Western Cape Finance and Economic Opportunities Minister David Maynier and Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning Minister Anton Bredell have welcomed a decision by the Stellenbosch municipal council to consider generating and using alternate electricity energy supplies to beat load-shedding and become more energy resilient. “Through the Municipal Energy Resilience (MER) Project, the Western Cape government will be supporting the Stellenbosch Municipality in its aim to become energy resilient. The MER project is spearheaded by our Green Economy unit at the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, which is working in collaboration with the Department of Local Government and Provincial Treasury to assist municipalities to take advantage of the new energy regulations, which may include purchasing of energy directly from independent power producers (IPPs),” they say in a joint statement.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) helps to improve the attractiveness of Africa for investors, as the potential markets companies can tap have become much larger. This also places the continent in a stronger position to negotiate fair trade terms with other countries and blocs, African Union Commission (AUC) Commissioner for Trade and Industry Albert Muchanga said during a seminar on January 27.

Industrial minerals and construction materials company Afrimat will sell the restructured Unicorn Capital Parents (UCP), which no longer holds a direct interest in the Nkomati anthracite mine. Afrimat last year acquired embattled UCP in order to take full ownership of the Nkomati mine, in which it, at that stage, already held a stake.

Construction academy Tjeka Training Centre, based in Randfontein, is poised for the training and upskilling of future construction industry artisans, according to the centre. While the anticipated infrastructure boom is yet to happen, Creamer Media journalist Simone Liedtke finds out what the centre is all about.