de
Nysschen reports that the contracts involve the building of a large
new hotel and new office for a leading petroleum company.
(©www.engineeringnews.co.za)
Mozal
potline contract awarded
The contract for the extension to the Mozal potlines has been awarded
to the joint venture consisting of Basil Read, Murray & Roberts
and Grinaker-LTA. The award value for Basil Read is around R35-million,
with the possibility of further work being added. The contract is
set to start immediately and the project will be completed over
ten months.
(©www.engineeringnews.co.za)
HOUSING NEWS AND LAND ISSUES
District
Six beneficiaries pick land option
Cape Town - So far about 85 percent of the 1 800
beneficiaries of the District Six land restitution claim had chosen
the land redevelopment option rather than the cash the government
had offered as compensation for forced removals during apartheid,
Anwah Nagia, the spokesperson for the District Six community trust,
said yesterday.
(©www.busrep.co.za)
Market
disregards Zimbabwe unrest
The latest wave of lawlessness gripping Zimbabwe
is having little if any negative effect on the Johannesburg residential
property market.
(©www.news24.co.za)
MINING NEWS
Avmin,
Impala looking for black partner
Empowerment stake could stand at 10%.
Anglovaal Mining (Avmin) and Impala Platinum are looking to work
with a black empowerment partner on their Two Rivers Platinum joint
venture. This was said at the announcement of Avmin's results for
the year to June. CE Rick Menell said Avmin was in advanced discussions
with its partner Impala on the principle of including an empowerment
partner.
(©www.bday.co.za)
Avmin
reports weaker 2001 earnings
The mining group's year figures are down but this is skewed by the
previous year's royalties from Saturn, which had been sold to De
Beers in fiscal 2000
(©www.bday.co.za)
Anglo
American profit expected to drop
UK mining analysts estimate the company will report a 3% fall in
net earnings before exceptional items and goodwill amortisation
to around $920-million
(©www.bday.co.za)
Mines
shut eyes to dump hazard
Many communities on West Rand and East Rand are exposed to health
risks
GOLD mines remain reluctant to rehabilitate their mine dumps in
Gauteng, despite the fact that there are 260 mine dumps on the Witwatersrand
deemed to pose a health risk to mainly township dwellers. The communities
on the West Rand and East Rand are affected the most by mine dumps.
People in Kagiso township have on numerous occasions tried to get
the Krugersdorp council to confront the mining houses about the
problem of dust, but the council says it has given up because the
mining houses on the West Rand are "a law unto themselves".
(©www.bday.co.za)
NUM's
rare political support of Cosatu
In A rare show of physical support
for a political strike, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM)
said yesterday it would join the Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu)
in its national two-day antiprivatisation stayaway, which starts
today.
(©www.bday.co.za)
Gencor
stays mum on plans for its stake in Implats
Mining house Gencor was giving nothing away yesterday on just how
it intended to play its Impala hand in the coming 12 months. The
holding company, which has a 46% stake in Impala Platinum, reported
its attributable income up 114% year on year to R2,23bn from R1,04bn.
The total ordinary dividend a share rose to 333c from 163c last
time. As was expected, Gencor said the leap in earnings was due
to its stake in Implats, which posted a rise of more than 100% in
full-year attributable earnings last week.
(©www.bday.co.za)
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Phoenix
rising
Did
you see?
Did
you know that the Hoopoe is the harbinger of friends?