News 09:00

BULLETIN 24 January 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Gordhan urges Parliament to consider a proposal for municipalities to adjust tariffs
# A suspect was arrested in connection with last year’s deadly Marshalltown fire
# And motorsport, Madrid will host the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix from 2026

# Public Enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan has urged Parliament to consider his proposal for municipalities to adjust electricity tariffs. Despite 2023 seeing the lowest electricity supply since load-shedding’s inception over 16 years ago, the National Energy Regulator approved a 12.74-percent tariff increase for 2024/25. Eskom’s direct customers will face this hike from April 1. Gordhan’s request aims to give municipalities time to incorporate the increase into their July starting budgets. The NERSA-approved raise may elevate the lowest usage category’s cost to over two-rand per unit.

# Gauteng police have arrested a suspect in connection with the Usindiso building fire in Marshalltown, Johannesburg. A man, identified as Mr X, voluntarily testified in-camera at the Commission of Inquiry into the Usindiso building fire hearings yesterday that he started the fire that claimed the lives of 76 people last year. He told the inquiry that he started the fire on the ground floor of the building, after attempting to conceal a murder he had committed. Police spokesperson, Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi, says the 29-year-old is facing multiple charges:

# The Cape Winelands District Municipality says the fire line continues to burn out of control in the more inaccessible areas of the mountains above Kluitjieskraal outside Wolseley. Firefighters have been battling the fire since Monday afternoon, with about 40 structures lost. The municipality’s spokesperson, Jo-Anne Otto, says the area causing the most concern at present is the fire line, fuelled by the aged pine plantation, and strong winds, which is running out of Suurvlakte, situated between the mountains, close to Voëlvlei Dam:

# Sweden is edging closer to becoming a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, NATO, after Turkey’s parliament approved the membership. A total of 287 of 346 lawmakers voted in favour of the membership. Sweden applied to join NATO in May 2022, at the same time as Finland, in a historic shift in its security policy prompted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Hungary is the sole NATO member yet to ratify Sweden’s accession. Nato’s secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, has welcomed the vote saying Sweden’s membership will make the organisation stronger.

# Motorsport: Madrid will replace Barcelona as the host city of the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix in 2026, with the contract extended to 2035. Parts of the new circuit will run through the streets, and a total of 110-thousand spectators will be able to attend per day. This could reportedly increase to 140-thousand, making the venue one of the largest on the F1 calendar. The president and CEO of the sport, Stefano Domenicali, says the announcement marks the start of an exciting new chapter for F1 in Spain.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 19-rand-3-cents and the euro at 20-rand-68-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-19-cents and Bitcoin trades at 39-thousand-627-dollars-55-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-24-dollars-42-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 79-dollars-40-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….