Observer Money

Niël Terblanché The National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (NAMCOR), in collaboration with its joint venture partners, has confirmed the discovery of light crude oil at the Capricornus 1-X exploration well, located offshore in Block 2914 within the Orange Basin. The operator of Petroleum Exploration Licence 85 (PEL 85), Rhino Resources, announced the conclusion of a drilling campaign conducted with the Noble Venturer drillship. The well, which was spudded on 17 February and reached total depth on 2 April, encountered 38 metres of net hydrocarbon pay within its primary Lower Cretaceous target. Notably, no water contact was observed in the reservoir,…

The South African Minister of Finance will shortly introduce the Rates and Monetary Amounts and the Amendment of Revenue Laws Bill (Rates Bill), which proposes to maintain the Value-Added Tax (VAT) rate at 15% from 1 May 2025, instead of the proposed increase to VAT announced in the Budget in March.    The decision to forgo the increase follows extensive consultations with political parties, and careful consideration of the recommendations of the parliamentary committees.  By not increasing VAT, estimated revenue will fall short by around R75 billion over the medium term.   As a result, the Minister of Finance has written to the…

CHAMWE KAIRA  The strategy of PPS Insurance Namibia continues to be the introduction of new products, services and solutions. “That is why our Namibian members benefitted from the introduction of a retirement annuity product in 2024,” said Izak Smit, PPS Group CEO. The company is the provider of financial solutions exclusively for graduate professionals. “We are pleased with our performance, which was supported by our robust strategy. Our priority as a company operating under the ethos of mutuality is to support our members by paying all valid claims. Thereafter, we share our success with our members by allocating operational and…

CHAMWE KAIRA  The Langer Heinrich Mine produced 745 484 pounds of uranium oxide during the quarter ending 31 March, a 17% increase on the previous quarter’s production, totalling over two million pounds’ production for the financial year to date. The mine is owned by Paladin Energy. Paladin Energy CEO Ian Purdy said the one-in-fifty-year rainfall event at the mine and surrounding areas in March caused the suspension of operations, saturation of the stockpiles and impacts on the processing plant chemistry.  Additionally, flooding in the pit identified for early commencement of mining, along with delays in the delivery and mobilisation of…

CHAMWE KAIRA  Namibia produced 631 584 carats of rough diamonds in the first quarter ended 31 March 2025, Anglo American, which owns De Beers, said. De Beers jointly owns several diamond production and processing companies with the Namibian government. Production figures indicated that Debmarine Namibia produced 461 395 carats, while Namdeb (land operations) produced 170 189 carats. Namibia produced 584 000 rough diamonds in the fourth quarter of 2024. Rough diamond production in the third quarter of 2024 was 456 000 carats, while in the second quarter of 2024 it was 561 000 carats and 633 000 carats in the…

Niël Terblanché Namibia’s path to becoming a regional energy powerhouse will remain firmly grounded in national values, long-term planning, and partnerships that prioritise local development. This was the message delivered by Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare, speaking on behalf of President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, at the official opening of the Namibia International Energy Conference in Windhoek on Wednesday. “Namibia is on the path to becoming a leading energy hub, not just in ambition, but in action. This transformation is deliberate, self-directed, and grounded in who we are,” Ngurare declared. Ngurare stressed the government’s strategy of building inclusive, sustainable growth through the responsible…

CHAMWE KAIRA  Pension fund PPS South Africa has said its members in Namibia should again be pleased with the profits that were generated for them. This year, the company allocated a record-high N5.59 billion in profit share to South African and Namibian members with qualifying life-risk products to their notional PPS profit-share accounts. This amount follows the previous record-high allocation of N5.46 billion in 2021. Additionally, the annual gross benefits paid were N$5.95 billion (2023: N$6.12 billion; due to lower exit claims payment). Together, these amounts totalled N$11.54 billion in 2024, compared to N$10.70 billion in 2023. “From a membership…

The Cleanergy Solutions Namibia, a joint venture between the Ohlthaver & List (O&L) Group and CMB.TECH is developing a green hydrogen production plant in the Erongo region. The Hydrogen Dune comprises hydrogen production, a refuelling station and the hydrogen academy.  Katrien Hennin of CMB.TECH gives an update in response to questions by Observer Money.  Observer Money (OM): Will the hydrogen refuelling that is expected to be operational be reserved for trucks under Cleanergy Solutions Namibia or are they for the whole Namibian market? Katrien Hennin (KH): The green hydrogen refuelling station expected to be operational mid 2025 will not be…