1 MEMORANDUM N° 63/2018 | 19/07/2018 More than 2,024 Daily Memoranda issued from 2006 to end of 2017, with 24,401 pages of Business Clips issued covering all African, European Institutions and African Union, as well as the Breton Woods Institutions. The subscription is free of charge, and sponsored by various Development Organisations and Corporations. The Memorandum is issued daily, with the sole purpose to provide updated basic business and economic information on Africa, to more than 45,000 European Companies, as well as their business parties in Africa. Should a reader require a copy of the Memoranda, please address the request to fernando.matos.rosa@sapo or [email protected]. 12 YEARS OF PUBLICATION SUMMARY Saudi Arabia to invest $10bn in South Africa’s energy sector Page 2 The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development supports Morocco's Energy with a €10 loan Page 3 Nigeria’s Third Mainland Bridge to be shut for tests this July Page 3 Cobalt explorers expect higher prices and grades to offset DRC’s new mine laws Page 3 Ethiopia to bridge electricity connectivity gap with new substations Page 4 South Africa: Consumer inflation accelerates as fuel prices bite Page 5 BBC report alleges MSF aid workers in Africa traded medicine for sex Page 5 Nigeria to launch new national airline that will be 95% private-sector owned Page 6 Nigerian youth in uproar as officials keep Chinese scholarships to themselves Page 7 Commercial flight between Eritrea and Ethiopia resumes after two decades Page 7 With just weeks before the elections, 300 independents are registered in Zimbabwe Page 9 Clashes intensify in crisis-hit Cameroon Page 10 Kenyans up in arms as 20 MPs go on ‘official business’ to World Cup Page 10 Uganda targets new oil storage facility Page 11 100 children smuggled from Morocco to Spain: European police hit two organised crime groups Page 12 The EU protects the rights of migrant children in Morocco Page 12 UfM to organize 1st Youth Forum for the Mediterranean to design regional cooperation projects Page 12 ACWA Power inaugurates 120MW Khalladi wind farm in Morocco Page 13 2 SAUDI ARABIA TO INVEST $10BN IN SOUTH AFRICA’S ENERGY SECTOR Cyril Ramaphosa with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman The state visit of South African president Cyril Ramaphosa to Saudi Arabia has secured an agreement on the part of the Saudis to invest $10bn in the republic’s energy sector. Saudi developer ACWA Power and the state-owned Central Energy Fund of South Africa are aiming to develop solar projects. Mohammad Abunayyan, the chairman of ACWA Power, said the aim would be to make use of “the most advanced and versatile solar technology solutions which can efficiently and reliably produce clean energy throughout the 24-hour period”. The first project will be the 100MW Redstone concentrated solar thermal power (CSP) plant, to be located in the country’s Northern Cape Province. This will be capable of suppling power to 210,000 homes once operational. Other Saudi projects will include the construction of refineries and petrochemical plants. President Ramaphosa also visited Nigeria and the UAE. Following the visit, the UAE also announced plans for $10bn worth of investments into Africa's second biggest economy. Ramaphosa said on Saturday that this would be aimed at mining, tourism and “sustainable development”. In return for the investment, the Arab states are looking for access to South Africa’s market, the second largest in Africa, and may also be aimed at disrupting Pretoria’s close relationship with Iran. Ramaphosa is seeking $100bn in investment to address a series of economic and social problems in the republic. South Africa’s economy shrank 2.2% in the first quarter of 2018 owing to declining production in the agriculture, mining and steel production sectors. More generally, it faces structural problems with inadequate electricity generation and an overreliance on primary production, which exposes the economy to changes in commodity prices. Meanwhile, the country is facing a daunting set of social problems, including a 36% unemployment rate.(GCR 18-07- 2018) THE EUROPEAN BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT SUPPORTS MOROCCO'S ENERGY SECTOR WITH A €10 MILLION LOAN 3 The EBRD is supporting SDX Energy Morocco with a loan of up to €10 million to finance the enhancement of upstream gas production and related gas transport infrastructure to Kenitra industrial zone customers, facilitating the switch away from polluting fuel oil. As a result, a reduction of 20,000 tonnes in CO2 emissions per year is anticipated. SDX Energy is an international company active in the exploration and production of oil and gas, currently operating in North Africa with assets in Egypt and Morocco. It was created in 2015 by the merger of Sea Dragon Energy and Madison PetroGas. The EBRD has been working in Morocco since 2012. To date, the Bank has invested over €1.5 billion in 36 projects across the country, in addition to over €250 million of trade facilitation credit lines with local banks.( EEAS 18-07-2018) European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) NIGERIA’S THIRD MAINLAND BRIDGE TO BE SHUT FOR TESTS THIS JULY Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos Nigeria will be shut to traffic at midnight on Thursday July 26 and reopened at midnight of Sunday July 29 this year to pave way for engineers conduct assessment tests on some sections of the bridge. The Federal Controller of Works, Lagos, Adedamola Kuti, explained that if vehicles were allowed on the bridge during the tests, the movement will alter the readings expected from the tests. Mr. Kuti said the results of the tests will enable them to determine how to embark on actual repair work, adding that details of alternative routes would be provided to members of the public tomorrow after a stakeholders’ meeting in the afternoon tomorrow. About Third Mainland Bridge Third Mainland Bridge is the longest of three bridges connecting Lagos Island to the mainland, others are the Eko and Carter bridges. It was the longest bridge in Africa until 1996 when the 6th October Bridge located in Cairo was completed. The bridge starts from Oworonshoki which is linked to the Apapa-Oshodi express way and Lagos- Ibadan express way, and ends at the Adeniji Adele Interchange on Lagos Island. There is also a link midway through the bridge that leads to Herbert Macaulay Way, Yaba. The bridge was built by Julius Berger Nigeria PLC and opened by President Ibrahim Babangida in 1990; it measures about 11.8 km in length. Recently, there have been rumours of cracks on the bridge. This, however, was denied by authorities. The eight-lane bridge experienced a new look during the last repairing exercise, painting the bridge guide with the colour of Nigeria green, white, green, and also general painting was carried out for a new look. The repair works on the bridge has been completed and was opened on 30 October 2012.(CRO 18-07-2018) COBALT EXPLORERS EXPECT HIGHER PRICES AND GRADES TO OFFSET DRC’S NEW MINE LAWS Junior miners exploring for cobalt in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) reckon increased prices and the country’s high-grade deposits will offset the added costs of new legislation larger companies have opposed. 4 DRC, the world’s largest source of the metal, this month began implementing an amended mining code that introduces new taxes and increases royalty payments. Miners including Glencore, Randgold Resources and China Molybdenum have criticised the new law and threatened to sue to protect their investments. "We are comfortable with the high-level terms of this mining code," Jason Brewer, a director of three Australia-based companies exploring for copper, cobalt, gold and lithium, said. "It’s now just a question of getting the details associated with how you actually implement that." The average cost of producing cobalt in DRC is 30% lower than the rest of the world, London-based research company CRU Group said in May. That provides "some leeway for miners to absorb additional higher royalty payments" introduced in the code, it said. Junior miners do not need to worry about paying taxes or royalties until they start exporting metals Prices for cobalt, a key component in batteries that power electric vehicles, have more than tripled over the past two years as manufacturers strive to deliver more of their cars into the mainstream market. Among the companies most affected by the new legislation are those in the latter stages of building mines, such as Alphamin Resources and Ivanhoe Mines. They raised money assuming that a 10-year stability clause in the previous mining code protected them from paying higher taxes for another decade. Alphamin is developing the world’s highest-grade tin deposit, while Ivanhoe’s zinc and copper projects are due to start production in the coming years. "In terms of investor trust, this is a concern," Boris Kamstra, of CEO Alphamin, said in an interview. "It will increase the cost of capital for all projects in the DRC." Junior miners do not need to worry about paying taxes or royalties until they start exporting metals. But uncertainty over whether cobalt will be classified as a strategic metal and how a super-profit tax provided for in the new legislation will be applied is deterring some financiers from backing projects, Brewer said. Congo introduced a "strategic substance" categorisation in the new code, which may result in a 10% royalty rate on cobalt. Brewer is seeking clarity saying that "unless we are given that clarity, we are seeing a decline in interest", noting the combined market capitalisation of junior miners exploring for lithium in DRC has halved from about $1bn since the code’s promulgation in March.