Wednesday, July thirty, 2008.

From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Shannon O'Donnell.

Making headlines today:

Department of Trade and Industry director general Tshediso Matona on Tuesday gave a solid stamp of approval to Vodacom's recently announced black economic-empowerment deal, the terms of which were unveiled on the same day.

Matona said that government was "very satisfied as the latest phase of black-economic empowerment transactions", which he said did not seek to "empower those that are already empowered".

CEO Alan Knott-Craig said that the transaction underscored the company's commitment to achieving sustainable, broad-based BEE ownership of Vodacom SA.

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South Africa's competition authorities reiterated in Parliament on Tuesday their now well-known objection to a proposed amendment to the Competition Act that would make it a criminal offence for company executives to have participated in a cartel.

The provision proposing ‘personal liability' for directors was contained in the Draft Competition Amendment Bill, which had been submitted to Parliament by Trade and Industry Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa earlier in the year. Since that time, there had even been some suggestion that the clause, which sought to criminalise anti-cartel conduct, might be in conflict with the Constitution.

In a joint submission to the Trade and Industry Portfolio Committee, the Competition Commission's Shan Ramburuth and Competition Tribunal's David Lewis admitted to finding themselves in the "unusual position" of having to differ with a Bill that was meant to strengthen the powers of their respective organisations.

Vancouver-based diversified miner Teck Cominco estimates its proposed acquisition of Fording Canadian Coal Trust could boost its 2009 core earnings by as much as 50%, CEO Don Lindsay said on Tuesday.

The deal will nearly double the group's exposure to metallurgical coal, "at a time of strong industry fundamentals", he said.

Teck has offered to pay about 14,1-billion dollars in cash and shares for Fording's assets, in a deal that would make it North America's biggest exporter of metallurgical coal, and the second largest in the world.

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Also making headlines:

South Africa stopped Zimbabwe power exports 'months ago'
Efficiency is key to avoid World Cup power cut
ArcelorMittal South Africa interim profit up 45%
Village Main to call extraordinary general meeting says Bernard Swanepoel
Time to get into gold say RBC analysts
And, AECI expects demand from mines to remain robust

In political news:

Willie Madisha fired as South African Democratic Teachers Union president
Zambia says higher food prices are poor nations' opportunity
Zimbabwe talks going well, but adjourning says Mbeki
And, World Trade Organisation talks collapse after farm stand-off

That's a round up of news making headlines today. For more on these and other stories, visit engineeringnews.co.za, miningweekly.com and polity.org.za