INDUSTRIALS
Skies are getting darker for heavy industries
Many have already left SA and the recent ratings downgrades could cause more closures and job losses
SA’s downward economic spiral is best characterised by the shutting down of heavy industries. Major steel and aluminium facilities have gone in recent years, including those belonging to the giant Russian Evraz group, India’s Tata Steel and BHP Billiton. Now, with SA’s ratings downgrade to junk status, things are likely to get much worse. One company that has become a bellwether for the parlous state of SA manufacturing is the DCD Group. Rebranded in 2012, it was built from the remnants of the once-mighty Dorbyl industrial empire, which had been plagued by alleged criminal dealings among executives. It is now 48% black owned, with Investec holding a similar-sized stake. DCD has just started closing its world-class heavy engineering operations as a result of depressed market conditions in the global mining sector. This unit — within the group’s mining and energy division — has focused on manufacturing large capital equipment components for the mining industry from its plants in Veree...
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