COMPANY NEWS IN BRIEF

Mondi finally eyes exit from RussiaJSE-listed packaging and paper producer Mondi said it had reached an agreement to sell its most significant facility in Russia, Mondi Syktyvkar, and two affiliated entities for about €775 million (about R15.7 billion).The group said on Monday both the Russian Federation’s Federal Anti-Monopoly Service and Government Sub-Commission for the Control of Foreign Investments approved the disposal to Sezar Invest, with funds to be paid in six instalments - the first to be made by the end of September. Once the first four instalments have been paid, expected to be at the end of December, the disposal will be complete, with the final two expected post-completion.Mondi announced in May 2022 that it planned to divest from Russia - which accounted for about a fifth of its core profit - a move which followed in the wake of that country's invasion of neighbour Ukraine.In August 2022, the group entered into an agreement to sell Mondi Syktyvkar and two affiliated assets for €1.2 billion (almost R25 billion) to Augment Investments. The sale included an integrated pulp, packaging paper, and uncoated fine paper mill located in Syktyvkar in the Komi Republic, which is about 1 000km northeast of Moscow.However, in June, the group announced that this sale had fallen through, citing a lack of progress in gaining necessary approvals.-Fin24Glencore risks missing investment deadlineGlencore is in negotiations with the South African government about a pledge to invest R6 billion in a Cape Town refinery, as the company is set to miss the deadline following an explosion that shut the plant for several years.The commodities-trading giant agreed when it bought the plant to make the investment in the facility within five years, a period that ends near the end of this month. South Africa has indicated discussions over the matter are ongoing, while Glencore said it remains committed to the investment. The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition "can confirm that it is in negotiations with Glencore and the two are on course to reach an agreement," it said by email, without specifying a timeline. "The department is confident that once an agreement is reached and signed, the committed funds will be spent accordingly." South Africa’s refining system has been plagued by underinvestment, with the nation losing about half of its oil-processing capacity in recent years. Plants have closed as cleaner fuel specifications loom, though fires and floods have also been a factor.Glencore and local partner Astron Energy "remain committed to spending R6 billion to upgrade the refinery and thereby supporting an ongoing refining industry in South Africa," the trader said in response to questions.-Fin24Gold Fields flags project delay in ChileGold Fields flagged a delay in production and higher costs for its Salares Norte project in Chile. The project, which commenced construction in February 2021, is currently 97% complete, the group said, but certain components of the plant require commissioning from the manufacturer of the equipment, and there has been challenges in securing the vendor's representatives.First gold from the project is still expected in the fourth quarter of 2023, but this has moved from the beginning to the latter part of the quarter, the group said, while the total project capital estimate has increased by US$20 million to (R380 million) due to this expected delay.The group said, however, that ramp-up of the project has been significantly de-risked, with mining activities having continued throughout the construction and commissioning phase resulting in 1.6 million ore tonnes and 380 000 ounces of gold stockpiled to date. Operational staff complements have been filled, with operational staff an integral part of the commissioning process as sections of the project are handed over.Valued at about R198 billion on the JSE Gold Fields has operating mines in South Africa, Australia, Ghana, and Peru, as well as project interests in Canada and Chile.At the end of June, the Salares Norte project was 94% complete, and 2024 production is expected to fall in a range of 400 000 to 430 000 ounces, previously 500 000. In 2022, the group produced almost 2.4 million ounces, 44% of this in Australia, 32% in Ghana, and 13% in South Africa.-Fin24Competition watchdog to probe J&JThe Competition Commission has launched an investigation into whether pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson (J&J) overcharged South Africa for lifesaving tuberculosis (TB) drug bedaquiline.Bedaquiline is used to treat drug-resistant TB and SA has one of the highest burdens of the infectious disease globally. The World Health Organisation has estimated that over 50 000 South Africans died of TB in 2021 alone. Professor Norbert Ndjeka, director of drug-resistant TB at the National Department of Health, said he understood the commission would compare the price SA paid for the drug with what other countries were charged. In a briefing organised by Doctors Without Borders SA on Thursday, Njeka said the SA government was paying J&J R5 400 per patient for a six-month course of the drug. South Africa recently concluded a new deal with Johnson & Johnson to pay R5 500 for a six-month regimen of the drug from 1 October. The new price would be valid for the next two years. Health advocates, however, have questioned why South Africa is paying about twice as much as other low- and middle-income countries.-Fin24SA Ponzi scheme MTI ordered to pay R32bnA South African Ponzi scheme has been ordered to pay US$1.7 billion (R32 billion) in restitution to thousands of victims in the US.A federal judge handed down the restitution order against Mirror Trading International (MTI), a bitcoin trading scheme, last week. The order described MTI as an "international fraudulent multilevel marketing scheme" that broke a host of US laws. The ruling was signed by representatives of MTI's liquidators in South Africa, who have been trying to track down thousands of missing bitcoin for the past two years. MTI, which was headquartered in Stellenbosch, collapsed in December 2020 after it abruptly halted payments to members. At the same time, its founder and CEO Johann Steynberg went missing. Steynberg was later tracked down and arrested in Brazil on an Interpol arrest warrant, where he is still awaiting an extradition hearing.-Fin24

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