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Friday, October 10, 2008.

From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Fatima Gabru.

Making headlines today:

Minister of Minerals and Energy Buyelwa Sonjica said on Thursday that the world and South Africa needed a more stable oil price and a more transparent oil pricing system to enable proper energy planning.

She noted that the volatility of the oil price impeded planning and budgeting, which were "critical ingredients" of a stable economy.

The minister added that high oil prices earlier this year had highlighted the importance of oil in the modern economy.

Sonjica emphasised that the recent drop in the oil price should not "give us false hope" and shouldn't allow the country to "fall victim" to future price escalations.

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Shell South Africa planning and strategy manager Leon Lizamore said on Thursday that the world would eventually see a significant shift towards an era where energy was used more efficiently and carbon emissions were reduced.

He explained that Shell believed this possible as the company had, as part of its future planning, developed plausible scenarios that were likely to occur in the energy sector up to 2050.

However, despite this shift, three "hard truths" would, for now, remain. Lizamore said that the surging demand for energy, the shortage in the supply of oil, and the environmental stresses caused by the energy sector would continue.

He noted that the growth in the population of many emerging economies, as well as the increasing prosperity of these people, were the main drivers behind the surging demand for oil.

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Department of Minerals and Energy Deputy Director General Jacinto Rocha said that a decision had been taken to develop a State-owned mining company in South Africa. But, there wouldn't be nationalisation of the South African mining industry.

Rocha told an audience at the Gordon Institute of Business Science in Johannesburg that "the State is going to be involved in mining".

He said that if there were platinum opportunities, the state was going to get involved, either directly as a miner or indirectly as a shareholder.

Besides platinum, the State would also consider opportunities in gold, uranium and all minerals of strategic importance.

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Also making headlines:

Eskom rethinks its funding plans as financial turmoil bites.
Tullow Oil says its Jubilee oil project is expected to produce oil in 2010.
A 22,5-billion rand Vodafone bid opens the way for Vodacom's listing.
A South African government official says blacks are ignored when mining CEOs are chosen.
A fatality is reported at the Blyvooruitzicht gold mine.
And, Stats SA says that August-to-August gold production slumped dramatically.

In political news:

John McCain raises Barack Obama's ties with a former radical.
The African Union head pleads to world not to cut aid to Africa.
A study reveals that a decline in birds shows much wider damage to nature.
And, the World Bank names 28 financially strained states.

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