-
Table Mountain Cableway: Visitors get stuck amid power cuts
Local -
Rand weaker as power cuts weigh on sentiment
Business -
Load shedding: Ramaphosa to visit Egypt while Eskom crisis deepens
Local -
Petra Diamonds halts SA operations over power cuts
Business -
Prasa administrator Bongisizwe Mpondo ready to make tough decisions
Business -
‘Our cars were gone’: Holidaymakers recall Centurion floods
Local
-
Table Mountain Cableway: Visitors get stuck amid power cuts
Local -
Rand weaker as power cuts weigh on sentiment
Business -
Load shedding: Ramaphosa to visit Egypt while Eskom crisis deepens
Local -
Petra Diamonds halts SA operations over power cuts
Business -
Prasa administrator Bongisizwe Mpondo ready to make tough decisions
Business -
‘Our cars were gone’: Holidaymakers recall Centurion floods
Local -
Archbishop emeritus Desmond Tutu discharged from hospital
Local -
Minister Mchunu announces massive cuts to ministers' perks
Local -
Eskom takes it up two notches and announces stage 6 load shedding
Local
-
OMRY MAKGOALE: The impact of slates and factions on the ANC and SA
Opinion -
'Pay back the money': ANC calls for charges against DA & former MMC
Politics -
ANC stalwart Ben Turok dies
Politics -
SACP congress to assess progress on implementation of resolutions
Politics -
Maimane on a path that could change the face of politics
Politics -
DA: Placing Tshwane under administration ANC’s plan to access City’s fiscus
Local -
Tshwane ANC to challenge court ruling on Mokgalapa, Mathebe ousting
Politics -
Newcastle mayor defends decision to fire over 200 workers
Local -
Magashule’s office was used to source funds from businesses, inquiry told
Politics
-
CYRIL RAMAPHOSA: Eskom, SAA, Prasa - we'll do what we must to save them
Opinion -
HAJI MOHAMED DAWJEE: From IT to the arts in the workplace
Opinion -
JUDITH FEBRUARY: The gentleman’s game has been turned into one of dysfunction
Opinion -
OPINION: Jailing gay people should qualify Zambia as an apartheid state
Opinion -
ANALYSIS: Sex education raises questions about the role of the state in SA
Opinion -
ADRIAN EPHRAIM: Mistrust between CSA and media is the last thing cricket needs
Opinion -
Rand flat ahead of GDP figures
Business -
JUDITH FEBRUARY: The farce that is the CSA & the lessons from rugby
Opinion -
CYRIL RAMAPHOSA: Water security is critical to our economy
Opinion
-
Petra Diamonds halts SA operations over power cuts
Business -
Prasa administrator Bongisizwe Mpondo ready to make tough decisions
Business -
Minister Mchunu announces massive cuts to ministers' perks
Local -
Governments struggle to turn around loss-making airlines in Africa
Business -
Mbalula: Placing Prasa under administration will get it back on track
Local -
Eskom: Load shedding could be around for two more years
Business -
Prasa placed under administration
Business -
Rand weak; focus on global cues ahead of U.S. tariff deadline
Business -
Dark Monday: From stage 2 to stage 4 load shedding
Business
-
Boy oh boy! Twin male pandas charm Berlin zoo
Lifestyle -
15 beaches in the Cape where lost children will easily be reunited with parents
Lifestyle -
'Sesame Street' legend Caroll Spinney dies aged 85
Lifestyle -
GALLERY: Zozibini Tunzi wins Miss Universe
Local -
'Frozen 2' remains victorious, 'Playmobil' bombs
Lifestyle -
SA’s Zozibini Tunzi crowned Miss Universe
Local -
Jennifer Lopez: I'm living my childhood dream
Lifestyle -
John Legend: I don't know what virtue signalling is
Lifestyle -
Sam Smith: 'Music industry is homophobic'
Lifestyle
-
Russia banned from Olympics for four years over doping scandal - TASS
Sport -
Chippa United coach Mapeza sees positive results at training
Sport -
Du Plessis: Focus must be on England series
Sport -
Joshua says had health issue before first Ruiz fight
Sport -
Kohli asks butterfingers India to get a grip on catching woes
Sport -
Only natural for Leicester to be overlooked, says Rodgers
Sport -
Safa no longer bidding for 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup
Sport -
Paarl Rocks secure MSL home final following win over NMB Giants
Sport -
Jones holds off charging Oosthuizen to win Australian Open
Sport
CARTOON: The Battle for Joburg
-
CARTOON: If it Looks, Walks and Quacks Like a Duck...
Sport -
CARTOON: Court shooting!
Politics -
CARTOON: Flight Risk
Local -
CARTOON: Siya In The Future
Sport -
CARTOON: Eskom's New Package
Politics -
CARTOON: Grounded in Logic?
Business -
CARTOON: Big Push for Tutu!
Sport -
CARTOON: Ministry of Good Sportsmanship
Sport -
CARTOON: On Top of the World
Sport
- Mon
- 19°C
- 13°C
- Tue
- 16°C
- 12°C
- Wed
- 22°C
- 13°C
- Thu
- 24°C
- 12°C
- Fri
- 22°C
- 13°C
- Sat
- 24°C
- 13°C
- Mon
- 27°C
- 16°C
- Tue
- 26°C
- 15°C
- Wed
- 24°C
- 15°C
- Thu
- 26°C
- 17°C
- Fri
- 24°C
- 17°C
- Sat
- 21°C
- 13°C
- Mon
- 18°C
- 15°C
- Tue
- 18°C
- 14°C
- Wed
- 24°C
- 14°C
- Thu
- 25°C
- 14°C
- Fri
- 24°C
- 15°C
- Sat
- 25°C
- 14°C
- Mon
- 21°C
- 14°C
- Tue
- 19°C
- 13°C
- Wed
- 23°C
- 13°C
- Thu
- 25°C
- 13°C
- Fri
- 23°C
- 13°C
- Sat
- 26°C
- 14°C
- Mon
- 21°C
- 18°C
- Tue
- 22°C
- 18°C
- Wed
- 21°C
- 18°C
- Thu
- 22°C
- 19°C
- Fri
- 23°C
- 18°C
- Sat
- 26°C
- 18°C
- Mon
- 21°C
- 16°C
- Tue
- 22°C
- 16°C
- Wed
- 22°C
- 16°C
- Thu
- 22°C
- 16°C
- Fri
- 24°C
- 16°C
- Sat
- 23°C
- 18°C
- Mon
- 32°C
- 15°C
- Tue
- 31°C
- 16°C
- Wed
- 30°C
- 17°C
- Thu
- 32°C
- 18°C
- Fri
- 31°C
- 18°C
- Sat
- 22°C
- 12°C
- Mon
- 27°C
- 16°C
- Tue
- 27°C
- 15°C
- Wed
- 26°C
- 17°C
- Thu
- 28°C
- 17°C
- Fri
- 23°C
- 18°C
- Sat
- 21°C
- 12°C
- Mon
- 20°C
- 17°C
- Tue
- 20°C
- 15°C
- Wed
- 26°C
- 15°C
- Thu
- 28°C
- 14°C
- Fri
- 25°C
- 16°C
- Sat
- 27°C
- 15°C
- Mon
- 27°C
- 14°C
- Tue
- 22°C
- 13°C
- Wed
- 24°C
- 13°C
- Thu
- 26°C
- 11°C
- Fri
- 25°C
- 13°C
- Sat
- 29°C
- 15°C
- Mon
- 19°C
- 15°C
- Tue
- 18°C
- 15°C
- Wed
- 25°C
- 15°C
- Thu
- 24°C
- 15°C
- Fri
- 20°C
- 15°C
- Sat
- 25°C
- 14°C
- Mon
- 21°C
- 13°C
- Tue
- 22°C
- 12°C
- Wed
- 23°C
- 15°C
- Thu
- 24°C
- 16°C
- Fri
- 27°C
- 17°C
- Sat
- 23°C
- 15°C
ANALYSIS: Lonmin buys time, but platinum is bigger problem
Lonmin is still on life support despite its $407 million rights issue.
The South African platinum miner announced a fundraising at an eye-popping 94% discount on 10 November. Even if approved by shareholders, it won't solve the bigger problems Lonmin faces, like low prices for the metal on which its fortune hangs.
As well as raising cash at a nominal share price of just one pence, Lonmin has got its banks to push its lending facilities out from 2016 to 2020, at a lower level of $370 million.
It will now be able to carry out a business plan through to 2018, which includes completing up to 6,000 job cuts - out of a total workforce of 38,000 - and reducing output from its mines.
Lonmin has been battered by a 27% decline in the price of platinum since January, which has wiped around 90% off the company's share price and contributed to a $1.8 billion writedown on its assets.
The trouble is that the highly unionised South African mining sector makes it hard to cut uneconomic production fast enough to offset falling prices.
Arguably, Lonmin investors are as much at risk from the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union - which represents around two-thirds of its staff in the Marikana mines - as they are from the company's creditors.
Strikes in 2012 turned into a bloody massacre; further labour action paralysed South Africa's Rustenburg platinum belt for five months last year.
The rights issue is dramatic but it may not be enough. Barclays believes the company needs to raise over $500 million to cover the cost of reducing production by 300,000 ounces and other restructuring charges.
Although the company says it has stress-tested its current plan, which will see output fall to around 650,000 ounces, another rights issue in 2018 cannot be ruled out unless platinum prices improve significantly.
For a longer-term recovery that would restore value to Lonmin's shareholders, prices may have to recover by up to 50%.
Investors following their rights are effectively betting this will happen. If it doesn't, they will have to dig deep again before long.
Andy Critchlow is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist.
More in Business
-
Rand weaker as power cuts weigh on sentiment
0 minutes ago -
Petra Diamonds halts SA operations over power cuts
17 minutes ago -
Prasa administrator Bongisizwe Mpondo ready to make tough decisions
0 minutes ago -
Minister Mchunu announces massive cuts to ministers' perks
0 minutes ago -
Governments struggle to turn around loss-making airlines in Africa
0 minutes ago -
Mbalula: Placing Prasa under administration will get it back on track
24 minutes ago
Choose an EWN Twitter account
Follow @ewnreporterFollow @ewnupdates
Follow @ewnsport
Follow @ewntraffic
Comments
EWN welcomes all comments that are constructive, contribute to discussions in a meaningful manner and take stories forward.
comments powered by DisqusHowever, we will NOT condone the following:
- Racism (including offensive comments based on ethnicity and nationality)
- Sexism
- Homophobia
- Religious intolerance
- Cyber bullying
- Hate speech
- Derogatory language
- Comments inciting violence.
We ask that your comments remain relevant to the articles they appear on and do not include general banter or conversation as this dilutes the effectiveness of the comments section.
We strive to make the EWN community a safe and welcoming space for all.
EWN reserves the right to: 1) remove any comments that do not follow the above guidelines; and, 2) ban users who repeatedly infringe the rules.
Should you find any comments upsetting or offensive you can also flag them and we will assess it against our guidelines.
EWN is constantly reviewing its comments policy in order to create an environment conducive to constructive conversations.