November 01, 2024
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WTO in tense final push for trade deals, as SA and India fight hard
Africa-news

WTO in tense final push for trade deals, as SA and India fight hard

June 16, 2022

World Trade Organisation members entered a tense final day of negotiations on Wednesday, with no certainty they would find consensus on any change to global trade rules and India adamant it would not yield on food, fisheries and vaccines.

South Africa considering buying Russian oil: minister
Africa-news

South Africa considering buying Russian oil: minister

June 16, 2022

South Africa is considering buying oil from Russia as a possible measure to mitigate steep fuel prices, Mineral Resources and Energy minister Gwede Mantashe said.

World’s central banks got it wrong, and economies pay the price
Africa-news

World’s central banks got it wrong, and economies pay the price

June 15, 2022

Even after central banks recognised they got their inflation calls wrong last year, they’ve continued to flub their policy guidance, threatening greater damage to their credibility, roiling markets and undermining the pandemic recovery.

South Africa is heading for bigger-than-expected interest rate hikes: Standard Bank
Africa-news

South Africa is heading for bigger-than-expected interest rate hikes: Standard Bank

June 14, 2022

The Standard Bank group has revised its interest rate forecasts for 2022, with the bank now expecting more hikes as inflation continues to bite.

TotalEnergies wins stake in US$29bn Qatar gas project
Africa-news

TotalEnergies wins stake in US$29bn Qatar gas project

June 13, 2022

TotalEnergies SE became the first foreign company to win a stake in a multi-billion dollar project to boost Qatar’s gas exports.

Qatar is expanding production of liquefied natural gas amid a worldwide energy crunch. Global demand for the fuel is soaring as European nations race to wean themselves off Russian gas supplies in the wake of Moscow’s attack on Ukraine.

TotalEnergies will get a 6.25% equity stake in the first phase of the plan, state producer Qatar Energy said on Sunday. Known as North Field East, it will cost almost $29 billion and include the construction of four LNG liquefaction units, or trains. It will increase Qatar’s annual capacity to 110 million tons by 2026 from 77 million. The French firm will own 25% of a joint venture with Qatar Energy, with the venture in turn holding 25% of North Field East.

Another partner will be announced later this week, Saad al Kaabi, Qatar’s energy minister and head of Qatar Energy, told reporters in Doha. Exxon Mobil Corp. and ConocoPhillips are also poised to win stakes, Bloomberg reported last week, while Shell Plc put in a bid.

Those three companies and TotalEnergies all have stakes in Qatar’s existing production facilities.

“Suddenly, because of the tragic events in Europe, everybody is rushing to get LNG,” TotalEnergies Chief Executive Officer Patrick Pouyanne said. “Appetite is strong.”

The roughly three-year negotiations went on “a little long, to be honest,” he said, without disclosing how much TotalEnergies will invest. The energy minister and his team were “very good defenders of Qatari interests in this process.”

Kaabi previously said Qatar Energy might look for investments to fund around 30% of the expansion. The country received bids for double the equity on offer, he said on Sunday. No company will get a stake larger than TotalEnergies, he said.

Pouyanne said the deal would strengthen Europe’s energy security and aid the continent’s long-term goal of using less coal and oil. While gas emits carbon when burned and methane leaks are common in the industry, it’s a cleaner fossil fuel.

“It is good news for the fight against climate change as gas and LNG are key to support the energy transition,” the CEO said.

Drilling started

Qatar Energy has started drilling development wells for the North Field East project. It chose Chiyoda Corp. of Japan and London-based TechnipFMC Plc to do the main construction work.

Kaabi, the energy minister, said Qatar would announce partners for a separate expansion, known as North Field South, by the end of the year. That, to build an additional two trains, will increase the Persian Gulf state’s LNG capacity to 126 million tons a year, and won’t be finished until 2027.

Most of Qatar’s gas is contained in the North Field, an offshore behemoth extending into Iranian waters. The shallow waters and plentiful reserves mean Qatar can pump gas more cheaply than just about any other country.

“It’s easy to produce,” Pouyanne said.

Qatar is considering further expansion projects due to the sheer demand for LNG in the wake of the Ukrainian conflict, Bloomberg has reported.

Still, the multi-year length of the plans mean European buyers will have to look elsewhere for alternatives to Russian gas in the meantime. Most of Qatar’s LNG is shipped to Asia under long-term contracts that Doha has said it won’t cancel to help Europe.

European officials, including Germany’s Economy Minister Robert Habeck, have visited Qatar in recent months in the hope of securing more supply commitments.

The war in Ukraine prompted Germany to push ahead with a previously shelved plan to construct two LNG import facilities at Brunsbuttel and Wilhelmshaven. Qatar is ready to invest in those terminals, Kaabi said, without giving further details.

US competition

North Field East is Qatar’s first gas project since it ended a self-imposed ban on further development, which lasted 12 years. While Qatari LNG production stayed flat, flows from the US and Australia surged as new plants started operating. The three compete to be the world’s biggest LNG exporter, though the US is likely to build a significant lead this year, according to Goldman Sachs and research firm Kpler.

Gas prices rose to record levels in Europe and Asia soon after Russia’s invasion. They’ve since fallen but remain far higher than a year ago.

“The tightness in the LNG market is now,” Kaabi said. “But with North Field East and North Field South we should have a lot of extra volumes. A lot of buyers are talking to us, whether it’s in Europe or Asia.”

Qatar will probably increase the proportion of its gas sales to Europe to 40%-50% once the extra gas is flowing, he said.

Pouyanne said North Field East would help offset revenue lost by TotalEnergies’ retreat from Russia, where it’s stopped funding the major Arctic LNG 2 project.-moneyweb

 

Global wealth hit record high of US$530trn in 2021
Africa-news

Global wealth hit record high of US$530trn in 2021

June 10, 2022

Global wealth rose 10.6% last year to reach a record high of US$530 trillion in 2021 and is set to continue rising in all regions despite inflationary pressures and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Angola finally gets its stock market
Africa-news

Angola finally gets its stock market

June 09, 2022

With about 200 people counting down to Banco BAI’s share debut, Angola’s stock exchange finally got off the ground. 

BAI, the southwest African nation’s biggest lender, had 20 buy orders at 21 650 kwanzas (R760) on the bourse known as Bolsa de Divida e Valores de Angola, or Bodiva, 5% more than the the initial public offering price. But there were no sellers. 

"Today we have reached a new historic milestone," bourse Chief Executive Officer Walter Pacheco said at the ceremony at the newly built InterContinental hotel. "We come together today to witness the start of a new era for the financial system and the capital markets."

After more than a decade of delays, the start of trading may help bolster Angolan President Joao Lourenco’s image as a reformer ahead of a general election scheduled for August 24. It could also help spur as many as 20 IPOs in the coming years that aim to attract foreign investment and diversify the nation’s economy away from oil, Pacheco said in an interview late on Wednesday. 

At least two other listings are expected to take place this year - lenders Banco Caixa Geral Angola SA and Banco Millennium Atlantico - before the larger state-owned oil firm Sonangol and Endiama carry out their IPOs, said Pacheco. 

"Hopefully, by 2025, these companies will be in a position to list their shares," said Pacheco, referring to Sonangol and Endiama. 

There is also a growing interest from closely held companies in a range of sectors to go public, said Pacheco. Angola, Africa’s second-biggest crude producer, has more than 300 companies that have their accounts audited every year, some of which are looking into the benefits of funding their operations through the stock market, he said.

In five to 10 years, Pacheco sees as many as 20 companies trading on the Luanda stock exchange. 

“At first, the stock market will be dominated by financial companies and oil companies, but then we will see a wave of other companies,” said Pacheco. “We won’t be able to compete with Nigeria and South Africa in the next five years, but we are going to be bigger than most stock exchanges on the continent.”

BAI may also offer to sell an additional 10% shares at a later date, bank’s Chief Executive Officer Luis Lelis said at the sidelines of the event.-fin24

 

South Africa is heading for another big interest rate hike
Africa-news

South Africa is heading for another big interest rate hike

June 08, 2022

While the extension of the fuel levy relief curtails near-term domestic inflationary pressure somewhat, consumer price (CPI) inflation is still set to come out higher this year than previously estimated, say economists at the Bureau for Economic Research (BER).

De Beers hikes small diamond prices as sanctions cause shortages
Africa-news

De Beers hikes small diamond prices as sanctions cause shortages

June 07, 2022

De Beers has raised the price of smaller diamonds as sanctions on its Russian rival creates a growing shortage of some stones.

SA’s economy grew 1.9% in Q1 2022
Africa-news

SA’s economy grew 1.9% in Q1 2022

June 07, 2022

South Africa’s economy expanded by 1.9% in the first three months of 2022, an uptick from the 1.2% growth in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2021.

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