Tag: capital expenditure (capex)

The electricity crisis in South Africa is self-inflicted. This has become clear from the many costly disruptions in electricity supply over too long a period. There is something fundamentally amiss with government policy in this area. At the centre of the problem is Eskom, the leviathan which enjoys monopolistic protection shielded from potential competition.

In 2021 amendments were proposed relating to section 20 of the Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 to limit corporate taxpayers’ ability to utilise assessed losses carried forward to 80% of the value of such assessed losses in a given year of assessment.

Moving to the cloud is a huge decision, many factors need to be considered but ultimately, it's a smart move. Those who have already embraced cloud are thriving and the rest are dying. It not only empowers businesses, but does away with high costs associated with owning and maintaining on-premise hardware.

In our mission of digital empowerment for all our people in South Africa, we face a constant battle against vandalism of network sites around the country. The scale of the problem is enormous, and the cost of repairing and protecting our sites affects our ability to roll out connectivity in areas that need it most.

Decarbonisation of the energy system, from a hydrocarbon-based to a sustainable, low-carbon energy system poses an existential threat to the oil and gas industry. On the other hand, it presents oil and gas companies with new portfolio opportunities to build adjacent businesses, shape and participate in new markets, and drive new sources of value from existing assets and capabilities.

We are excited to announce the release of the African Energy Outlook 2021. The report explores the forces shaping up the continent’s energy market after the historic shocks of 2020, and analyses the upcoming recovery on the back of the global energy transition and persisting market uncertainties.

COVID-19 has created a universal imperative for governments and businesses to take immediate actions with significant financial ramifications. According to our latest study, market capitalisation for the biggest 2,000 companies worldwide has declined by 24 percent since the beginning of the outbreak, losing more than $12.4 trillion.

At the start of 2020, the South African economy was already on the back foot. GDP shrank 1.4% quarter-on-quarter in Q4 of 2019, following a contraction of 0.8% in Q3. That was even before COVID-19 had arrived. The Moody’s, Fitch and S&P rating agency downgrades in March and April all signalled that the South African economy is in for a rough time over the next year at least.

As Eskom carries out critical maintenance on its failing units, South African landlords and facilities managers have to implement measures of their own to ensure energy security for their properties. There certainly appears to be no foreseeable end to the current load shedding, and facilities managers now have to factor in rolling blackouts as part of the daily management equation.

Innovative solutions such as active network sharing, tax incentives and new technology deployment can be the solution to achieving feasible rural connectivity in South Africa. Ordinarily, rolling out telecommunications network infrastructure is an expensive and arduous undertaking for both fixed and mobile phone companies.