Atlantico Weekly

Archive for the ‘South Africa’ Category

Angola Businesss News

In Angola, Economy, Investments, Mining, Oil, South Africa, Telecom on May 16, 2010 at 10:12 am

BUILDING OF THE WEEK

Artist’s impression of the Intercontinental Hotel & Casino, currently under construction in Angola’s capital Luanda (Skyscrapercity).

DIAMONDS

South Africa’s Trans Hex Group has partnered with Angolan state-owned diamond company Endiama and three other local companies to explore for diamonds at a new mine in Angola, Endiama said (BusinessDay).

ECONOMY

The International Monetary Fund approved its first performance review of Angola’s 27-month IMF economic program and agreed to disburse a $171.1 million loan tranche (Reuters).

OIL

The first stage of the Lobito oil refinery will start operating in 2014 with a capacity to refine 115,000 barrels/day and offering 1,000 direct jobs, Angolan oil minister Jose Botelho de Vasconcelos revealed (Angop).

BANKING

The northern Malange Province counts as from last Thursday on the first branch of Millennium Bank in the region (Angop).

TELECOMS

A study of the Angolan telecommunication sector, carried out from 2007 to 2008, recommends mobile network operators to make an annual investment  average of USD 750 million in order to improve the services provided to consumers (Angop).

Angola news update, April 11th

In Angola, Banking, Brazil, Economy, Foreign Trade, Infrastructure, Investments, Mining, Oil, South Africa on April 11, 2010 at 7:46 pm

ECONOMY

As Africa’s largest exporter of oil — surpassing Nigeria last year — Angola is one of the largest investment destinations on the continent. Despite the enormous opportunities South African business presence is still relatively insignificant. Instead, China, Brazil and even Russia are playing an important role in Angola in sectors such as construction, civil engineering and resource extraction — traditional sweet spots for South African companies (BusinessDay).

The Ministry for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fishing plans to increase inspection of Angolan territorial waters with the introduction of new patrol vessels, the Minister said in Lobito (Macauhub).

OIL

Petrobras, Brazil’s state-run oil company, plans to expand its exploration activities in Angola, Petrobras Chairman Gabrielli said in Luanda. Gabrielli held talks with Angolan President dos Santos while on a visit to Angola (Bloomberg).

The heads of Sonangol and Petrobrás analysed co-operation ties and issues related to international oil market (Angop).

Angola, which vies with Nigeria as Africa’s biggest oil producer, expects new discoveries to boost crude output by 16 percent next year. Oil production will reach 2.2 million barrels a day by 2011, compared with 1.9 million barrels at present, Deputy Petroleum Minister Anibal Octavio da Silva said (Bloomberg).

TOURISM

There is one thing you should know about Luanda: hardly any tourists come here. Getting a visa can take many months and finding a hotel room, if you can afford it, is equally challenging. Read the travel postcard from Luanda at Reuters.

AIR TRAVEL

Taag, Angola’s flagship airline plans to acquire two aircraft in order to cover European routes, following its recent authorisation to re-launch flights to the European Union airspace. A quick and cheap way for the Angolan government to solve the problem would be to hand over the modern Boeing 777s owned by Sonair, the air carrier of Angolan national oil company, Sonangol (Macauhub).

BANKING

Portugal’s main banks will be able to maintain their levels of profitability in 2009 due to a rise in spreads and of foreign operation, particularly in Angola, the Fitch agency said (Macauhub).

Angola news update, February 7th

In Agriculture, Angola, Banking, Economy, Elections, Investments, Mining, Oil, Politics, Real estate, South Africa on February 7, 2010 at 2:40 pm

POLITICS

Angolan President dos Santos appointed Fernando Dias da Piedade dos Santos as the country’s first vice president.The president also appointed Carlos Alberto Lopes as the country’s finance minister (Bloomberg).

Angolan lawmakers adjusted the country’s proposed new constitution to reflect that ballot papers must show the name of presidential candidates put forward by political parties (Bloomberg).

ECONOMY

Angola’s economy should grow 7.5 percent this year, after a sharp downturn led to an estimated rise of not more than 0.5 percent in 2009, the World Bank has indicated (Macauhub).

MINING

Angola expects to decide on the partnership structure for a new $6 billion iron ore and manganese mine project this year in a bid to diversify its mining sector, an official said. “I am sure the government of Angola is going to make a decision on this project before the end of the year,” Luis Antonio, director of international cooperation in the Ministry of Geology and Mines told Reuters.

Angola expects diamond exports to rise this year from the 9.8 million carats it shipped during 2009, Luis Antonio, director of international co-operation at the Ministry of Geology and Mines, said in an interview in Cape Town (Bloomberg).

BANKING & FINANCE

Bank of America Corp. didn’t raise enough questions about how an Angolan arms dealer now in prison moved millions of dollars in “suspect” funds to the U.S., says a Senate report on corrupt foreign money entering the country (Bloomberg).

Angola may get less than a quarter of the $4 billion it sought in an international debt sale announced in August and then postponed, even if it receives a credit rating, according to Exotix Ltd (Bloomberg).

OIL

Angola’s oil industry will grow 6.5 percent this year as the southern African country increases its production from 1.79 million barrels a day to 1.9 million barrels a day, the World Bank said in its January country report (Bloomberg).

AGRICULTURE

Angolan farmers are to get USD 350 million in loan.  A credit for agriculture, approved in 2009 by the Government for small and medium producers as well as associations and agro-livestock cooperatives, “will be made available to beneficiaries on time” (ANGOP) .

BUSINESS

Angolan group Mostratus plans to produce 100 million litres of “Cristalina” mineral water this year in Angola, which is annual growth of 80 percent, the company’s legal and administrative director João Pinto told newspaper O País (Macauhub).

The new Palance Cimentos cement factory, an investment of US$420 million in Angola’s Benguela province, is awaiting approval from the Angolan government for construction to begin, said the chairman of the Gema group, which owns 50 percent of the company’s capital (Macauhub).

Entrepreneurs from Kwazulu-Natal plan to invest this year in the Angolan fishing sector in Baia Farta municipality, 25 km from the city of Benguela, the premier of that South African region has stated (Macauhub).

REAL ESTATE

Luanda has some of the world’s most expensive property prices, and a recent study by the Angolan consultancy firm Proprime indicates they are highest in the Baixa district for offices and in Ingombotas for housing (Macauhub).

Angola news update, January 31st

In Airports, Angola, Banking, Brazil, Economy, Energy, Hotels, Infrastructure, Investments, Oil, Politics, Ports, Real estate, Retail, Security, South Africa, Telecom, Travel on January 31, 2010 at 12:32 pm

ECONOMY

Two years ago, oil-rich Angola was reckoned to have one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. In both 2006 and 2007 real GDP had surged by around 20%, and double-digit growth rates were widely predicted for at least the next five years. Then oil prices crashed with the global recession. Last year the economy is estimated to have grown, at best, by 1.5%. But it is bouncing back. Some say Angola will be among the world’s top five performers again this year, with growth exceeding 8%. Read the full story in The Economist.

Though Angola wants to woo foreign investors, everything seems contrived to deter all but the most intrepid and patient. Getting a visa, for a start, can take many months. Finding somewhere to stay in Luanda, a capital city built for 500,000 that is now home to 5m, is not much easier. A single hotel room, if you can find one, will set you back $500-600 a night. Read about the virtues you need for doing business in Angola in The Economist.

ATLANTICO

The political and economic rivalry between SA and Angola is expected to graduate into a battle for dominance in the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) , says US-based global intelligence think-tank Stratfor (BusinessDay).

BANKING

Standard Bank sees Angola as key growth market. Warming relations between Angola and SA and the ties Africa’s biggest bank by assets has with China and Russia — rivals in attempts to secure access to Angolan resources — should help the new business, a senior executive said (BusinessDay). Africa’s biggest bank by assets plans to invest millions of dollars in Angola to set up a commercial and investment bank and offer retail banking services (News24).

BUSINESS

A new production line for soft drinking production will be operating from May this year at Sefa factory, that will increase the company’s production capacity from 3,000 to 10,500 cases per day (Angop).

PORTS

Lobito Port, in the central Benguela Province, will handle over  12,000 tons of load per year, its director told ANGOP.

OIL

Angola and India have signed a memorandum of  understanding in the oil sector, aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation, mainly in the entrepreneurial field (ANGOP).

AIR TRAVEL

Angolan airline Taag plans to carry 1.7 million passengers per year as of 2012 as compared to 1.1 million currently, the coordinator of the company’s management commission, Pimentel de Araújo said (Macauhub).

INVESTMENT

The Angolan government approved 39 investment projects valued at a total of US$7 billion. In a statement released after a Council of Ministers meeting, the government said that the investments were focused on the retail, real estate, telecommunications, energy and transport sectors (Macauhub).

Portuguese group Unicer plans to invest US$120 million, US$85 million of which in the first phase, in construction of a beer factory in Angola’s Bengo province, the group’s representative in Angola, José Teixeira said in Luanda (Macauhub).

Brazilian group Odebrecht is analysing the possibility of investing in a petrochemical project in Angola, the group’s chief executive told Brazilian newspaper Estado de São Paulo (Macauhub).

South Africa news update, January 3rd

In Economy, South Africa, Tourism on January 3, 2010 at 3:16 pm

2010

With the World Cup nearing, 2010 will be South Africa’s year. The self-proclaimed Rainbow Nation will receive a rainbow crowd of visitors, the largest and most diverse group of tourists in its history. The spotlight on the country’s progress since apartheid will be more intense than ever. Read the analysis in the Mail & Guardian.

South Africa is set to bounce back strongly in headline-growth terms in 2010, asset manager and investment bank Nomura said. This was due to continuing infrastructure spending, a contribution from net trade and restocking from low levels (SA Goodnews).

EXPATS

In a global survey commissioned by HSBC Bank International, it was revealed that South Africa is the sixth best country in the world to live in, according to expatriates based there. In addition to making the top 10 overall, South Africa scored highly in the categories of making local friends (2), organising schools (3), finding somewhere to live (3), social life (3), quality of life (3), and accommodation (4) (TradeInvestSA)

South Africa news update, December 20th

In Brazil, Economy, South Africa on December 20, 2009 at 8:50 pm

ECONOMY

In light of South Africa’s position as the largest and most important economy in Africa, it is imperative that South Africa aligns itself with the growth potential of the BRIC nation. Can it become BRICS? (TradeInvest).

The automotive industry in South Africa was hit very hard by the financial crisis over the past year. With vehicles sales down and with many major automotive companies experiencing major financial difficulties, it has been an extremely testing year (TradeInvest).

With 2010 around the corner and most South Africans reflecting on a year that has seen an economic recession that spared very few, what does the New Year hold in store (TradeInvest)?

The South Atlantic in 2010

In Agriculture, Angola, Banking, Brazil, Cape Verde, Economy, Elections, Infrastructure, Investments, Mining, Oil, Politics, Real estate, Security, South Africa, Surinam, Tourism on December 20, 2009 at 7:30 pm

Season’s greetings to all readers of Atlantico Weekly!

Atlantico Weekly is proud to present a short forecast for Brazil, Cape Verde, Angola, South Africa and Surinam in 2010.

Read The South Atlantic in 2010

Angola news update, December 14th

In Airports, Angola, Banking, Elections, Mining, Oil, Politics, South Africa, Travel on December 14, 2009 at 6:36 pm

POLITICS

Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos signalled the oil-producing nation’s first post-war presidential elections, scheduled for 2009, would have to wait at least another three years (Reuters).

Angola plans to halve the number of nationals living on a dollar or less a day by 2015, Radio Nacional de Angola reported, citing Diogenes de Oliveira, head of parliament’s finance committee. Around 60 percent of the oil-rich nation’s 18 million people live below the poverty line, President Jose Eduardo dos Santos said last week, accusing “irresponsible” officials of squandering state resources (Bloomberg).

OIL

Angola’s national oil company Sonangol won deals to develop two oilfields in one of Iraq’s most dangerous provinces (Reuters).

Marathon Oil Corp. the fourth- largest U.S. energy producer, agreed to sell a 20 percent working interest in Block 32 off the coast of Angola to that country’s state-owned oil company for $1.3 billion (Bloomberg).

The China Petroleum and Chemical Corp (Sinopec), one of Asia’s largest oil refiners, may be granted an oil field in Angola by its parent company China Petrochemical Corp (Sinopec Group), the China Business News newspaper reported (Macauhub).

BANKING

Portugal’s second-largest listed bank Banco Espirito Santo said it agreed to sell a 24 percent stake in its Angolan unit for around 254 million euros ($375 million) (Reuters).

Standard Bank, Africa’s biggest lender by assets, said its Angolan unit will start operations next year with capital of $50 million (Bloomberg).

South Africa’s First National Bank (FNB) has decided to expand into the Angolan market, and is waiting for approval from the Luanda authorities to open a representative office (Macauhub).

MINING

The state-run diamond company, Endiama EP, aims to produce gems without foreign support. “We need to produce our diamonds ourselves,” chairman Sumbula said. The company’s partners include De Beers, which produces about 40 percent of the world’s diamonds. Endiama also aims to “make profits for the state” and is now engaged “classifying” its staff to see “what each can offer the company,” the Luanda-based company said (Bloomberg).

AIRPORTS  AND TRAVEL

The runway at Luena airport in Angolan province of Moxico, was re-opened  after work that began in May 2007 was concluded by Chinese construction company Sinohydro Corporation to extend the runway from 2,400 metres to 3,350 metres and a width of 60 metres (Macauhub).

The new Lubango international airport, in the capital of Angola’s Huila province, is due to be handed over within the next few days, the head of the company responsible for inspecting the project told Angolan news agency Angop (Macauhub).

COMING SOON: The South Atlantic in 2010

In Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Economy, Panama, Politics, South Africa, Surinam on December 6, 2009 at 5:05 pm

Atlantico Weekly announces its own assessment of political and economic developments in the South Atlantic democratic hemisphere: Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Panama, South Africa and Surinam. Watch this, it’s coming soon!

Angola news update, December 6th

In Angola, Banking, Brazil, Economy, Foreign Trade, Investments, Mining, Oil, Politics, South Africa on December 6, 2009 at 4:33 pm

ECONOMY

Angola may be forced to delay a planned $4 billion international bond sale until “early 2010” and seek a credit rating due to concern caused by Dubai’s request to reschedule debt payments, according to Eurasia Group (Bloomberg).

Angola has access to $400 million from the International Monetary Fund in addition to the $1.4 billion Standby Agreement approved by the lender on Nov. 23, the World Bank said (Bloomberg).

Luanda is the world’s most expensive expat city. For a full table of cities check Bloomberg.

The African Development Bank (BfDA) announced in Luanda it has set aside Usd 2.0 billion to finance projects in the private sector in the 2010/2014 period (ANGOP).

POLITICS

An Angolan minister said a separatist group that has waged war for control of the country’s oil-producing province of Cabinda for more than 30 years no longer existed (Reuters).

OIL

Angola’s national oil company, Sonangol, will hold 20 percent in Iran’s South Pars-12 project that will be developed at a cost of $7.5 billion (Reuters).

Romania will make “considerable” investments in the exploration and processing of minerals in Angola, including oil and diamonds. The two countries will sign an agreement early next year that will allow Romania to build and oil research and development center in Angola, the Luanda-based news agency said. Romania is also interested in investing in Angola’s oil, diamond, uranium, copper and energy industries (Bloomberg).

Angola has oil reserves that will make it possible to maintain daily production of 1.9 million barrels for the next 15 years, the country’s Oil Minister, Botelho de Vasconcelos said (Macauhub).

BANKING

The African Investment Bank (SA-BAI) was recently elected, by “The Banker” magazine of the Financial Times Group, as the best bank of the year in Angola due to the growth it recorded during the year 2009 (ANGOP).

South Africa’s Standard Bank, the biggest bank in South Africa, has been granted a banking license to operate in Angola, where it is due to start operating in mid 2010, the bank said in Johannesburg (Macauhub).

BUSINESS

Angola’s central Huambo province might become the national distribution centre for Panalpina, one of the world’s leading providers of forwarding and logistics services, specialising in intercontinental air freight and ocean freight (ANGOP).

ATLANTICO

An Angolan business delegation is in South Africa to get in touch with local entrepreneurs in light of the recommendations emanated from the recent visit to Angola by the South African President, Jacob Zuma (ANGOP).

Brazilian wholesale group Tenda Atacado at the end of November opened its first warehouse-store in the Angolan capital of Luanda, called Alimenta Angola (Feed Angola), the Brazilian press reported (Macauhub).

South Africa news update, December 6th

In Agriculture, Economy, Investments, Real estate, South Africa on December 6, 2009 at 4:22 pm

ECONOMY

Dubai is the nation state as mortgage bubble: hype, leverage, and a lot of concrete mixers. But in Cape Town, Dubai World’s bubble burst a year ago, with the ousting of provincial premier, Ebrahim Rasool, the state-owned investment company’s local champion. Read the full story in the Mail & Guardian.

Land reform in South Africa is lagging behind its schedule. Read the report in The Economist.

More than 2.2m additional foreign tourists will visit South Africa between 2008 and 2015, thanks to next year’s World Cup soccer tournament. Foreign visitors’ spending is alone expected to contribute R14.3bn (News24).

Angola news update, November 29th

In Agriculture, Angola, Banking, Brazil, Economy, Energy, Investments, Oil, South Africa on November 29, 2009 at 10:05 pm

ECONOMY

Angola is considering setting up a Norwegian-style sovereign wealth fund to manage its oil revenues, Norwegian daily Aftenposten reported (Reuters).

Angola’s foreign exchange reserves unexpectedly fell for the first time in three months to $12.1 billion in October from $12.8 billion the previous month, despite a sharp recovery in oil prices, the central bank said (Reuters).

The International Monetary Fund said its board approved a $1.4 billion standby loan arrangement for Angola to help it cope with the effects of the global recession (Reuters).

The non-oil sector of the Angolan economy may grow 10,5 per cent as forecast in the national plan 2010/2011 (ANGOP).

LAW ENFORCEMENT

Officials from Angola’s Central Bank and Finance Ministry have illegally transferred money abroad, prosecutors said, promising to recover the missing funds (Reuters).

ATLANTICO

A forum for the promotion of investments is scheduled for November 30 to December 1 in Salvador da Bahia, Brazil, aimed to develop partnership between small and medium companies from Angola and Brazil manufacturing industry and agriculture (ANGOP).

Angolan bank Banco Africano de Investimentos (BAI) is due to open a representative office in South Africa before the end of the year in order to do business in the continent’s largest economy, the bank’s chief executive said in Luanda (Macauhub).

Angolan state oil company Sonangol is set to acquire a controlling stake of a Brazilian oil company, at a cost of US$180 million, Brazilian financial newspaper Valor Económico reported (Macauhub).

BUSINESS

The state owned insurance company (ENSA) inaugurated a temporary branch in the northern Malanje Province, in the ambit of the programme to expand its activity in the country (ANGOP).

A total of Usd 4 million will be invested next year by the business group “Admar Damião”, for the construction of a vegetable and fruit processing and transforming plant in Chibia district, whihc is situated some 45 kilometres to the south of Lubango in Huila province (ANGOP).

Portuguese electricity company EDP – Energias de Portugal is looking into solutions to build a combined-cycle electric power plant in Angola, the group’s chief executive, António Mexia said in Figueira da Foz (Macauhub).

The process of selling 24 percent of the capital of Banco Espírito Santo Angola (BESA) to Angolan investors will be concluded soon, the chairman of Portuguese banking group Banco Espírito Santo (BES), Ricardo Salgado said in Lisbon (Macauhub).

AGRICULTURE

The World Bank (WB) will grant to Angola a credit of USD 30 million aimed at supporting the farmers in the provinces of Bié, Huambo and Malanje (ANGOP).

South Africa news update, November 15th

In Energy, Politics, South Africa on November 15, 2009 at 11:18 pm

POLITICS

Until the end of last month, Eskom, the state-owned power company, was mainly known for its inefficiency and incompetence. Power cuts have been maddeningly common throughout the country. But now the company has been engulfed by another, much more South African, sort of row, about race. Read the story in The Economist

Angola news update, November 15th

In Airports, Angola, Brazil, Investments, Oil, Security, South Africa, Travel on November 15, 2009 at 11:17 pm

INVESTMENT

Portugal’s retail-heavy conglomerate Sonae plans to expand to Angola and open its Continente hypermarkets in the southwest African country, Diario Economico newspaper said (Reuters).

OIL

Brazil’s state-controlled oil company Petrobras said it found oil in deep waters off Angola. The oil, in the Cabaca Norte-1 well, around 350 kilometers (219 miles) north of Luanda, is the second discovery within the 15/06 bloc in which Petrobras has a 5 percent stake (Reuters).

Petrobras is interested in exploring for oil in “deep and ultra-deep” waters off the coast of Angola, the Brazilian Trade and Industry Minister said (Bloomberg).

The chairman of Portuguese oil group Galp Energia said in Lisbon that production has seen a ”strong drive” with the start of production at the Tômbua-Lândana oil field, at which the company expects production of 90,000 barrels of oil per day in 2010 (Macauhub).

SECURITY

Armed Angolan gangs are targeting Chinese workers in “mafia-style” attacks, a construction boss said, creating a climate of fear among the Chinese community in Luanda Read the full story in the Mail & Guardian.

AIR TRAVEL

Angolan national airline Taag launched a direct flight between Luanda and Cape Town, with flights twice a week, Angolan news agency Angop reported (Macauhub).

South Africa and corruption

In South Africa on October 15, 2009 at 7:37 pm

Can President Jacob Zuma fulfil his promise to root out corruption?

Read the full story in The Economist

Angola news update, October 12th

In Angola, Banking, Brazil, Energy, Mining, Oil, South Africa on October 12, 2009 at 6:10 pm

OIL & GAS

Sonangol SA, the state-run oil firm of Africa’s biggest crude exporter, is seeking other markets for its liquefied natural gas after prices in the U.S. fell, the head of its gas unit said (Bloomberg).

ATLANTICO

Angola and South Africa are ready to boost cooperation in the mining sector and enable businessmen from both countries to obtain mutual advantages in their  activities, taking into account the potential of both countries and positions in the existing market (ANGOP).

The chairman of Angola’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIA), António dos Santos, expressed the availability of the Angolan private sector to co-operate with the South African one, as long as risks be shared, ANGOP has learnt.

Micro and small companies from Portuguese-speaking African countries are to be supported as part of a technical cooperation agreement with Brazil, a Sebrae official said Wednesday in Rio de Janeiro (Macauhub).

MINING

Also Germany intends to increase co-operation with Angola in the economic sector, essentially in the areas of mining exploration and energy, the counsellor of the German Embassy in Angola said (ANGOP).

BANKING

Angola’s Sol bank has currently yielded 33 million dollars, chairman Coutinho Nobre Miguel announced. Speaking to Angop, on the fringes of the inauguration of the 47th branch in Luanda, he explained that the institution has had a positive performance, as its funds are estimated at 65 million US dollars. According to him, Sol bank’s credit line is worth USD 230 million, whereas deposits are USD 1.225 billion (ANGOP).

Retail banks operating in Angola saw “excellent performance” in 2008 according to a study presented in Luanda by international consulting and auditing company Deloitte. At the presentation of the study entitled “Banking Under Analysis,” Rui Santos Silva, of Deloitte, said the sector’s results were “good news” and also noted that the analysis was of 2008, a year that was very different to 2009 for the Angolan economy (Macauhub).

ENERGY

Empresa de Desenvolvimento e Infra-Estruturas do Alqueva (EDIA), the Portuguese company that manages the Alqueva dam, is to provide technical advice to Angolan state irrigation company Sociedade de Desenvolvimento de Perimetros Irrigados (Sopir) in the area of water resource management (Macauhub).

HUMAN

Angola was the Portuguese-speaking country to see the greatest rise in its position in the United Nations Human Development index, rising from 157th to 143rd place. Although in 2008 only Cape Verde and Sao Tome and Principe were part of the medium development nations, in 2009 Angola joined this list by rising 14 places in the ranking (Macauhub).

Crime in South Africa won’t go away

In Security, South Africa on October 4, 2009 at 8:54 pm

President Jacob Zuma talks tough. But can he make a difference?

Read the story in The Economist

South Africa’s president still on a roll

In Elections, Politics, South Africa on September 24, 2009 at 9:36 pm

When Jacob Zuma came to power in May, there were doubters aplenty. So far he has handsomely confounded his critics.

Read the full story at The Economist

Angola news update September 20th

In Airports, Angola, Argentina, Banking, Economy, Energy, Foreign Trade, Investments, Oil, Ports, South Africa, Tourism, Travel on September 20, 2009 at 12:26 pm

INVESTMENT

About USD 600 billion is required in the next 15 years for the country to reduce its dependence on oil, the Angolan economist Alves da Rocha stated. According to him the country will need to invest that amount in order to have an industrial economy in transition to one of services by 2025, with the manufacturing industry representing 30 percent of the GDP and services sector 25% ANGOP).

OIL

The Angolan fuel distributing company SONANGOL is ready to face competition that will result from the opening of the national market to others operators of the fuel trading area (ANGOP).

Angola’s daily crude oil shipments are scheduled to drop about 6 percent in November, bringing exports from Africa’s second-biggest producer closer to its OPEC quota (Bloomberg).

GAS

Angola’s first liquified natural gas (LNG) plant is on track to start shipping gas in January 2012, Oil Minister Jose Botelho de Vasconcelos said Reuters).

EXPANSION

Angola’s state oil company Sonangol is interested in acquiring a minority stake in Portuguese utility EDP, Sonangol CEO Manuel Vicente said (Reuters).

ECONOMY

Angolan government officials will meet representatives of the International Monetary Fund in Istanbul later this month as the African country seeks help to shore up its economy (Bloomberg).

ATLANTICO

South Africa’s power utility Eskom recently agreed to assist Angola develop its large hydroelectric power potential of up to 10,000 megawatts following a state-visit by South African President Jacob Zuma to Luanda last month (Reuters).

A group of thirty businessmen from Argentina will attend a seminar on “Business Opportunities” from sept 27 to 29 in Luanda, the Argentine ambassador to Angola, Ricardo Victor Roggero, disclosed (ANGOP).

PORTS

Angola’s Sociedade Gestora de Terminais (Sogester) has invested US$8 million in construction of a provisional second line terminal, in the Viana industrial area, whilst it waits for conclusion of its permanent terminal being built in Cacuaco municipality in Luanda (Macauhub).

Sea transport company Maersk Angola is investing US$95 million in Angola in the construction of a second line terminal in Luanda in order to boost its port infrastructure area, Angolan newspaper O País reported (Macauhub).

BANKING

The National Bank of Angola (BNA) has given the “green light” to the creation of an investment bank by Angolan oil company Sonangol and Portuguese state bank Caixa Geral de Depósitos (CGD) (Macauhub).

TOURISM

Around 300,000 tourists visited Angola in 2008, a rise of around 60 percent against the previous year, according to official figures published in Luanda (Macauhub).

Angola news update, September 13th

In Angola, Banking, Economy, Infrastructure, Oil, Ports, South Africa on September 13, 2009 at 8:47 pm

BANKING

CEO-designate Sizwe Nxasana, soon to lead one of South Africa’s big banks, FirstRand, has said the group plans to set up a commercial bank in Angola (Reuters).

CONSTRUCTION

Mota-Engil SGPS SA, a Portuguese construction company, aims to have contracts for projects in Angola’s energy industry next year, Jornal de Negocios reported, citing Chairman Antonio Mota (Bloomberg).

INFRASTRUCTURE

A new road bridge over the Catumbela river in central Benguela province has been inaugurated. On the coast, the port of Lobito handled over 1.5 million tonnes in the first half of 2009. Announced was the construction project of a dry port in Bairro Luz and the construction of a quay for loading and unloading mineral material (ANGOP).

OIL

An oil exploration project dubbed Tômbua-Lândana, with 46 wells, started producing on Tuesday at Block 14, with view to reach 100,000 barrels of oil/day by the year 2010 (ANGOP).

ECONOMY

The chairman of Angola’s National Private Investment Agency (ANIP), Aguinaldo Jaime, said that despite the international financial crisis the Angolan government’s projection for this year was to reach growth of around 6 percent (Macauhub).

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