Classic Business

Wayne McCurrie, portfolio manager, FNB Wealth and Investments & Devin Shutte, head of investments at the Robert Group

The Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan, which government shared with its business, labour and community partners at Thursday's National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) forum is supposed to form a critical part of the third phase response. But the response to the 17 page document which is scant on detail has been underwhelming. Michael Avery sits down with Lisa Seftel, executive director of the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac); Mathew Parks, parliamentary coordinator for Costau; and Thulani Thsefuta, community leader inside Nedlac, to find out whether social compacting is just pipe dream on the panel

Samantha Pokroy, founder & CEO of Sanari Capital

We are in the midst of the period of lowest confidence, trust and hope since World War 2. Michael Avery is reminded of Groucho Marx: Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies. With Covid, the ANC and the many authoritarian Marxist-longing leaders it has populated its cabinet with didn’t need to search for a problem. But without scaling up free testing and tracing, and without measures to protect the country’s poorest citizens from the inevitable hardships, the lockdown was always destined to lead us down a path from which no return was possible.The issue of corruption looms largest over all of this though. To loot from funds meant to protect healthcare workers and food parcels for the starving masses is on a scale that would have made even Jacob Zuma blush, what damage has this done to the ANC? Has the ANC’s corruption addiction tipped the scales? Bonang Mohale, chair of Bidvest Group & William Gumede, associate professor at the Wits University School of Governance and author of Restless Nation: Making Sense of Troubled Times, share some good, practical ideas to start rooting out public sector corruption.

Rob Pietropaolo, joint head of trading @Unum Capital

Patricia Pillay, CEO of the Beer Association of SA (Heineken, SAB and the craft brewers)

Moeketsi Marumo, associate director at Cova Advisory & Kay Walsh, MD at Nova Economics

Nesan Nair, senior portfolio manager at Sasfin Wealth & Imtiaz Suliman, executive director and portfolio manager @Sentio Capital

Total’s oil and gas rig has arrived in Cape Town in preparation to expand on the petroleum giant’s significant discovery off the coast of Mossel Bay. The rig, known as the DeepSea Stavanger, was built in Norway and commissioned by Total and its partners to drill the Luiperd prospect in the same block in the Outeniqua basin where Total’s Brulpadda discovery was made. Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe has welcomed the arrival of DeepSea Stavanger, saying in a statement that it has reaffirmed South Africa as an investment destination of choice for the exploration of oil and gas, despite the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on economies around the world. This as oil and gas companies are slashing spending as they reel from the effects of low prices amid the Covid-19 pandemic. But can promising projects in SA and Mozambique make the cut long term? The South African government published its long-anticipated draft oil and gas legislation on Christmas Eve, which feels like a lifetime ago thanks to Covid. It is hoped it will usher in a new era of exploration and production. To combat the country’s energy deficit, it must pave the way for the rapid development of substantial recent discoveries, including Total’s huge Brulpadda field last February, and prospects.

The attractiveness of South Africa’s terms will have ramifications far beyond its borders. Michael Avery discusses a game changing development for the oil and gas sector in South Africa with Stefano Marani, CEO Renergen, the only onshore Production Right holder;Lizel Oberholzer, director at Norton Rose Fulbright, who has been a leader in advancing the gas legislation in SA; Nick Mitchell, Chairman of the Onshore Petroleum Association of South Africa; & Marek Ranoszek, Asset Manager at Total E&P South Africa

Stuart Theobald, founder and chairman of Intellidex