The Editorial Team |

Centum Kenya to Fund-Raise, Exit Investments as Profit Falls

NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Centum Investment Co., Kenya’s second-largest publicly traded investment group, plans to raise funds by selling assets and will target third-party funding for projects, after it reported a plunge in full-year profit. The Nairobi-based company will reduce its stakes in investments that aren’t providing “good returns” and part of the proceeds will be used to help repay outstanding debt of 11.4 billion shillings ($113 million), Chief Executive Officer James Mworia said at…

Politicians Look Set for Easy Ride in Kenyan Graft Crackdown

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NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Kenyan prosecutors have rounded up scores of officials they intend putting on trial for looting billions of shillings from state coffers. Few of their political masters — seen by many as the kingpins behind repeated scandals — look set to face similar censure. The spate of arrests are part of an effort by President Uhuru Kenyatta, who won a disputed election last year, to improve controls over public funds and…

Glencore Resolves Congo Dispute With $5.6 Billion Debt Deal

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KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Glencore Plc reached a deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo’s state mining company to end a legal dispute and save of one of its most important growth projects. The agreement involves a $5.6 billion debt-to-equity swap for Katanga Mining Ltd., effectively reducing the debt load of the subsidiary which Glencore co-owns with Gecamines. The deal also involves a one-time payment of $150 million to Gecamines and waiver of…

Congo’s Miners Face Harsh New Reality as Mining Law Finalized

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KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa) – The options for mining companies battling new legislation in the Democratic Republic of Congo — Africa’s biggest copper producer and the source of two-thirds of the world’s cobalt — have just about run out. After six months of lobbying, companies including Glencore Plc and Randgold Resources Ltd. have got nowhere in their battle to push back against the mining law, which voids existing agreements and increases their costs. Congo approved the final part of…

Vedanta Mulls $400 Million Zambia Plant to Power Copper Unit

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LUSAKA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Vedanta Resources Plc is considering building a 300-megawatt coal-fired power plant for as much as $400 million in Zambia, where it’s copper unit is the biggest consumer of electricity. The company decided last week to also study the construction of a hydroelectric plant because its Konkola Copper Mines unit pumps 350 million liters (94 million gallons) of water daily, Deshnee Naidoo, chief executive officer of the company’s Africa base-metals unit, said…

Retail Stocks’ Longest Drop Since 2014 Shows South Africa Gloom

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – The pressures on South African consumers are showing in the country’s retail stocks. An index of general retailers traded in Johannesburg has fallen for the past seven weeks, the longest losing streak since February 2014. A government report Wednesday showed that retail sales in Africa’s most-industrialized economy in April rose at the slowest pace since February last year. South African shoppers are contending with rising fuel prices, partly as weakness in the…

Higher Uganda Budget Gap to Dent 2018-19 Fiscal Plan, IMF Says

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KAMPALA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Uganda’s policy of keeping debt at “safe levels” will be “challenging” in the coming fiscal year because of a higher-than-envisaged budget deficit, the International Monetary Fund said. East Africa’s third-biggest economy will need to “scrutinize very carefully new borrowing initiatives” in the 12 months through June next year in the wake of an expanded deficit, Clara Mira, the IMF resident representative in Uganda, said in a text message. Prudent borrowing will help…

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