Irma Venter
Irma Venter is a Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor for Engineering News and Mining Weekly.
Cape Town declares dispute over ‘unconstitutional’ District Development Model regulations
29th November 2024 Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis says the city has declared a formal intergovernmental dispute owing to what it calls the “unconstitutional and... →
EPWP open to abuse, must be reformed – Macpherson
1st November 2024 The Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) has become open to abuse, says Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Dean Macpherson, despite it... →
Rail masterplan to be finalised by October next year – DoT chief director
10th October 2024 The Department of Transport (DoT) aims to have the interim National Rail Masterplan (NRMP) ready by February next year, says DoT chief director... →
Construction begins on Cape Town solar PV plant, battery storage tender released
8th October 2024 The City of Cape Town (CoCT) has started construction on a R200-million, 7 MW solar PV plant, located in Atlantis, with the first electricity to be... →
Eskom’s proposed tariff hikes untenable; reduction mechanisms being weighed – Ramokgopa
3rd October 2024 Electricity and Energy Minister Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa is confident that government will be able to positively intervene on Eskom’s tariff-hike... →
Cape Town to wrap up desalination plant feasibility study in 2025, first water possible in 2030
25th September 2024 The City of Cape Town (CoCT) has started the feasibility study on the proposed Paarden Island desalination plant, says CoCT Water and Sanitation... →
East London port gets two new tugs, TNPA wraps up fleet renewal programme
10th September 2024 The Port of East London has taken ownership of two new tugboats, marking the end of the Transnet National Ports Authority’s (TNPA’s) R1-billion... →
Macpherson signs two declarations of intent with Chinese groups
6th September 2024 Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson concluded his visit to China this week by signing two declarations of intent with the... →
PRASA welcomes 15-year sentence handed down to former engineering head
4th September 2024 The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) says it welcomes the 15-year prison sentence handed down this week to Daniel Mthimkhulu, the... →
NDB signs R5bn loan agreement with Transnet
30th August 2024 The New Development Bank (NDB) on Friday signed a R5-billion loan agreement with State-owned freight transport and logistics group Transnet. The... →
Developed-country debt draining international market liquidity – NDB president
30th August 2024 Enacting the just transition in emerging markets and developing countries (EMDCs) requires “a huge amount of resources and long-term financing”,... →
Cape Town launches live tracking of water, sanitation snags
20th August 2024 Cape Town has unveiled a new pump station control room, which digitally tracks the live performance of water and sanitation infrastructure.... →
Cape Town to launch constitutional challenge if Public Procurement Bill is gazetted
12th August 2024 Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has urged President Cyril Ramaphosa not to gazette the new Public Procurement Bill into law, as the city... →
Govt continues to drag its feet on fuel-price review – Misa
5th July 2024 The former Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has failed to review South Africa’s fuel-pricing methodology since the process to do... →
Steady hand needed as seventh Transport Minister appointed in 15 years – AA, Outa
1st July 2024 Newly appointed Transport Minister Barbara Creecy is the eleventh minister in this portfolio since 1994, which is a cause for concern as continuity... →
As municipal debt programme falters, Eskom CFO calls for mechanism to ensure the utility gets paid
22nd May 2024 Municipal debt remains one of Eskom’s biggest challenges, says Eskom CFO Calib Cassim. “At the end of March, we were sitting at around R75-billion... →
More than 430 Cape Town households apply to sell their excess power
9th May 2024 A total of 432 Cape Town households have applied to earn cash from selling their excess solar power to the city. These applications will now be... →
PRASA restores five more rail corridors partially
4th April 2024 The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) says it has restored another five Metrorail corridors across Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the... →
Govt turns to private sector to fix public sector facilities
19th March 2024 Given the current economic downturn, government does not have the resources to look after all of its assets, says Department of Public Works and... →
New online portal launched to aid Cape Town’s solar PV boom
13th March 2024 The City of Cape Town has launched a new online application portal for solar photovoltaic (PV) installations. More than 5 000 solar PV systems have... →
Global unrest fuelling shipping costs, consumers to feel it within a year – Unctad
23rd February 2024 The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) estimates that transits passing through the Suez Canal have decreased by 42%... →
Fuel price hike will impact consumers and the road freight industry – RFA
16th February 2024 Fuel is rapidly crossing the 50% mark as a share of daily road transport operating costs, depending on the type of transport operation, with rising... →
Cape Town to invest R43bn in infrastructure in the next three years – mayor
14th February 2024 Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis says the city will invest R43-billion in infrastructure over the next three years. The ten-year project pipeline... →
Households can now apply to sell their excess solar power to the City of Cape Town
12th February 2024 The City of Cape Town is now enabling households to earn cash for the power generated from their solar photovoltaic generation systems. Mayor... →
Study shows SA has the most lenient road rules out of 17 countries
17th January 2024 South Africa has been ranked as the country with the most lenient road rules in a new study that compares 17 nations across the globe. This study... →
Sanral to issue 70 tenders in ‘the next couple of weeks’
12th January 2024 The South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) says it will issue at least 70 tenders “in the next couple of weeks”. In terms of the... →
Cape Town calls for deadline on private sector port involvement
12th January 2024 The City of Cape Town says it wants a “clear deadline” from Transnet and national government on private sector involvement in the Port of Cape... →
Richards Bay Port says it ‘may’ halt trucks carrying cargo to the port; RFA outraged
17th November 2023 Richards Bay Transnet Port Terminals (RCB TPT) says it “may” suspend the processing of trucks bringing cargo into its terminals by road. Only... →
Cape Town to roll out a number of technologies to combat crime
28th July 2023 The City of Cape Town will this year introduce a number of new technologies to combat crime. Some of these technologies may be familiar, such as... →
Only approved inverters to be accepted from October, warns City of Cape Town
25th July 2023 The City of Cape Town has announced that all solar photovoltaic (PV) and/or battery systems connected to the wiring of a building must be... →
Cape Town secures €100-million in infrastructure finance
21st June 2023 The City of Cape Town has secured €100-million in developmental finance, with Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis signing the loan agreement with... →
Mantashe affirms commitment to coal as Greenpeace disrupts his Indaba speech
7th March 2023 Greenpeace Africa on Tuesday disrupted Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Gwede Mantashe’s opening speech at the Africa Energy Indaba in Cape... →
Public sector capacity building vital in countering chronic underspending
27th February 2023 The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) has, through its entity the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB), prioritised... →
Why is e-tolls debt so high, asks Outa
25th November 2022 The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) says it would like to know how the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) debt escalated to the... →
Calls for petrol price deregulation display lack of knowledge – FRA
17th June 2022 Increasing calls from the public for the petrol price to be deregulated speak of ignorance, warns Fuel Retailers Association (FRA) CEO Reggie... →
Court declares AARTO Amendment Act unconstitutional
13th January 2022 The High Court has declared the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) Amendment Act, on which the planned demerit system for... →
SAVE-P signs contract for 2 000 ventilators, looks to assist India, rest of Africa
30th July 2020 The Solidarity Fund has concluded a contract with the South African Emergency Ventilator Project (SAVE-P) to produce 2 000 new ventilators that... →
Govt set to lose up to R7bn in April on fuel levies, says AA
29th April 2020 With the significant drop in fuel use seen during April’s lockdown, government’s revenue from the general fuel levy (GFL), which comprises about... →
UJ creates cheap, open-source ventilator as Covid-19 spreads
28th April 2020 A multidisciplinary team of engineers and healthcare practitioners at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) has used open-source designs to develop a... →
Locally made face-mask marketplace goes live
24th April 2020 A dedicated face mask marketplace went live on the Proudly South African website on Friday, April 24. The initiative is designed to assist South... →
Local ventilator production could start within a month, says Naacam
3rd April 2020 Much of the reverse engineering on the Penlon Nuffield 200 ventilator is complete, with prototype production imminent, says National Association of... →
