Latest news with #R50-million
The Citizen
4 days ago
- Business
- The Citizen
Metro reacts to criticism over Housing Company's poor performance
The metro said it is addressing concerns over poor rental collection rates in its public housing, especially in areas like Clarina. Spokesperson Lindela Mashigo emphasised that the tenants at Clarina, who are part of the ex-Schubart Park group, were served with eviction notices following a court order. As a result, the metro has no obligation to provide temporary emergency accommodation for these residents. This comes after Freedom Front Plus councillor Lenor Janse van Rensburg levelled heavy criticism against the instability of the House Company Tshwane (HCT). Mashigo said the metro's broader rental collection efforts are focused on strategies such as encouraging tenants to make payment arrangements, implementing deductions for city employees, and addressing illegal tenants through eviction notices. These actions aim to improve the overall rental collection, which stands at 85%, excluding Clarina and Rooiwaal. Long-term, the metro aims to reduce taxpayer reliance by diversifying the HCT's operations. Mashigo revealed that HCT's mandate has been extended to include affordable student housing, rental units, and first-home finance options, allowing the entity to cross-subsidise lower-income residents and work towards self-sustainability. 'This will enable the entity to cross-subsidise the lower-income earners and enable the entity to become self-sustainable.' Regarding HCT's R50-million salary bill, Mashigo defended the expenditure, pointing out the entity had made significant progress in improving rental collections since taking over the management of these properties. He also confirmed that HCT undergoes annual audits by the Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA), with no findings of financial mismanagement. The metro is also exploring private sector partnerships and strategies to enhance social housing service delivery and financial viability, as part of its broader affordable housing plan. Housing projects managed by HCT, include: – Eloff Gebou, Pretoria CBD; – Townlands Social Housing, Pretoria CBD; – Sunnyside Social Housing, Sunnyside; – Chantelle Village, Akasia – Clarina Estate, Pretoria North; – Little Manhattan, Pretoria West. – Marabastad: Western Pretoria Inner City and home to the large Townlands Social Housing project. Do you have more information about the story? Please send us an email to bennittb@ or phone us on 083 625 4114. For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord's websites: Rekord East For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram or TikTok. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading! Stay in the know. Download the Caxton Local News Network App Stay in the know. Download the Caxton Local News Network App here
Daily Maverick
20-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Maverick
Loaded for Bear: A junior miner is listing on the JSE, an event that is as rare as it is revealing
South Africa's share of global exploration expenditure has fallen down a deep shaft to less than 1.0% from about 5.0% two decades ago. Climbing out of this hole will be a huge task, but it needs to be done if South Africa wants to have a vibrant mining sector down the road. On Wednesday 21 May 2025, Shuka Minerals Plc, a junior mining exploration company, will launch a secondary listing on the JSE's AltX board. Already listed on the London Stock Exchange's AIM, Shuka — a R50-million company — is not going to add material weight to the JSE's market cap. But the listing is both rare and revealing and therefore of more than passing interest as it coincides this week with the unveiling of South Africa's Critical Minerals Strategy and Mineral Resources Development Bill 2025. The listing is rare because almost five months into the year, Shuka is the first company listing on the JSE in 2025, according to consultancy AmaranthCX, which has a database going back to 1994. And there have already been seven announced delistings in 2025, with two more in the pipeline. AmaranthCX director Paul Miller told me that this was a reflection of a worrying trend on the bourse, which only had three new company listings for all of 2023. Last year, there were 12 company delistings and 11 listings — so the JSE ended 2024 with one less company listing and is on track this year for an even worse showing. This speaks to the wider woes of the JSE and the state of South Africa's capital markets. 'These ongoing net delistings, but more importantly the absence of primary capital raising on the market, speak to the inability of the market operators to persuade their regulators and the policymakers that this is a crisis. It desperately needs a policy intervention, but all it seems to get from the National Treasury is indifference,' Miller told me. Rarity Shuka's JSE debut is also a rarity because there are so few junior mining/exploration companies listed on the bourse — a frankly shocking state of affairs given South Africa's fabulous resource endowment. The Toronto Stock Exchange and the Australian Stock Exchange both have hundreds of junior miners listed. Both countries, of course, are major players on the global mining stage. South Africa should also have hundreds but alas, an arid junior listings desert surrounds a glittering oasis of mineral wealth. The JSE has a grand total of five junior miners, and Shuka will make it six. 'Junior mining and exploration is one side of a coin, and the other is capital market development. If you are not thinking hard about capital market development then you will not have junior mining,' Miller told me. This is also rooted in the many own goals scored over the years by the industry's regulator, the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR, formerly the DMRE). Exploration is the foundation of any mining sector. It can take years or decades to build a new mine from scratch, and the resource will remain untapped if it is not discovered and uncovered by exploration, a risky business mostly carried out by junior miners. But mineral exploration in South Africa has long had too many hurdles to clear to get off the ground effectively. I have banged on for years about the needless delays in processing applications for mining and prospecting rights and the deplorable lack of a transparent mining cadastre, an online portal which should speed things up in a transparent way. There is finally light at the end of this long tunnel and Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe has promised that a proper mining cadastre will be up and running by the second half of this year. That should help South Africa eventually reclaim its rightful place as a focus for mining exploration and the capital this sector can attract. Mantashe on Tuesday unveiled South Africa's Critical Minerals and Metals Strategy as well as the Mineral Resources Development Bill 2025, which were recently approved by the Cabinet. 'The approval of these two policy documents marks a major milestone in our concerted efforts that are aimed at ensuring policy and regulatory certainty, as well as maximising the country's potential in the global market for minerals,' Mantashe said in a statement. Policy certainty may be the laudable aim here, but this constant shifting of the goalposts can have the opposite effect. Still, some shifting can be helpful. 'The bill proposes streamlining administrative processes to ensure proper alignment with National Environmental Management Act (Nema) and the National Water Act (NWA), and thereby reduce bureaucratic inefficiencies and improve turnaround times for mining rights, permits, and regulatory approvals,' Mantashe said. Safeguards That will be welcome provided the measures do not dilute safeguards to such an extent that critical ecosystems and waterways are threatened. Mantashe also said that the Critical Minerals Strategy — which casts a very wide net and basically includes almost every mineral of importance — '… emphasises that South Africa must prioritise exploration to sustain its mining sector and for the success of this strategy'. South Africa's share of global exploration expenditure has fallen down a deep shaft to less than 1.0% from about 5.0% two decades ago. Climbing out of this hole will be a huge task but it needs to be done if South Africa wants to have a vibrant mining sector down the road. It remains to be seen if the new strategy and bill — the latter which is now open for public comments — will help or hinder this journey. Next week the Junior Indaba will take place in Johannesburg where such issues will be explored. So a hat tip to Shuka and good luck. New company listings on the JSE and junior miners on the bourse are both critically endangered species. But they are not extinct yet. DM
Daily Maverick
06-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Maverick
Renergen defends its financial position against wild social media claims
Energy company Renergen has responded to Daily Maverick queries and directly denied social media claims suggesting the company lost control of assets due to a default on its Standard Bank loan. 'There has never been property ownership through the Standard Bank financing,' Renergen said via email, describing the claim as misinformation circulating online. 'The SBSA Loan is secured by a third-ranking pledge of Tetra4's assets and shares held by Renergen in Tetra4, and further by Mr Nicholas Mitchell and Mr Stefano Marani pledging shares in Renergen as security.' There is truth to claims that Renergen breached several loan covenants as at 28 February 2025, involving facilities from the Development Finance Corporation (DFC), Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), and Standard Bank South Africa (SBSA). However, as Renergen pointed out in a response to Daily Maverick, these defaults were temporary and resolved shortly after the reporting period. As detailed in its preliminary financial statements released on 30 April 2025: note eight of the report discloses that Renergen 'did not meet certain loan covenants as at 29 February 2024', which included the required asset cover ratio for a key loan facility. Although the company did not consider these breaches to have a material impact on its going concern status, it noted that the lenders 'have provided waivers subsequent to period end,' which is confirmed in note 18. Importantly, Renergen stresses that these waivers 'effectively addressed the immediate concern', and no creditors have called in loans or taken possession of assets. Proof is in the production pudding Contrary to claims that the company is far off its production goals, Renergen's figures show significant progress: Liquefied natural gas (LNG) production rose 70% year-on-year to 4,885 tonnes. LNG sales increased 74.2% to 4,633 tonnes. Liquid helium (LHe) commissioning was completed in the second quarter of the current financial year. Liquid helium sales began on 14 March 2025, shortly after the reporting period. Despite this, costs associated with commissioning the helium train – without immediate helium revenue – contributed to a deeper annual loss. Renergen reported a R236-million loss after tax and a gross loss of R28-million, down from a R10-million gross profit the year before. Revenue, however, increased by 79.7% to R52-million, largely due to LNG sales. The company chalks the larger loss up to high depreciation, rising input costs and the timing mismatch of helium revenue recognition. Litigation risk not imminent Concerns also remain around the unresolved litigation with Molopo Energy, which alleges that Renergen's sale of a 5.5% stake in Tetra4 triggered a loan acceleration. The company disputes this, saying that even in a worst-case scenario, the liability would be limited to a R50-million repayment. Looking ahead, Renergen is banking on additional funding. It has secured a $10-million inflow in April 2025 from an undisclosed third party, with the potential for a further $20-million. It is also pursuing a Nasdaq IPO aimed at raising R2.9-billion ($150-million) and expects to finalise a $795-million loan package from the DFC and SBSA – part of which will refinance existing debt. Strained, not sinking Renergen is under pressure, there's no denying that. Losses have widened, debt covenant breaches legitimately occurred, and the success of its financial restructuring is wholly reliant on external funding and market confidence. But the bright spots of its operational progress and continued lender support suggest a company navigating the turbulence typical of complex energy infrastructure roll-outs. The narrative of 'serious trouble' may overstate the case. Investors would do better to track helium and LNG output in the months ahead – as well as progress toward the planned IPO – to assess whether Renergen can turn the corner from startup stress to stable operation. DM
