Consulting analysts in tomorrow’s commodities and technologies

News

PGM PRODUCERS: Inflow of cash brings Implats the benefit of options, and some difficult choices

CASH generation is so strong at Impala Platinum (Implats) that it may not need bridging finance in order to complete the $758m purchase of Toronto’s North American Palladium (NAP) it first announced – to much surprise – on October 7.

View full story

PGM PRODUCERS: Sibanye-Stillwater returns to balance sheet again with R5.5bn RCF refinancing

SIBANYE-Stillwater returned to its balance sheet once again refinancing its existing R6bn revolving credit facility (RCF) with a new rand denominated agreement that allows it access to more money if it needs it.

View full story

BATTERIES: Umicore enters strategic supply agreement with Samsung SDI

  • Date: 25-10-19
  • Category: BATTERIES
  • Source: Evertiq

Umicore has signed a multi-year strategic agreement with Samsung SDI for the supply of close to 80,000 metric tonnes of high-performance NMC (Nickel Manganese Cobalt) cathode materials starting in 2020.

View full story

SOUTH AFRICA: The lost platinum sector jobs are not coming back

  • Date: 24-10-19
  • Category: SOUTH AFRICA
  • Source: Daily Maverick

Should companies bear the burden of protecting unprofitable jobs, or should the government bear the burden of protecting the people? This question is now palpable in the platinum sector. It’s a hard question because it’s unlikely that jobs in the sector will return. Ultimately, the government should shoulder the burden on re-skilling because training is demand-driven, not supply-driven.

View full story

FUEL CELLS: Mid-2020 debut for world’s largest hydrogen mine haul truck – Anglo

  • Date: 24-10-19
  • Category: FUEL CELLS
  • Source: Mining Weekly

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The first motion of the world’s largest hydrogen-powered mine haul truck is scheduled for mid-2020, with testing continuing at Anglo American Platinum’s Mogalakwena mine until the end of the year.

View full story

ESKOM: Restructuring Report: Eskom ‘Fundamentally Insolvent, Permanently Impaired’

  • Date: 24-10-19
  • Category: ESKOM
  • Source: Power

Eskom, South Africa’s state-owned utility that produces nearly 90% of the African powerhouse’s electricity, is saddled with liabilities, unavoidable expenses, and stranded costs that exceed $113 billion, and for various reasons, it is “fundamentally insolvent, permanently impaired, and will never be a true going concern enterprise under its current legal, operational, and governance structure,” concludes a report recently issued by an independent chief restructuring officer (ICRO).

View full story

ESKOM: LETTER: Briquettes a viable product for Eskom

  • Date: 24-10-19
  • Category: ESKOM
  • Source: Business Live

After 10 years of exhaustive tests, Eskom has acknowledged that technologies now exist in SA that can successfully convert environmentally hazardous coal slurry waste into a suitable fuel at half the cost (“Turning coal fines into briquettes a daydream”, October 22).

View full story

ESKOM: ABB comes clean as Eskom house of cards crashes down on global giants

  • Date: 24-10-19
  • Category: ESKOM
  • Source: Biz News

(Bloomberg) – Swiss industrial giant ABB is being investigated for suspect payments related to work it carried out for embattled South Africa utility Eskom.

View full story

Categories