Jackie Midlane

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SARB cuts the repo rate yet again: how does this affect borrowers and debt payments?

By Claire Friedman, Aviva Hoekstra and Jackie Midlane on May 24, 2020 Posted in Banking

Economists and business leaders have welcomed the South African Reserve Bank’s (SARB) decision to cut the repo rate by a further 50 basis points (bps) to 3.75% on 21 May 2020. This has resulted in a reduction of the prime rate quoted by our commercial banks from 7.75 % to 7.25 %. This is the … Continue reading

COVID-19 guaranteed loan scheme for businesses with an annual turnover of less than R300 million

By Tshegofatso Rammutla and Jackie Midlane on May 15, 2020 Posted in Banking

In a further initiative to combat the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, the state, in collaboration with the banking sector and the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has announced a R100 billion loan scheme to assist ailing small and medium-sized businesses (SMMEs). On 12 May 2020 National Treasury, the SARB and the Banking Association … Continue reading

Update to Disaster Management Regulations (16 April 2020)

By Jackie Midlane and Raghemah Hendricks on April 17, 2020 Posted in General

The lockdown period has been extended to 30 April 2020. The Disaster Management Regulations related to COVID-19 therefore still apply, with some changes. The changes aim to manage the remainder of the lockdown and to enable a phased and controlled return to normal economic and social activity. Here are the main takeaways from the amended … Continue reading

COVID-19 and Finance Documents: Clauses to consider

By Jackie Midlane on April 6, 2020 Posted in Banking

The COVID-19 pandemic affects borrowers and lenders and their financing arrangements. The most significant clause to consider is the Material Adverse Effect (MAE) clause – this clause broadly captures unpredictable and unforeseen events or circumstances that would otherwise be difficult to incorporate into the agreement specifically. Read our article on the impacts of COVID-19 on … Continue reading

COVID-19 and Finance Documents: Could the Material Adverse Effect clause be triggered?

By Jackie Midlane on April 6, 2020 Posted in Banking

How does the COVID-19 pandemic affect borrowers and lenders and their financing arrangements? A Material Adverse Effect (MAE) clause is included in most finance agreements. It is a catch-all concept to capture unpredictable and unforeseen events or circumstances that would otherwise be difficult to incorporate into the agreement specifically. Broadly, a MAE clause covers a … Continue reading

Energy update from the Minister of Energy

By Jackie Midlane and Raghemah Hendricks on March 26, 2019 Posted in General

The Minister today committed government to a collaborative approach with the private sector in dealing with the current energy crisis in South Africa. At the DLO Africa Power Roundtable Conference today (26 March 2019), the Minister spoke positively about the imminent release of the final Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), the unbundling of Eskom and long-term … Continue reading

Unrestricted financial assistance – Financiers to consider the risks

By Jackie Midlane and Steve Chemaly on October 3, 2018 Posted in Banking

The Companies Amendment Bill released on 21 September 2018 for public comment, proposes a raft of amendments to the Companies Act. Section 45 presently provides that any financial assistance granted by a holding company to its subsidiary must be authorised by the board and the shareholders by way of a special resolution. If not the … Continue reading

Financial assistance to subsidiaries reviewed in the Companies Amendment Bill: What is ‘its own subsidiary’?

By Jackie Midlane and Steve Chemaly on October 1, 2018 Posted in Banking, General

The amendments proposed in the Companies Amendment Bill 2018 have caught the attention of financiers and attorneys in so far as the provision of financial assistance (e.g. providing a loan, guaranteeing a loan, and securing any debt or obligation), to ‘its own subsidiary’ is concerned. The Amendment Bill proposes to amend section 45 by removing … Continue reading

Crossing borders to procure coal – Coal Baseload IPP Procurement Programme

By Jackie Midlane, Malibuye Cossie (ZA) and Raghemah Hendricks on April 26, 2016 Posted in General

On Wednesday, 20 April 2016 the Minister of Energy issued a determination setting out what bidders can expect to see in the request for proposal under the coal baseload cross border independent power producer procurement programme. The determination provides that: 3750 MW has been allocated to the cross border programme, which is an increase from … Continue reading

Cross Border Projects under Coal Baseload Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme Request for Qualification and Proposal

By Jackie Midlane and Malibuye Cossie (ZA) on January 29, 2015 Posted in Banking

The Coal Baseload Independent Power Procurement Programme Request for Qualification and Proposals (RFP) released by the Department of Energy (DoE) allows bidders to bid cross border projects. We highlight some of the key features relating to cross border projects under the RFP. Cross border facility and cross border project A cross border facility is a … Continue reading

Coal Baseload Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme – Concepts in the Request

By Sne Gule and Jackie Midlane on January 23, 2015 Posted in Banking

The Department of Energy’s (DoE) highly anticipated Coal Baseload Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme Request for Qualifications and Proposals (RFP) has introduced concepts that we did not see in the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme. We highlight a few of these concepts: Affected Projects The RFP provides for an Affected Project – these … Continue reading

Key features of the Coal Baseload Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme Request for Qualification and Proposal

By Malibuye Cossie (ZA) and Jackie Midlane on January 23, 2015 Posted in Banking

In December 2014, the Department of Energy (DoE) released the Coal Baseload Independent Power Procurement Programme Request for Qualification and Proposals (RFP). We highlight some of the key features of the RFP. Bid phases The RFP provides for more than one bid submission phase. The first bid submission date is 8 June 2015. The DoE anticipates … Continue reading

Coal IPP Procurement Programme about to kick off

By Jackie Midlane and Coldron Denichaud on June 26, 2014 Posted in Banking

After numerous press releases about the impending release of the Coal Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (CIPPPP), the Department of Energy (DoE) released a formal request for compulsory registration for new generation capacity under the CIPPPP on 25 June 2014. Developers who wish to take part in this programme must register if they wish to … Continue reading

Tier 1 ranking for our banking and finance team

By Jackie Midlane on June 24, 2014 Posted in Banking

The highly regarded IFLR1000 2014, guide to the world’s leading financial and corporate law firms, has ranked our banking and finance team Tier 1 for the 10th year in both the bank lending and project finance categories. The team has been active in South Africa’s renewable energy boom. The guide says: “With 42 banking specialists and 20 project finance experts, … Continue reading

Exemption for previously compliant bidders under the fourth edition RFP

By Jackie Midlane and Coldron Denichaud on May 29, 2014 Posted in Banking

The fourth edition of the RFP under the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer (REIPP) procurement programme exempts returning compliant bidders from certain of the more onerous and time consuming qualification criteria of the RFP. In order to qualify for the exemption, a developer must re-submit a project, using the same project site, project layout and … Continue reading