Mozambique | Business and Economy News

[èđđeůx]

Interesting how large global mining companies are rushing into frontier markets, yet fail to totally account for the capital needed to create the infrastructure needed to transport and export the resources. Oh well, just a stumbling block.

[Kangaroo MZ]

Vale is doing a great job imo. I heard they will share the same infrastructure.

The proposal put forward by the group to transport coal along the Zambezi River was rejected by the Mozambican government and the Sena railroad, which links Tete to the port of Beira does not enough capacity to carry all the coal produced.

Good job! I don't like the idea of using the river to transport coal in barges either. Just think of negative environmental impact this could bring... accidents like fuel spills or other kind of accidents that would damage the biodiversity along the river.

[èđđeůx]

They didn't care, just looking to cut costs. Good thing the government rejected that idea.

[Paperyostrich]

Originally Posted by èđđeůx

They didn't care, just looking to cut costs. Good thing the government rejected that idea.

I think this goes to show that the government isn't all for the cheapest and fastest way of doing things, and actually cares for what it's governing

[Kangaroo MZ]

Originally Posted by Paperyostrich

I think this goes to show that the government isn't all for the cheapest and fastest way of doing things, and actually cares for what it's governing

let us say: only this time.

[Kangaroo MZ]

Mozambican farmers to benefit from funding from African Development Bank

FEBRUARY 7TH, 2013 NEWS
The African Development Bank (ADB) has granted Mozambique funding of US$21.4 million to be used for the Sustainable Land and Water Resources Management Project, following a credit agreement signed Wednesday in Maputo.

The project is intended to support four districts of Gaza province that are affected by changes in weather and that are cyclically affected by droughts and flooding. It is estimated that the project will benefit 20,000 farmers, half of which are women.

The ADB representative, Joseph Ribeiro, said that the project had been set up to minimise the effects and impact of climate change felt in Mozambican communities, as a result of irregular rain patterns.

Mozambique’s Minister for Planning and Development, Aiuba Cuereneia, said that the US$21.4 million was made up of US$3.2 million loan from ADB, a donation from the Climate Investment Fund and funding of US$2.2 million from the Mozambican government.

Mozambican news agency AIM said that the project was coordinated by the National Directorate for Agrarian Services of the Agriculture Ministry and its execution will be the responsibility of the Provincial Agricultural Services Directorate in Gaza province. (macauhub)

macauhub

[Kangaroo MZ]

Rio Tinto group will find solution to logistics problems in Mozambique, minister says

FEBRUARY 8TH, 2013 NEWS
Anglo-Australian group Rio Tinto will be able to find a logistics solution to allow it to export the coal mined in Tete province, Mozambique’s Mining Resources Minister Esperança Bias said in Cape Town.

Following a valuation of its assets in Mozambique the group recently announced a write down of US$3 billion, which along with write downs related to the acquisition of bauxite assets in Canada, led to chief executive Tome Albanese stepping down.

On the sidelines of the Indaba Mining conference, held in Cape Town, the minister played down news that the group may sell its assets in Mozambique due to difficulties transporting its coal production.

“Naturally we are concerned, but if we look at the problems faced by Rio Tinto we can see they are not exclusive to Mozambique and we believe that a solution can be found”, said Bias.

At the same international conference, Alan Davies, the president of the group’s diamond and mining division said the Rio Tinto group was in talks with the Mozambican government whilst seeking an alternative logistics solution to transport coal mined in Tete province.

Davies also said that the group’s priority was to find a solution that was agreeable to both sides so that exploration of the asset could begin. (macauhub)

I can see they still want to use the river.

[Kangaroo MZ]

Portugal’s Sotecnisol enters Mozambican market in partnership with Entreposto group

FEBRUARY 8TH, 2013 NEWS
Sotecnisol, a Portuguese company operating in the construction, environmental and energy sectors, plans to increase its international presence by entering the Mozambican market in partnership with the Entreposto group, the Portuguese press reported.

The company’s entry into Mozambique will be by setting up Sotecnisol-Entreposto, a Mozambican company, owned 50/50 by Soctecnisol and the Entreposto group.

Mozambique will be the Portuguese company’s sixth international market and its third African market, as the company already operates in Algeria, Angola, Spain, Italy and Brazil.

International markets account for 10 percent of the company’s turnover, Sotecnisol said in a statement, adding that the company hopes to increase that to 30 percent in the short term. (macauhub)

...

[Kangaroo MZ]

Railroad from Tete to Nacala in Mozambique ready in second half of 2014

FEBRUARY 8TH, 2013 NEWS
Vale Moçambique, a subsidiary of Brazilian mining group Vale, Wednesday signed a cooperation agreement with Mozambican state rail and port manager Portos e Caminhos de Ferro de Moçambique to build the Nacala logistics corridor, Mozambican newspaper O País reported.

The company’s director for logistics, Ricardo Saad, said this would be Vale’s biggest logistics project in Africa, and that the project was expected to solve the issues of transporting natural resources, particularly coal.

Saad also said that the project was complex, but added that the company planned to finish construction of the railroad by the second half of 2014.

The Vale representative said that the company’s aim was to make the coal business in Mozambique viable, and that trains should start running by the second half of next year. (macauhub)

macauhub

[Kangaroo MZ]

Swedish group G & L Beijer buys remaining capital of Mozambique’s Metraclark

FEBRUARY 7TH, 2013 NEWS
Swedish group G & L Beijer AB has bought the remaining capital of Mozambican company Metraclark Lda, exercising an option included in the partnership agreement signed with Mozambican company Logos Indústrias, the group said in a statement issued in Malmo.

The group started operating in Mozambique in November 2011 via its South African subsidiary, Metraclark, by setting up Metraclark Lda, in which it had a 40 percent stake and Logos Indústrias the remaining 60 percent.

Metraclark Lda’s business in 2012 provided turnover of 20 million Swedish kroner (US$31.5 million) and the group said that from now on, as it controls 100 percent of the company, additional resources will be earmarked to expand the business in Mozambique.

In Southern Africa the group is present in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Mozambique and sells what on its website it calls “competitive solutions for refrigeration and air conditioning”. (macauhub)

...

[Kangaroo MZ]

Construction of Ncondezi Coal thermal power plant in Mozambique due to begin in March 2015

FEBRUARY 7TH, 2013 NEWS
Work to build a coal-fired power plant owned by mining company Ncondezi Coal in the northern region of the Moatize district, in Mozambique’s Tete province, is due to begin in March 2015, said the company’s managing director, David Eshmade.

Speaking to daily newspaper Notícias, Eshmade also said that the power plant would be built near the mine and approximately 95 kilometres from the national grid’s power transmission line leading from the Cahora Bassa Hydroelectric Dam.

The Ncondezi Coal Company owns 100 percent of the 804L and 805L licenses known as the Ncondezi Project, in the Moatize district, and the project has estimated resources of 4.7 billion tons of coal.

The Ncondezi Coal Company mine is located around 25 kilometres from the Sena railroad, which ends at the town of Moatize, and two types of thermal coal will be mined there that are considered to be ideal for Asian markets and are comparable to international benchmark types of coal, such as Newcastle high ash Australian coal and Shanxi blended coal from China.

Eshmade said that the company was considering four routes for exporting its coal production, with a short term strategy focused on gaining access to the two existing railway corridors to the ports of Beira and Nacala to meet the needs of the first stage of production.

As a long term option, Eshmade said there was a possibility of a new rail and port project, and that an agreement had already been made with the Rio Tinto group, which is carrying out studies for this project in order to transport the coal mined in Tete province.

mhnews

[Kangaroo MZ]

Mozambique’s Minister for Industry and Trade visits Austria to attract investment

FEBRUARY 6TH, 2013 NEWS
Mozambique’s Minister for Industry and Trade, Armando Indroga is due to travel to Vienna, Austria from 19 to 22 February to promote Mozambique as an investment destination, a government source told Macauhub in Maputo.

According to the source, the minister will travel to Austria to take part in a business meeting between businesspeople from both countries.

The business forum is intended to attract Austrian businesspeople to investment opportunities in Mozambique and to set up partnerships between companies from both countries in the areas of energy (renewables and hydroelectric), infrastructure (airports, railways and ports), agriculture (agro-processing and forestry) and tourism.

Economic and business relations between the two countries are still incipient as Austria is not one of the top ten investors in Mozambique. These top ten spots are usually taken up by countries such as Portugal, South Africa, China, the United States and Australia. (macauhub)

http://www.macauhub.com.mo/en/2013/0...ct-investment/

Refurbishment work begins on MCM-Indústrias, formerly Mozambican textile company Riopele Têxteis

FEBRUARY 6TH, 2013 NEWS
The new owners of the former Riopele Têxteis textile factory, located in the Marracuene district of Maputo province, have started work to refurbish the unit that has been at a standstill for around nine years, according to Mozambican newspaper Notícias.

A consortium made up of Mozambican group Intelec Holdings and by Portuguese companies Crispim Abreu, Mundifios and MundoTêxtil, in October 2012 signed a contract in Maputo to buy the Riopele Moçambique factory, which until then had been owned by State stake-holding company Instituto de Gestão das Participações do Estado (Igepe).

The chairman of Igepe, Apolinário Pelembe, said at the time that the acquisition of Riopele Moçambique by the consortium was a “brave move,” as the factory had been closed for a long time.

Also according to Notícias, the factory, work on which is currently focusing on the building itself so that equipment can be installed later, is scheduled to start operating in 2014 and its work will focus on spinning cotton to produce fabrics .

Now known as MCM – Indústrias, the company is expected to employ around 150 people, most of which will be Mozambicans living in the Marracuene area. (macauhub)

http://www.macauhub.com.mo/en/2013/0...opele-texteis/

[Kangaroo MZ]

Lugela district in Mozambique to re-launch tea production

FEBRUARY 5TH, 2013 NEWS
Private investors interested in re-launching the tea production company in the Lugela district of Mozambique’s Zambézia province, have signed a contract with the provincial government, according to a report in Mozambican newspaper Notícias.

Citing a source from the provincial government, the newspaper added that a survey was underway to establish the number of families that live in the 4,300 hectare area that belongs to the tea factory.

Although it is considered to be strategic for the Mozambican economy, the tea sector is facing a period of weak public and private investment, aging of plants and low productivity.

Recent studies show that in Zambézia’s case, the province where the most tea is produced, of over 30,000 hectares earmarked to grow tea, just 10,000 were being explored.

A source from the provincial government said he still believed that the Lugela unit could create more jobs, and that it would also contribute to improving the quality of life of the surrounding population as well as increasing the tax revenues needed to develop the region.

After Gurué, Lugela is the region with the biggest potential for growing tea in Mozambique. (macauhub)

http://www.macauhub.com.mo/en/2013/0...ea-production/

[Kangaroo MZ]

Mozambican government approves loan from Brazil to build dam

FEBRUARY 6TH, 2013 NEWS
The Mozambican government has ratified a credit convention signed with Brazil, worth US$8.5 million, to finance studies for construction of the Moamba Major dam, in Maputo province, southern Mozambique, said the spokesman for the Council of Ministers, Alberto Nkutumula.

According to daily newspaper Notícias, the spokesman, who is also the deputy justice minister, noted that building the dam, on the Incomáti River, is intended to improve the water supply and irrigation in Greater Maputo.

Nkutumula noted that the start of construction of the dam will depend on the results of the environmental impact study and said that the loan offered by Brazil had to be used by 22 March 2013.

“Once it is established that the project is feasible, we have to think about the issue of funding for construction of the dam”, said the spokesman. (macauhub)

...

[Kangaroo MZ]

http://sptec-advisory.com/SPTEC_Advi...atural_Gas.pdf

I suggest that one Pretty interesting piece. really

[Kangaroo MZ]

Mozambique awards two coal rail contracts

Written by John Batwell

MOZAMBIQUE Ports and Railway (CFM) has signed an agreement with Vale to upgrade the Nacala corridor, and a track access agreement with Beacon Hill Resources to operate coal trains along the Sena line between Moatize mine in Tete province and the port of Beira.

The Vale deal entails upgrading the line from the Malawi border to Nacala, and building a rail link to a new coal terminal at Nacala-a-Velha. The project also involves upgrading the existing line from the border to Nkaya in Malawi, and building a new 210km line from there to Malawi's western border with Mozambique where it will connect with the line to the Moatize coalfield. Mr Ricardo Saad, a director of Vale Mozambique, says he hopes the project will be completed by the second half of 2014.

Beacon Hill Resources' deal will enable it to transport up to 500,000 tonnes per year of coal on the Sena line. Thelo Rolling Stock, South Africa, will lease rolling stock to the company for 10 years. Operations are due to start in April with two rakes of 42 wagons, each hauled by a single locomotive. This will eventually be increased to five rakes of 90 wagons.

Mozambique plans to launch a tender soon for the construction of a 525km $US 2bn railway from Tete province to a new port under construction at Macuse northeast of Quelimane. The port will be able to handle 20 million tonnes of export coal a year.

CFM plans to invest $US 12bn in rail and port projects during the next five years to facilitate the export of 120 million tonnes of coal annually. CFM also wants to see the creation of an independent organisation which would determine a pricing structure for rail operators, with access to the rail network controlled by a government agency.

railjournal

[Rain Drops]

GDP norminal
$14.64 billion (2012 est.)

7.5% (2012 est.)

GDP PPP

$26.22 billion (2012 est.)


GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 31.8%

industry: 24.6%

services: 43.6% (2012 est.)

If you start pumping that gas, it will be growing over 20% in my opinion for a while. Very nice.