Maravi

(TALKZIMBABWE, BLOOMBERG) Tongaat Hulett to invest US$19m in Zim

Tongaat Hulett to invest US$19m in Zim
Tendai Maringise/Bloomberg
Mon, 03 Aug 2009 18:22:00 +0000

TONGAAT Hulett Ltd., the sugar company part-owned by Anglo American Plc, plans to invest 150 million rand ($19 million) in Zimbabwe after the formation of the inclusive Government has improved the socio-political environment in the country.

It’s “night to day when we compare what has been happening this year in Zimbabwe to the last 10 years,” Peter Staude, chief executive officer of the Tongaat, South Africa-based company, told Bloomberg in a phone interview.

The sugar producer will make the investment over three years to help meet a goal of doubling its output of the sweetener in Zimbabwe, he said.

Tongaat, South Africa’s second-biggest sugar company, will produce about 298,000 metric tons of the sweetener in Zimbabwe this year, Staude said. That equates to about half of installed capacity of 600,000 tons, according to the CEO. Zimbabwe is among African countries that qualify for preferential access to the European Union at premium prices, he said.

Profit Jumps

The sugar company also reported a ninefold surge in first- half profit after including its Zimbabwean activities in results. Net income jumped to 2.42 billion rand from 266 million rand a year earlier, Tongaat said today in a stock-exchange statement. Sales gained 24 percent to 3.85 billion rand.

“Increased emphasis on renewable energy” will buoy international sugar prices, while shortages of land and water will also help support prices, said Staude.

Tongaat was unchanged at 98.50 rand in Johannesburg trading. The stock has jumped 55 percent this year, increasing the company’s market value to 10.2 billion rand. That’s almost equal to Illovo Sugar Ltd., the biggest South African sugar producer.

Labels: ANGLO-AMERICAN, TONGAAT HULETT LTD

posted by MrK @ 5:52 PM