Observer Money

CHAMWE KAIRA Canadian firm, Reconnaissance Energy Africa (ReconAfrica) has announced an agreement for a joint exploration project in Angola with the Agência Nacional de Petróleo, Gás e Biocombustíveis or National Oil, Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANPG).  ReconAfrica said it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ANPG for a joint exploration project in the Etosha-Okavango basin, located onshore in southeastern Angola. ANPG is Angola’s national concessionaire and regulator.  The agreement is a strategic addition to the company’s asset portfolio, which creates an opportunity for early entry into onshore Angola at a low cost, with minimal work commitments. It…

CHAMWE KAIRA Deep Yellow managing director and CEO, John Borshoff has said the uranium market is at an extraordinary stage in the uranium supply sector. He said the market has a situation where the long-term uranium market is essentially broken. This is due to more than a decade of sector inactivity, persistently depressed uranium prices, and utility offtake contracting practices which are yet to support the development of greenfields uranium production, Borshoff said. He said although the Tumas project in the Erongo Region is economic at current long-term uranium prices, these prices do not reflect or support the enormous amount…

Niël Terblanché NamWater confirmed that repair work on the burst section of the Von Bach–Windhoek transfer pipeline was completed in the early hours of Thursday morning. According to Lot Ndamanomhata, the spokesperson of NamWater, the repair was finalised around 05:00, after which a controlled refilling of the pipeline commenced. "The outflow from Booster 2 to the Windhoek Terminal Reservoir has now been steadily ramped up to 600 cubic metres per hour, with an outlet pressure of 63 metres," he said in a statement. He added that this cautious approach, the utility added, is necessary to maintain system stability and avoid…

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…