Company News in Brief

Vision Group claims solution to save Tongaat Hulett is in sight

The Vision Group led by South African businessman Robert Gumede claims the consortium is “on the steps to a solution” to save JSE-listed (but suspended) financially-distressed Tongaat Hulett from liquidation.

However, Gumede told Moneyweb in an exclusive interview on Friday the solution requires both the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) and Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Parks Tau “to come to the party and find a lasting solution to Tongaat Hulett and not put a bandage on a cancer wound”.

Vision acquired Tongaat’s R11.7 billion in debt from the lender group in May 2025 to become the controlling creditor of Tongaat.

“If anyone is prepared to … offer us R12 billion for the business, we will not sell because we believe we are capable of turning this business around and we will be able to diversify it and make it a multi-billion-dollar business.

“We are not here for a quick buck,” he stressed.

-Moneyweb 

South Africa seeks new fuel suppliers

South Africa is seeking alternate suppliers of fuel as disruptions to imports from the Middle East pose the biggest threat to the nation from the war on Iran.

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government is in talks to find more supply options after the conflict reduced traffic from the critical Strait of Hormuz to a trickle, Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources Gwede Mantashe said at a conference in Cape Town on Monday.

“For refined products we rely on the Middle East,” he said, adding that disruption to fuel shipments are the “biggest threat” to the country.

South Africa has lost half its refining capacity in the past few years as plants closed because of accidents and a lack of investment.

Oman, Bahrain and United Arab Emirates are among South Africa’s top diesel suppliers as its share of imports grows.

-Bloomberg 

MTN Group announces R6 billion share buyback

MTN Group’s efforts to woo back investors by announcing an enhanced shareholder remuneration framework on Monday, including a R6 billion share buyback programme and a 45% uplift in the dividend, appears to have been positively received by investors.

The share price shot up 6.6% to R195,11 on the JSE on Monday morning. The share price has risen over 68% so far over 12 months.

The group, which attracted negative media attention recently because of an investment in an Iranian telecom company that it cannot sell, said at the release of 2025 financial results that shareholders would also benefit from a reaffirmation of medium-term earnings guidance, while return and debt leverage metrics were being updated.

The group said its work with communities, nation states, and other stakeholders had led to the achievement of its strongest reputation and trust scores since the launch of its Reputation Index Survey in 2019.

MTN operates in 16 markets, serving more than 307 million voice, 172 million data, and 70 million Mobile Money customers. The group invested R38 billion last year to enhance the capacity, coverage, and quality of networks and platforms.

-IOL Business Report