Daily podcast – August 1, 2008

From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Hilary Klopper.

Making headlines today:

A meeting of the Big Business Working Group, chaired by President Thabo Mbeki on Thursday, highlighted ongoing discussions by the country's big business to accelerate processes towards cogeneration and the introduction of independent power producers, the Presidency said in a statement.

The meeting, convened at the Union Buildings, also looked at how communication to promote electricity savings could be stepped up.

The Presidency said that the Energy Champions, led by Deputy-President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, would meet in Stellenbosch on August 4 and 5 to chart a programme in this regard. This would then be communicated to the rest of the country.

Petrochemicals producer Sasol's Inzalo black economic empowerment public share scheme was almost four times oversubscribed, and about 95% of the applications received were for 200 shares, or less, Sasol said on Thursday.

"The consequence of this unprecedented response is that the transaction will not be able to accommodate everyone to their full expectation," said Sasol CEO Pat Davies.

He added that the company had a high end target of bringing 200 000 new shareholders into Sasol through Inzalo and at this stage, it had about 309 000 applicants.

The Inzalo share scheme formed part of Sasol's 25,9-billion rand broad-based black economic-empowerment transaction, where 3% of the company would be made available to the previously disadvantaged South African public.

AngloGold Ashanti has for the first time in its 100-year history gone 110 days without a death at its mines, which employ 60 000 people globally.

CEO Mark Cutifani said that this was an important milestone that demonstrated that "we can operate in South Africa without fatalities", but that the company still had some way to go.

AngloGold Ashanti operates some of the deepest mines in the world in South Africa, the country in which over 200 miners died last year - many of them in deep-level gold mines.

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Also making headlines:

Rather no WTO trade pact than ‘inequitable' deal, says South Africa's Xavier Carim
South African trade deficit down in June which boosts rand
Sappi mulls double-digit price increase in South Africa to offset soaring costs
Long-awaited 8,5-billion rand Sishen South mine approved
Major new gold find in Senegal Randgold announces
And, acquisition adds missing piece to Goldcorp's Red Lake plans

In political news:

Crime fears are hindering South Africa's tourism growth
Morgan Tsvangirai says Zimbabwe talks deadline is flexible
UN renews Darfur peacekeeping mandate
And, the US and Israel discuss diplomatic push on Iran

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