Company News in Brief

Exxaro CEO resigns with immediate effectThe suspended CEO of Exxaro Resources, Nombasa Tsengwa, has tendered her resignation from the JSE-listed mining company with immediate effect.In a letter, of which News24 has seen a copy, Tsengwa notified the company of her resignation following "damaging" and "defamatory" charges against her and an "inhumane" investigation that she refuses to further subject herself to. This year would mark Tsengwa’s 22nd as an Exxaro employee, but in early December last year, she was placed on precautionary suspension pending the outcome of a probe into allegations relating to workplace conduct and governance practices.This followed a Sunday Times article in which anonymous sources claimed Tsengwa had bullied and intimidated staff, leading to the exit of several executives. While the CEO initially appeared to have the support of the board, this changed after she sent an email out to staff in which she noted that a probe into similar whistleblower allegations in July 2024 had cleared her of any wrongdoing. She was subsequently suspended, with ENS appointed to conduct an investigation into various matters related to her interaction with the board, her failure to obey board instructions, and an anonymous whistleblower complaint against her.-FIN24 ArcelorMittal delays mill closures for a month as govt scrambles to save long steel businessArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) will delay the closure of its long steel business by a month as government scrambles to find a way to save the embattled division.Last month, the steelmaker said the loss-making long steel business would cease operations by the end of January. This followed a year of talks with government stakeholders, which sought to find a solution but ultimately came to nought."The planned wind-down into care and maintenance of the company's longs business, initially scheduled to start at the end of January 2025, has been delayed by approximately one month," AMSA announced on Thursday morning."This extension, supported by an R380 million shareholder loan from the [state-owned] Industrial Development Corporation, will enable the fulfilment of outstanding orders, particularly for automotive and seamless tube customers, while discussions continue with the South African government regarding the future of this business division."-FIN24 Volvo recalls three models in SA due to brake, indicator problemsVolvo South Africa has recalled three new car models due to various problems.National Consumer Commission said in a statement that Volvo has recalled the XC90 (released in SA on 20 January 2023), the XC90 (released in SA on 29 October 2024), the XC40 MY2024 (released in SA on 24 January 2024).The Swedish carmaker found a potential software failure in the brake control module on the first XC90 model. "In rare cases, this leads to a loss of braking support function."The XC90 model which was released in October last year, was recalled due to a rod between the brake pedal and brake booster that may not have been assembled according to manufacturing specifications."If the rod detaches, the brake pedal will not work correctly," the NCC said XC40 MY2024 has an issue related to the turn indicator system. This, according to Volvo Car South Africa, could "in rare cases lead to a temporary loss of the left rear turn indicator function."-FIN24 Sappi reports better-than-expected earnings, SA boostPaper, pulp and packaging group Sappi said on Wednesday it saw a profit bounce back in its first quarter to end December, with operational earnings beating its expectations as it pushed efficiency gains and benefited from better prices for key products.Sappi reported a profit of $70 million (R1.3 billion) from a loss of $126 million previously in the three months, with its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amoritisation (ebitda) rising 56% to $203 million.Year-on-year profitability improved across all segments, supported by cost savings, operational efficiency gains, higher dissolving pulp (DP) selling prices and sales volumes combined with improved packaging and speciality papers sales volumes, the group said.Sappi CEO Steve Binnie said in a statement the adjusted ebitda amount was ahead of expectations and substantially above last year. The group said that this figure will fall in the second quarter relative to the first amid an extended shutdown due to a conversion project at a mill in the US, as well as in SA - where shut had taken place in the first quarter of last year.-FIN24

Company News in Brief

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Namibian Sun 2025-02-24

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Company News in Brief

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Namibian Sun 2025-02-24

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