Endeavour Magazine October 2021

OCTOBER 2021

www.littlegatepublishing.com

VR8

TRANSITION

NOMAD TOURS

BAKER PACIFIC

Setting Out Again

Climate Change & Biscuit Baking

BROLL GHANA Progressive Property People UK £4.95 CAN $7.95 USA $7.95 EUR €5.95 SA ZAR 69.00

PEPSI JAMAICA That’s What We Like

Sylvia Loch

FROM THE HORSE’S MOUTH INSPIRED BY YOUR SUCCESS

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EDITOR’S NOTE

T

his month was a fascinating and uplifting one for us. We’ve gotten in touch with some of our longest-running contacts and caught up on how they’ve faired during the pandemic, and the talks have been humbling, grounding, and also inspiring.

What we’re hearing from many businesses is the same message we’ve been saying ourselves; “We’ve been injured, but we survived.”

Let’s be honest – whilst some businesses have soared during the past 18 months, many of us – even many of those companies who have soared – have also taken hits. We’ve taken hits, and some companies weren’t able to make it through, but for those of us who are still here – and for those people who have had to close their business and are looking to the future – we’ve hopefully learnt something. Every challenge in our industries is a learning curve, and I’m excited to see the lasting impact on this time period in commerce. One day, they’ll be teaching this small but significant moment in time in schools and universities, in history classes but also, I imagine, in business studies.

Whether we’re feeling confident or still hurting, we’ve experienced a unique time in business history, and that’s something to be proud of taking on, whatever our personal experience has been.

A particular shout-out this month goes to Alex Rutherford and everyone at Nomad Tours, who shared their challenging and ultimately victorious journey as a tourism company caught in the middle of a global pandemic, and Eugene Nel, CEO of VR8, the Vanadium Resources junior developer who managed to keep on trucking whilst most of the world had been forced to a stand-still.

Covid or not, our Amazing World team hasn’t lost its sense of the spooktacular – as always, our October Amazing Worlds have chosen a creepy theme. Don’t worry, it’s not Doll Island this year: this year, they’ve focused in on creepy crawlies, of both the eerie and edible varieties.

We’re also introducing Sylvia Loch this month, respected author in the realms of horse riding, history and dressage, who’s joining the Endeavour team to share monthly insights into the world of everything equestrian!

Alice Instone-Brewer Endeavour Magazine | 3

CONTENTS

Pepsi Jamaica

FEATURES

Transition 15 VR8

23

Setting Out Again Nomad Tours

Heads Up 39 SANBS

45

Progressive Property People Broll Ghana

51

That’s What We Like Pepsi Jamaica

59

Climate Change: Energy For Biscuit Baking Baker Pacific

Ready For The Next Step 69 Staatsolie

Nomad Tours 4 | Endeavour Magazine

77

Shipping In The New Normal Tanzania Ports Authority

85

Keeping The Lights On National Energy

91

Cleaner Methods TSK Grupo

Tanzania Ports Authority

ARTICLES

Business Headlines

6 Europe 7 Middle East 8 Americas 10 Africa 11 Asia 32

From The Horse’s Mouth

An Introduction

Amazing World

56 74

Eating Insects To Save The Planet Chilling Creepy Crawlies

Baker Pacific Endeavour Magazine | 5

BUSINESS HEADLINES EUROPE German elections: Centre-left narrowly wins against Merkel’s party Germany’s centre-left Social Democrats have narrowly beaten the party of Chancellor Angela Merkel in federal elections.

SPD leader Olaf Scholz says he has a clear mandate to form a government, but his conservative rival, Armin Laschet, is determined to fight on. The two parties have governed together for years but are unlikely to continue.

Instead, the Greens and liberals are looking for a role in a new coalition.

The two parties attracted the most support from the under-30s, in an election dominated by climate change and by differing proposals on how to tackle it. The Greens made history with almost 15% of the vote, even though it was well short of their ambitions.

It was the tightest race in years, bringing an end to the post-war domination of the two big parties - Mr Scholz’s SPD and his rival’s conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU). For the centre-left it was a significant improvement on the last election, but for the conservatives it was their worst ever performance.

The successor’s task is to lead Europe’s foremost economy over the next four years, with climate change at the top of voters’ agenda. Mr Scholz told a televised audience the voters had given him the job of forming a “good, pragmatic government for Germany”.

The new measure will make it possible for same-sex couples to adopt unrelated children and for married lesbian couples to have children through sperm donation.

It makes Switzerland the 30th country in the world to adopt same-sex marriage.

The new law, which had the backing of the Swiss government and all major political parties except the People’s Party, was passed by parliament in December.

However, it was then challenged by opponents, who gathered enough signatures to force a referendum. Justice Minister Karin Keller-Sutter said the first same-sex marriages would take place in July next year.

UK could deploy army to deliver fuel amid crisis Britain is considering using its army to deliver gasoline after a weekend of panic buying has left gas stations around the country without fuel. Long queues of cars have been seen outside UK gas stations in recent days, as Switzerland backs same-sex marriage drivers attempted to fill their vehicles following in referendum media reports of an impending shortage.

Almost two-thirds of Swiss voters have A major lack of truck drivers has meant backed same-sex marriage in a referendum. deliveries of fuel and goods have recently fallen Some 64% supported the measure, making short in Britain. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is it one of the last countries in western Europe said to be considering using military personnel to legalise same-sex marriage. to deliver fuel to gas stations.

Campaigners have hailed the vote as a Meanwhile, thousands of truck drivers are historic moment for LGBT rights in the country. set to be granted temporary U.K. visas in the In the build-up to the vote, some church run-up to Christmas, in an attempt to limit groups and conservative political parties supply disruption ahead of the festive period. opposed the idea, saying it would undermine Some larger gasoline retailers are reporting the traditional family. that 50% to 90% of their pumps in English Switzerland has allowed same-sex couples cities were running dry. Oil giant BP said in a to register partnerships since 2007, but some statement that it had temporarily closed some rights are restricted. of its gas stations due to shortages.

6 | Endeavour Magazine

MIDDLE EAST Afghanistan: Executions will return, says senior Taliban official The Taliban’s former head of religious police has said extreme punishments such as executions and amputations will resume in Afghanistan. Mullah Nooruddin Turabi, now in charge of prisons, told AP News that amputations were “necessary for security”.

He said these punishments may not be meted out in public, as they were under previous Taliban rule in the 1990s, but he dismissed outrage over their past public executions: “Noone will tell us what our laws should be.”

Since taking power in Afghanistan on 15 August the Taliban have been promising a milder form of rule than in their previous tenure.

But there have already been several reports of human rights abuses carried out across the country.

Human Rights Watch warned that the Taliban in Herat were “searching out highprofile women, denying women freedom of movement outside their homes and imposing compulsory dress codes”.

In August, Amnesty International said that Taliban fighters were behind the massacre of nine members of the persecuted Hazara minority.

Days before the Taliban took control of Kabul, a Taliban judge in Balkh, Haji Badruddin, told the BBC’s Secunder Kermani that he supported the group’s harsh and literal interpretation of Islamic religious law.

following the withdrawal of US forces, the Taliban said women’s rights would be respected “within the framework of Islamic law”.

The Islamist group appears to have shut down the women’s affairs ministry and replaced it with a department that once enforced strict religious doctrines.

Secondary schools have reopened, but with only boys and male teachers allowed back into classrooms. The Taliban said it was working on reopening schools for girls.

According to the Kabul mayor about a third of the municipality’s 3,000 employees are women. He said some would carry on working.

“For example, women work in the women’s toilets in the city where men cannot go,” he said.

“But for the positions that others [men] can fill, we have told them [women] to stay at home until the situation is normalised. Their salaries will be paid,” he added.

The Taliban has also banneded Helmand barbers from shaving or trimming beards, which many fear will put them out of business.

Five Palestinians killed in Israeli West Bank raid against militants Five Palestinians have been killed during raids by Israeli forces in the West Bank.

The Israeli army said the operation was against Hamas militants about to carry out attacks, adding that as far as it knew all the dead were Hamas members.

Two soldiers were seriously injured by Taliban tells female government workers in Palestinian gunfire in one of the raids.

Kabul to stay at home Hamas said four of its members were The new Taliban mayor of Afghanistan’s killed. Palestinian militant groups say they are capital Kabul has told female municipal considering their response. According to the employees to stay home unless their jobs Palestinian health ministry, two people were cannot be filled by a man. killed in Burqin near Jenin and another three in Hamdullah Nomany said the Taliban “found Biddu near Jerusalem. it necessary to stop women from working for a Correspondents say there has long been while”. concern in Israel that Hamas, which runs Gaza, It is the latest restriction imposed on could also challenge its rival the Palestinian Afghanistan’s women by the country’s hard- Authority in the West Bank. line new Islamist government.

Earlier in September, Israel recaptured the During their previous rule in the 1990s, last two of six fugitive Palestinian militants, women were barred from education and the who had escaped from a maximum security workplace. After seizing the country last month prison two weeks earlier.

Endeavour Magazine | 7

AMERICAS Biden to continue Trump’s Title 42 migrant expulsions The Biden administration has said it will indefinitely extend a Trump-era pandemic policy that allows the US to swiftly expel undocumented migrants.

The policy known as Title 42 is aimed at preventing the spread of Covid-19 in holding facilities, officials say. At least 940,000 people have been expelled since it was issued last year.

Children and some families are exempt.

The announcement drew outrage from immigration advocacy groups who accused Thousands of Haitians camp at the the Biden team of backing the hardline antiUS-Mexico border immigration policies of Donald Trump.

Thousands of predominantly Haitian The decision comes as migrants continue migrants are still camped at the US border, to stream to the US border, including about where officials have struggled to provide them 210,000 in July alone. with food and sanitation.

The American Civil Liberties Union and In mid-September, the US started several other advocacy groups have said they deportation flights from a Texas border town, will return to court over President Biden’s use where about 13,000 migrants had gathered of Title 42. under a bridge. They have been waiting in a makeshift camp in temperatures of 37C. The Canada frees Huawei executive group includes people from the Dominican Meng Wanzhou Republic, Cuba and Venezuela, but the vast A Chinese tech executive has been released majority are fleeing Haiti. after being detained in Canada for nearly three Haiti has suffered from years of political years has returned home. instability, culminating in the assassination of Huawei’s Meng Wanzhou flew to Shenzhen President Jovenel Moïse in July. The following hours after two Canadians freed by China had month, the country suffered another deadly gone back. earthquake.

In 2018, China accused Michael Spavor and Many of the Haitians at the US-Mexico Michael Kovrig of espionage, denying detaining border experienced a long and difficult journey them was in retaliation for Ms Meng’s arrest. from South America, including robbery and The apparent swap brings to an end a abuses from thieves and gangs along the route, damaging diplomatic row between Beijing and as well as bribes and fees being required in the West. order to get guidance or passage on each leg Ms Meng was wanted on charges in the US of the journey. but was released after a deal between Canada The treatment of migrants on the border and US prosecutors. gathered further attention when a photograph Before her release, Ms Meng admitted of a ‘horse raid’ against the crowds went misleading US investigators about Huawei’s viral: the image shows horse-mounted US business dealings in Iran. officers charging at and corralling crowds on China had earlier insisted that her case was foot, including running them into bodies of not related to the sudden arrest of Mr Kovrig water. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro and Mr Spavor in 2018. But China’s the decision Mayorkas says his department will investigate to free them after Ms Meng’s release appears reports of alleged abuse. to show that pretense has been abandoned.

8 | Endeavour Magazine

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AFRICA Hundreds of Aid trucks stuck in Ethiopia With concern mounting about the food situation in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, there are conflicting claims about why supply trucks are stuck there, unable to transport further crucial supplies.

The UN says hundreds of aid trucks which made the journey up to Tigray from other parts of Ethiopia between mid-July and midSeptember have not returned. UN aid agencies estimate that 100 trucks with food, non-food items and fuel, need to enter Tigray every day.

In the two months to 16 September, 466 trucks had entered Tigray through the Afar region, but only 38 had made the return journey.

Tigrayan forces fighting the Ethiopian government and its allies have laid the blame for the disappearances on the Ethiopian government, saying that they aren’t providing the trucks with the fuel for the return trip.

Truck drivers have also apparently reported violence and intimidation during checkpoint inspections manned by the Ethiopian military and local security officials outside Tigray, and some are not willing to go through these again on the return journey. Many of these truck drivers are Tigray locals.

The government has countered these claims by stating that trucks may have been seized by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.

Mali PM calls out France over troop drawdown Mali Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga has accused France of abandoning the country following its decision to withdraw its troops.

10 | Endeavour Magazine

Maiga told the UN General Assembly that he regretted the “unilateral announcement,” which he said justified his government “seeking other partners,” in an apparent reference to Mali having asked private Russian companies to boost security in the conflict-torn country.

This statement from the Prime Minister comes after a recent demonstration in Mali’s capital backing the nation’s military rulers and protesting perceived foreign meddling in the Sahel state.

The protest comes as military strongman Colonel Assimi Goita faces growing pressure from European powers to renounce a possible deal with Russian private-security firm Wagner.

Former colonial power France -- which has thousands of troops in Mali -- warned against the deal after reports Mali was close to hiring 1,000 Wagner paramilitaries surfaced this month.

French Defence Minister Florence Parly said at the end of September that her government “will not be able to cohabit with mercenaries”.

Vaccine inequity addressed by African leaders in UNGA speeches The inequity of COVID-19 vaccine distribution was raised as an issue of discussion at the United Nations General Assembly. This issue was not only raised by one speaker, but by the leaders of many African nations, all of whom discussed that sections of their populations have severely limited access to the vaccine.

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa called the vaccines “the greatest defence that humanity has against the ravages of this pandemic”.

“It is, therefore, a great concern that the global community has not sustained the principles of solidarity and cooperation in securing equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines,” he said.

“It is an indictment on humanity that more than 82 percent of the world’s vaccine doses have been acquired by wealthy countries, while less than 1 percent has gone to low-income countries.” The WHO has said only 15 percent of promised donations of vaccines – from rich countries that have access to large quantities of them – have been delivered.

ASIA Indian farmers ramp up protest against reforms Hundreds of farmers in the Indian states of Punjab and Haryana have blocked roads as they intensify their protest against contentious farm laws. The call for a nationwide strike came on the first anniversary of the laws’ approval in parliament. Farmers, who have been camping at Delhi’s borders since last November, want a repeal of the laws.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called the reforms a “watershed moment” for Indian agriculture. But farmer groups said the laws will make them poorer.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha, an umbrella group of some 40 farmers’ unions, had called for schools, colleges, workplaces and shops across the country to remain shut, but it said emergency services will be allowed to operate.

Major opposition parties, including the Congress, and several state governments have lent their support for the strike. The laws will relax rulings around sale, pricing and storage of farm produce - rules that have protected India’s farmers from the free market for decades.

One of the biggest changes is that farmers will be allowed to sell their produce at a market price directly to private players - agricultural businesses, supermarket chains and online grocers. Farmers are concerned that this will eventually lead to the end of wholesale markets and assured prices, leaving them with no back-up option or bargaining chip if they are not satisfied with the price offered by a private buyer.

Quad countries vow to work for freedom in region The leaders of the US, Japan, India and Australia have vowed to work together for a free and open Indo-Pacific region at their first in-person summit, amid shared concerns about China. The four nations will hold annual summits. The newly dubbed ‘Quad’ group of nations agreed to move ahead on a joint plan to provide Covid-19 vaccines around Asia.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the White House summit that his country would resume exports of coronavirus vaccines

next month. The Quad group of nations agreed in March to supply a billion doses of vaccine to Asia this year, but Delhi suspended exports during a wave of coronavirus in April.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga raised concerns during the talks about Beijing’s assertiveness at sea, its trampling of Hong Kong’s special status and Chinese action towards Taiwan. After the summit, the leaders pledged “to meet challenges to the maritime rules-based order, including in the East and South China Seas”.

China declares all crypto-currency transactions illegal China’s central bank has announced that all transactions of crypto-currencies are illegal, effectively banning digital tokens such as Bitcoin. “Virtual currency-related business activities are illegal financial activities,” the People’s Bank of China said, warning it “seriously endangers the safety of people’s assets”.

China is one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency markets. The price of Bitcoin fell by more than $2,000 (£1,460) in the wake of the Chinese announcement.

Trading crypto-currency has officially been banned in China since 2019, but has continued online through foreign exchanges.

However, this latest announcement had made it clear that China wants to shut down crypto-currency trading in all its forms. The statement makes clear that those who are involved in “illegal financial activities” are committing a crime and will be prosecuted.

In September 2019, China accounted for 75% of the world’s Bitcoin energy use. By April 2021, that had fallen to 46%.

Endeavour Magazine | 11

Rail safety on the right track E

ach day, millions of passenger’s criss-cross South Africa by means of rail. They rely on trains to get to work and to return home; to discover new towns or revisit old favourites. Trains move freight from ports to cities, and goods from cities to ports. The Railway Safety Regulator (RSR) is the official body that oversees the safety of South Africa’s huge and complex railway network through appropriate support, monitoring and enforcement, guided by an enabling regulatory framework.

The RSR was established in terms of the National Railway Safety Regulator Act No. 16 of 2002. The organisation is responsible for collecting and disseminating information relating to safe railway operations to the public by means of safety awareness campaigns and monitor and ensure safety compliance by conducting audits, inspections, and occurrence investigations.

Since its promulgation in 2002 and subsequent establishment in 2005, the RSR has experienced tremendous growth, becoming a trusted safety authority in the rail sector. The RSR is bigger and better today, having expanded its footprint to three regions, namely the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, notwithstanding the Head Office also based in Gauteng. Similar to people evolving with age, the RSR has evolved by adopting a completely new corporate identity to reflect its commitment to embracing change which marks a significant milestone in the Regulator’s journey to ensure that “rail safety is on the right track”.

However, with change and success comes obstacles and the RSR, like the rest of the world, has had to figure out ways to overcome the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic presents.

While battling the pandemic, the South African rail

industry is also finding itself in a state of dismay as vandalism and the destruction of rail infrastructure is becoming a norm.

Studies have revealed that there has been a sharp decline in the number of people who choose to use trains as a mode of transport in South Africa since 2013. Commuters have cited overcrowding, lack of security, train delays and arson as main reasons for opting to use other modes of transport.

This reality reflects that more needs to be done to change people’s negative perceptions about rail, especially during this precarious period which has seen the COVID-19 pandemic impact the movement of trains.

The Regulator has also been focussing on the wellbeing of workers in the rail sector and embarked on a safety campaign titled Siyabavikela (Protecting our rail icons) - a digital campaign that involves

the participation of rail operators, employees, and stakeholders at large to reinforce the compliance that is required from operators as far as social distancing and personal protective equipment is concerned. Furthermore the Regulator promotes the harmonisation of the railway safety regime of South Africa with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) railway operations and promotes improved safety performance to promote the use of rail. A total of 10 076 negative events were reported to the RSR during the 2020/21 reporting period with operational occurrences decreasing by 40 per cent (2 024) since 2019/20. The security related incidents decreased by 19 per cent (8 052) since 2019/20. These figures attest to the fact that we must stay focussed and ensure that through our collective efforts we drive down the number of occurrences and ensure that rail become a trusted mode of transport.

The RSR continues to bolster the rail regulatory framework through the development of determinations, protocols, and guidelines. With the deployment of these tools, the RSR will ensure that we build industry capacity to develop effective safety management approaches as well as the development of an industry safety risk profile to support critical risk mitigation decisions that will result in safer railways.

14 | Endeavour Magazine

TRANSITION VR8 chevron-square-right www.vr8.global phone-square 08 6158 9990

2020 was a curious time for all of us, so it’s a heck of a time to become CEO of a company. We interviewed Eugene Nel, the new CEO of VR8, a mining exploration company focusing its efforts on vanadium, a little-talkedabout but essential metal.

Apparently, VR8 is sitting on a huge deposit, and just in time, because apparently, we’re currently in short supply.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

V

R8 is a junior vanadium developer and the owner of 74% of the Steelpoortdrift Vanadium mining project in Limpopo Province, South Africa. What is Vanadium?

Whilst the name perhaps isn’t thrown around as frequently, the material is about as common as copper or zinc, and it’s a chemical element that has many purposes as a transition metal that hardens of other metals, particularly forin regards to producingcreating specialised tools and construction steels for infrastructure.

We spoke with Eugene Nel, CEO of VR8, to learn more about the industry and how his company are planning to impact the sector, as well as discussing how the past 18 months have impacted them – especially as he had the interesting experience of becoming CEO during 2020.

The Steelpoortdrift Vanadium mining project is a world class, tier 1 site and the . The Steelpoortdrift titaniferous magnetite deposit is located in the prolific Bushveld Geological Complex within a known mineral and vanadium producing area. This area is also extremely conveniently placed, within reach of proven processing plants, railways, roads and ports. For a mining developerd, it’s a dream come true.

Endeavour Magazine | 15

VR8

This vanadium deposit is projected to be one of the largest in the world. At their current stage in the development, VR8 is conducting a DFS-level study on the project, including work towards becoming fully environmentally permitted. It has recently completed a PFS study on the project and has also declared a maiden ore reserve. All told, Eugene is feeling positive about the site’s potential: “The Steelpoortdrift Vanadium Project (“SPD Project”) is one of the world’s largest and highest-grade vanadium deposits with a mining authorisation based on published Mineral Resources. We have a total JORC Resource exceeding 600mt of which 74mt have been converted into an ore reserve.

More than 160mt of the resource is at a high grade of >1.1% V2O5. Based on the outcomes of our PFS we have one of the lowest production costs in industry at US$3.08/lb V2O5.”

As well as the vanadium, VR8 has of course also begun work on exploring how best to mine and process the other elements present in their

mine site’s soil. In addition to this vast project, the company also owns the Quartz Bore Project, which is located within the West Pilbara province, 80 kilometres east of Roebourne in Western Australia. This project covers an area of approximately 15km2 and includes identified copper, zinc and lead occurrences.

When the Steelpoortdrift mine launches, the company predicts that it will have around 400 permanent employees, many of whom will be able to be sourced locally, as the mine site is in a pre-established mining area. Understanding the economic impact that a mine can have an on area, the company hopes to focus heavily on reaching out to the local community, hiring from there, promoting internally and offering further training to the people, many of whom will already be well-versed in mining.

Out of their understanding and respect of this important relationship between mine and community, VR8 has also begun working on its CSR connections with the area, even though

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TRANSITION

first production is still some way off. “We have established a ‘family’ relationship with the community we are to operate in. Both the company and the community recognise that the mine can’t operate in an isolated bubble, and thus we work together as partners rather than neighbours.”

To support this relationship and give something to the community that houses its mine, VR8 has planned taken on a series of projects. One is the oversizing of a solar PV energy supply system that is to be installed in at the mine. The company will oversize the installation so the system will produce more energy than the mine needs, thus leaving an excess that can power portions of the local community. Similarly, the company would potentially is createing water supplies: “For Water Use Licence purposes, we are required to sink test water boreholes. Where these boreholes are located close to the community, we will aim to equip these boreholes with

Endeavour Magazine | 17

VR8

pump and water storage systems to supply water to the community.”

Lastly, although VR8’s work has meant that a local secondary school has neededwould require to be relocated, the company sought the approval on this from the community, and its plans that whilst conducting the move for them, it will take the opportunity to upgrade the school’s infrastructure from the poor state it was in. It will also add modern schooling facilities and otherwise improve the school building as part of the move.

All of this is an elegant approach to CSR projects, smoothly integrating them with works that already need to be carried out for the mine, and extending their benefits outwards.

Another fascinating project of theirs will also have a positive outward impact, not just for the local community forbut also globally: Eugene told us that the company is working on the development of a new processing technology that will be both carbon neutral as well as heat

generating, which would greatly reduce the mine’s carbon footprint whilst also unlocking the value from other metals contained in the oreallowing it to operate as it needs to. This is all Eugene could tell us for now, but we’ll watch this space and are excited to follow up on it in the future.

Whilst the pandemic has been difficult for many, a few of us have succeeded in making it through fairly unaffected. This was the case for VR8, through a combination of luck and planning. With only a small permanent team, and the project still at development stage, work was able to continue remotely. The only hiccups for the company were delays experienced by the groups they were working with, be they suppliers or government bodies, when thesey were forced to have COVID-related closures.

However, VR8 thought ahead and predicted that this would be the case, so accounted for such delays in their planning and approached their work accordingly. It’s been pretty plain

COMPANY PROFILE

Consulmet was delighted to be appointed by Vanadium Resources to participate in the PFS for the Steelpoortdrift Vanadium project.

While these types of projects are few and far between, it was a special privilege to be responsible for the PFS design of the Salt Roast Plant with associated hydrometallurgical circuits, comprising the “heart of the matter” not to mention the very positive outcome.

Production Ready Mineral Processing Solutions Scaleability, Availability, Reliability

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18 | Endeavour Magazine

TRANSITION

VR8

sailing, all things considered – if only all of us could say that!

Not only this, but the future is looking bright for vanadium. The material is set to be in high demand, as Eugene explained to us: “The world in general has seen a significant and more purposeful shift towards the green energy supply revolution, which in turn has significantly increased future demand for our main product being Vanadium Pentoxide. In addition, the infrastructure projects announced by various countries to stimulate their economic growth has resulted in major demand for metals including Vanadium developing. Vanadium is a key component in the production of high tensile construction steel and rebar which in turn is a major requirement during infrastructure projects. This is extremely positive as it would underpin increased Vanadium commodity process for the medium to long terms.”

Whilst these projected demands are positive news for VR8, however, there is a risk

20 | Endeavour Magazine

involved in it, too. Eugene explained to us that if vanadium producers can’t meet demand and a deficit occurs, then downstream users of the metal might search for alternatives.

“The current Vanadium market is moving into a major supply deficit which is projected to increase even further for the next 2-3 years up to 2025. Current production capacity in industry is constrained with secondary producers in China operating at peak capacity and limited opportunity for existing primary producers to expand. There are also nolimited new primary producing projects projected to come into production before 2024. It is important for the vanadium industry as a whole to bring supply demand into balance again.”

Thankfully, VR8 is doing its part towards providing supply. If the deposit is anywhere near the size predicted, then this is an exciting development for the industry and could go a long way to addressing answering these concerns. Of course, the next few years are

TRANSITION

crucial for VR8, as its market needs to stay in place whilst it gets ready to producesee. Whilst we’ve been watching 2020 and 2021 with baited breath, it seems likely that VR8 will be doing so in the next few years to come. And yet, we doubt that something as useful as vanadium can really go ‘out of style’ in that time – especially not with a supply like this waiting on the horizon and nearly ready to drop.

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Endeavour Magazine | 21

22 | Endeavour Magazine

SETTING OUT AGAIN Nomad Tours chevron-square-right nomadtours.co.za phone-square +7 21 845 7400

The last time we spoke to Nomad Tours, the travel company hosting tours around South and East Africa, the first hints of COVID were starting to impact the tourist industry.

Now, on the other side of a surreal 18 months or so for the world over, we caught up with CEO and company founder Alex Rutherford to hear how lockdowns, restrictions and a complete halt of holidayers affected the long-standing tours company, how they survived, and what they’re planning to do now that the world is opening back up.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

“I

t came on very fast. We went from business as normal to grinding to a halt in a matter of weeks.” If you’ve followed Endeavour for a while, you’ll have followed Nomads Tours’ evolution via our many chats with Alex. He has always managed to find the balance between an adventurous spirit and a grounded business sense – a brilliant combination that equips someone to venture out and found a pan-African camping tour company in the first place, spurred on by his own passion for the trails and great African outdoors, and yet also allows them to build it reliably from the ground up and make a product that works. We’re used to hearing Alex describe a journey from strength to strength, but nothing in the past year and a half has been what we’re used to, and the impacts of COVID have been felt by everyone.

“We went fully 18 months without a single trip. To give you an idea, we went from running around 1000 clients across 50 -60 tours a month, to zero. It was devastating.”

Nomad Tours began as a company that offered tours for small groups, combining bus and jeep travel with good old-fashioned camping under the stars. Exploring the landscape, learning the history, meeting the Endeavour Magazine | 23

NOMAD TOURS

locals, becoming close neighbours to passing lions – this was all a part of the dream that Alex and his team turned into a reality. And for the founder in particular, two elements always seemed to stand out as a passion –the bonding and energy of a group trip, and taking good care of his staff and guides. During the world’s various lockdowns, group trips, or trips of any kind, were off the table. But he still had his staff.

“We were one of the few companies that hung on with the staff as long as we did. A lot of the companies, within a month or two, had laid off everybody and shut down completely.

We held on for as long as we could. We also did a crowd funder campaign to raise funds for our guides. I said that any donations, I would match from the company’s side: we raised quite a sum, something like half a million. That allowed us to give the guides an allowance for quite a few months. Towards the end of the year, though, the writing was on the wall that this thing wasn’t just going to blow over, so

unfortunately, we’ve had to cut back massively.

We’re down to about 12 office staff from about 60 or 70: I’ve kept all my departmental heads, but it’s come at a huge cost.”

This cost came in many forms, not least having to say goodbye to staff who had become like family. It also took other forms, including, heartbreakingly, the company’s new hotel.

Although Nomad Tours’ trips started out from the concept of camping, the company also works with many resorts and other accommodation throughout South and East Africa. Along the road, this expanded into the company also owning hotels of its own, the most recently acquired of which was a property in Cape Town. We wrote about this project in a recent Nomad interview; city-central, this hotel was planned to be decorated top to tail in a beautiful art deco style. It was a huge undertaking, but one with a fantastic vision for its completion – however, the pandemic sadly had other ideas.

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SETTING OUT AGAIN

Alex Rutherford

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Endeavour Magazine | 25

NOMAD TOURS

“We had to sell it. We’d finished everything – it was beautiful. It was an absolute gem, and we were just starting to break even. It’s a sore point, but it was the successful completion of a project, and I’m happy with that. We’d done the renovation, we’d gotten it running, we had bookings, we brought in additional business.

So, it can be done. We got past the teething pains of all the rules and the regulations, so if we did it again, it would be much easier next time.”

Although this hotel is gone, Nomad Tours still owns its other property. The company also sold many of its truck fleet, but has retained the trucks’ bodies (the element that the company has had custom-made to facilitate their guests’ needs in terms of personal USB ports, on-board water dispensers and the like). This means that when it comes time to re-expand, Nomad will only need to source new chassis etc., but the custom elements have been retained.

This sort of future-proofing has been in all of Nomad’s choices. It’s not an easy call for a business owner – where does one downsize and sell off assets, and where does one continue to spend to maintain what one has? Every day the company stayed intact as a company, it cost Nomad. Throwing in the towel would be a decision that Alex couldn’t easily take back, but at the same time, staying the course with an unknown timeframe ahead of them wasn’t a choice to make lightly. “I made a call in November about what was possible,” Alex explained to us; “How long it would be possible to keep going if nothing happened, which it didn’t. I did the numbers and I said ‘Either we’re going through this thing or we’ve got to stop now.’ I made the decision, ‘I’m going all in and I’m coming out the other side.’”

“18 months with no revenue is quite terrifying. I was quite lucky that last year, about 20 of my trucks ended their payments. So, that

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SETTING OUT AGAIN

took huge pressure off me – if I hadn’t had that, I don’t know where I’d be now.”

“But! We survived, and are up and running again. It looks like the gamble paid off.”

At the start of August, Nomad sent out its first tour since COVID closed its doors. This wasn’t just a shot in the dark made as soon as it could be; this was a carefully timed and well-chosen venture, the fruits of the natural returning interest combined with Nomad’s careful monitoring of and responding to this reawakening market.

“We monitor our inquiries, web traffic etc. very closely. Month by month, looking at the booking inquiries against the normal patterns that happen every year, if you remove those cycles, it was an absolutely flat line. Then in August we noticed a shift, and once that change was noticed, then we started to up the ante.” In the meantime, Nomad’s stripped down and streamlined line had continued to keep in contact with its agents and posting

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NOMAD TOURS

regularly on social media – it maintained its presence – but it paused its usually substantial online marketing and withheld from having any physical brochures printed up. Once these signs up life seemed to return to the market, the company began to get active again, choosing some tours to pour its physical efforts into and slowly ramping its marketing back up.

“We’re being very specific in targeting countries that are responding, and also destinations that are easier. At the moment Namibia is very popular. Namibia and Botswana have a low population density; you’re not going to be in cities and around people in busy markets. I think travelers are a little wary of that. So, we’re playing to our strengths on a destination level and on a source market level.”

“We’ve identified the tours that we want to push and run for the rest of this year, we’ve cancelled all the rest, so we’ve got a reasonable spread in terms of variety and availability for

the rest of the year. It’s about 25 tours, but it’s something. It’s a beginning.”

Nomad is in a strong position for moving forwards. Whilst it was forced to reduce the size of its team and assets in order to get through the desert, it did what it could to look after its people, keep in touch with its contacts and maintain its professional name. For example, the company has somehow managed to pay all its suppliers in full. Throughout the continent, Alex told us, some tour companies have left their suppliers high and dry – with tourism vanishing almost over-night, some found themselves unable to pay and responded by either leaving debts unpaid, going under or even packing up and vanishing overnight. Nomad made sure to find a way to pay its suppliers, meaning those professional relationships are still intact and in place ready for new tours.

As for life back at work, like for many of us, it looks different to how it used to. The slimmed-

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SETTING OUT AGAIN

NOMAD TOURS

down office team works majoritively from home, coming into the office once a week to touch base, but otherwise doing everything remotely. Lockdown showed the world just how much is possible via video call, and whilst it might not always be the same as face-to-face, the cut down on travel time and emissions is a revolutionary.

One change that Alex is lamenting is the potential loss or reduction of the mixed group trip. Holidayers who didn’t know each other used to come together in medium-sized groups on these tours, and the friendships that sprung up across nations were one of Alex’s favourite parts of the tour experience to facilitate. There was already an increasing lean towards private tours – those for couples or a small group that arrived together – but Alex predicts that this trend will only increase post-COVID. However, the key thing for Alex and the rest of Nomad is that they’re up and running again. “We haven’t set targets to get back to

C

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oceangrouphotel.com/amaan-bungalows 30 | Endeavour Magazine

2019 – I don’t know if we ever will. But like I said, we’ve become a lot more streamlined and we’ve done a lot of things to lower overheads, so we don’t actually need to go back to 2019 numbers. I’m quite lucky in that I don’t really have an ego issue: if we’re a smaller company but we’re more efficient, I’ll be just as happy.”

Whilst the company hasn’t set targets to get back to where it was, it does know where it needs to be in the short-term in order to come through the other side of this world crisis. “We will be fine until June next year. Past June, we will be in trouble, but that season – the July, August, September season – is usually our peak season, and we usually get our bookings for that between October and February. So, the next three months are really critical.”

“Watching that tour head out at the start of August was fantastic. At one stage, things seemed bleak; this is my life’s work, and I was in a very good position in 2019. Twelve months later, I was staring at the end of the runway and

SETTING OUT AGAIN

going, “Wow, this whole thing might just not make it.”

“It’s a huge relief now. Inquiries are picking up for the next year, and it can only get better as the vaccination roll out goes up and restrictions drop. We’re feeling positive. Things are still a long way from good, but there are signs of life.”

Signs of life that, thanks to carefully planning and choices throughout the past 18 months, Nomad is in the right position to embrace and run with. In some ways, it might feel a little like starting back at the beginning, but this time, Nomad has years of experience, strong relationships and an established reputation to its name.

As the world returns to a new kind of normal, we’re confident that Nomad will be rising with it – and with the same integrity, energy and sense of humour as ever. “There’s light at the end of the tunnel,” Alex laughed, “and this time it’s not a train.”

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Endeavour Magazine | 31

FROM THE HORSE’S MOUTH

AN INTRODUCTION

by Sylvia Loch “Inspired by the time-honoured traditions of the Classical World, Sylvia’s desire to protect the horse is reflected in her training methods.”

Kenilworth Press, Quiller Publishing Ltd, 2015

Dear Reader, For this, my first issue of From the Horse’s Mouth, may I begin by introducing myself as a long-established equestrienne and author of many riding books. My first book -The Classical Seat - was published in 1988 and has sold approximately 100,000 copies. To my great “Discover the magnificent history of dressage surprise, it took the horse world by storm, in her latest insightful book The Rider’s mainly because it was by a woman when most Balance from Sylvia Loch, acclaimed riding equestrian authors at the time were men. More teacher and expert on the subject of classical shockingly, it focused on the rider’s bum and horsemanship.” how and where it should be placed! (I also Echo Point, have several films on the subject, which can be USA and Kenilworth Press, UK. 2020. found on info@classicalseat.co.uk) Here are a few quotes about me to set the I now look forward to writing once a month scene: concerning horsey news and happenings.

This will include a number of articles which “Edinburgh-born, Lady Sylvia Loch, together outline the tenets of good and safe riding, with her late husband Lord Loch of Drylaw, how to get started and where the practice were the first to bring Portuguese horses to and beliefs of yesteryear still hold good today. the UK in l979. Sylvia herself has spent the In addition, I look forward to sharing news of past 30 years promoting classical riding, the artistic equestrian work, equine photography, subtleties of which differ from ‘normal’ riding, personalised silverware and hand-made as she is keen to explain.” leatherwork for horse and rider, including The Scotsman, 30th November 2002. details of the best saddles in the world.

32 | Endeavour Magazine

It is finally beginning to grow cold in the Suffolk countryside. Although we are only an hour and a half’s journey from London, it is quiet and peaceful, with very little traffic on our country lanes and an abundance of wildlife all around.

Almost daily, we hear the cry of the lark and the caw of a rook high above our heads in a Scots pine tree, and we are regularly visited by badgers. I never dreamed, when I left my Scottish Borders home at Eden Hall on the banks of the River Tweed, that I would find these sights and sounds so close to the city.

Hedges separate our land from our neighbours in this small hamlet; last night, the dogs disturbed a fox who had dared to cross the border mark! During the day, our life is a panorama of beauty - the cherry tree stands as tall as an oak, and whilst our apple season has ended, the plum tree is bearing fruit.

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This little corner of Suffolk is a haven for horses. Long fields with bridle paths link up the meadows, while small copses of trees provide homes for squirrels, rabbits and rooks, and Mr and Mrs Mallard Duck dally in the moat.

Sometimes we are treated to the vision of a huge buzzard, high in the sky. Out with the horses, we spot a trio of red deer who, quite unafraid, scamper across the meadow directly in front of us. Surprisingly, the horses watch but, also unafraid, just keep on going.

Three dogs share our cottage, which opens onto long meadows where we can happily walk all three without a lead. Most boisterous is our rescue dachshund from Cyprus who, despite her short legs, is into everything. A real hunter!

Gentler and more obedient is our yellow Lab from Scotland, in contrast to number three, our Doberman girl who was born here but whose forebears and manners are more continental.

What with my Welsh partner and me, a Scot, we are a modestly international set. Add to this

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one Lusitano stallion from Portugal - we rather enjoy all of our cultural differences.

“Why a Portuguese horse?”, I am often asked.

So very un-British!

Actually, not so. Granted, in the Middle Ages, it was either Moorland ponies or cobs in Britain, with the rugged Highland garron - bred for carrying stag - tending to be the biggest of these natives. Only royalty or the very wealthy could afford an imported ‘horse of the blood’.

However, it is not generally known that the English Thoroughbred did not exist until the Arabian horse reached our shores in the late 17th Century, with Oliver Cromwell among the first to import an Arab. Until that time, any nobleman worth his salt would import a steed from the Iberian Peninsula. At this point, both Spain and Portugal were ruled under one dynasty, and the much-prized war horses from the Peninsula were generally known as Spanish.

My own imported Iberian stallion is called Prazer, which in Portuguese means ‘pleasure’.

It’s useful to know that when you shake hands in Portugal, it’s ‘muito prazer’... ‘much pleasure’ (to meet you)! And so it is with Prazer pronounced ‘Prezair’, as in ‘prayer’. And he really was an answer to prayer. I have owned many horses in my lifetime and he is quite perfect.

Handsome, dashing, versatile, spirited, yet with an amazingly kind and gentle temperament.

In the horse world we call white horses ‘grey’ because, although initially born black, they gradually turn to a dark grey and then get lighter year after year with age. Some may end up dappled, others white as the driven snow, and that is revealed in my 25-year-old, Prazer.

Iberian horses tend to live much longer lives, too.

For so many of us horse people, although not unexpected, the recent passing of Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh has left a huge gap.

He represented everything we love about horses and horse-lore. It is my fervent hope that even now, he is driving his horse and chariot in the great Elysian fields in the sky, or perhaps, as

a highly competitive master rider, enjoying his polo in paradise.

Long ago at a private pre-Badminton Horse Trials party, the Duke joined us for a large informal buffet dinner. It was too crowded to move easily as my hosts and I tried to pass food around, but I managed to give him a plateful of goodies for which he seemed very grateful.

As we chatted about the riders and who we thought might win, it was as natural as talking to anyone.

Later, in the throng there was nowhere left for me to sit, but one of the riders, Mike Tucker, kindly shuffled along and indicated a cushion on the floor. I was just putting my first forkful of cottage pie into my mouth when I realised I was sitting between the legs of Princess Anne!

How embarrassing! - yet what could one do?

She might have been a brilliant horsewoman, winning a medal at the Olympics on the Queen’s birthday, but on this occasion, she lacked her father’s ability to put one at ease!

Endeavour Magazine | 35

Moving forward over three decades, what a beautiful procession and funeral we saw for Prince Philip the day before the Grand National. I was lucky enough to have met their Majesties on two or three occasions, all thanks to my connection with horses over so many years. The greatest of these honours was to be invited to attend the Royal Banquet given by H M The Queen at Buckingham Palace for the Portuguese President’s State Visit in 1996.

At the Treaty of Windsor Ball, the Portuguese School of Equestrian Art were brought over from Lisbon to celebrate 600 years of friendship between England and Portugal - our oldest ally. As Founder of the Lusitano Breed Society, I was asked to present and compere

36 | Endeavour Magazine

the occasion. This was a huge honour in front of several hundred dignitaries and guests from several nations, but the horses were hugely admired.

Standing there on the rostrum in a white ball gown and tiara, I compered what was going on to the assembled company - many of whom were not horse people. It was important to explain the different moves and manoeuvres as 12 bay stallions wove their way in and out and literally danced to the music! It was a once in a lifetime evening: I shall never forget it or the impeccable manners and movements of the horses and their riders. A joy to behold.

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Endeavour Magazine | 37

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HEADS UP SANBS chevron-square-right v phone-square 011 761 9000

Less than 1% of South Africans are active blood donors, and once taken, blood only lasts 42 days before it must be disposed of. Now, more than ever, we are acutely aware of the importance of a smoothly operating health service: with over 99% of the population that may need to receive blood not donating any, this gives you a quick idea of the challenges faced by the South African Blood Service (SANBS) on a daily basis.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

S

ANBS is a world leader in its field. Using advanced technology and proactive, efficient systems, the organisation makes sure that the South African health service has all of the blood it needs to carry out treatments and save lives. We caught up with the organisation to find out how they stay on top of this responsibility, including the application of its high-flying technological arsenal.

Since its formation in 2002, the South African National Blood Service has seen its operations grow substantially. Originally formed in a merger between several separate blood transfusion services, SANBS is now renowned for the expertise of its medical professionals, its high-tech facilities and its stringent safety procedures, and has become one of the brightest examples of a blood service in the world. As a not-for-profit organisation that is free from shareholders and private sector involvement, SANBS is able to re-invest all of its profits back into the organisation, with the desire to improve service and safety being the only driver.

Plentiful blood reserves mean that seriously ill patients can undergo surgery, mothers-tobe can receive blood transfusions when going into labour, and those in need of emergency Endeavour Magazine | 39

SANBS

treatment can receive it. Blood is the key resource needed for South Africa’s medical and emergency care system to operate effectively, and it is SANBS that acts as the bastion that protects its effective collection, screening and distribution.

One of the greatest challenges for SANBS, apart from low donor numbers, is South Africa’s wide reach. These two challenges combine together into a mountain of a task. The country’s population is spread across a large area, with many communities living in remote locations that are far from any major cities or towns. The organisation has 25 facilities, as well as multiple mobile blood units stationed within shopping centres, holiday resorts and secondary schools.

However, whilst these are more than sufficient when it comes to blood collection, the delivery of blood to remote health facilities is a different issue and calls for a far faster, all-encompassing reach. SANBS has its fleet of vehicles, but in its latest expansion into new technology, it has begun trialling the application of another, faster

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The Pulse of Technology

form of vehicle that can get to the hardest-toreach places.

Globally, drone technology is being applied to more and more industries. From military operations to essential industries such agriculture or construction, and even emergency services such as firefighting and the police, drones have proven themselves to be game-changers in many an operation, thanks to their height, quick speeds, manoeuvrable size and the affordability of using them.

In the face of South Africa’s widespread, hard-to-reach population, drone technology is a potential life-saver. SANBS has developed the use of drones to both deliver blood and to collect blood samples in an emergency situation. The organisation’s two-fold strategy is the first of its kind in the world, using drones to transport emergency, universal ‘O negative’ blood to patients in need, and secondly, to transport a sample of the patients’ blood to a SANBS facility and return with the appropriate type.

Currently, drones would be able to carry up to four units of blood at a time, though future designs might be able to improve on this. In the current design, these drones can fly at a height of up to 100 metres, which allows it to travel as the crow flies over most terrain. SANBS has developed this plan in cooperation with Western Cape Blood Service (WCBS), as well as with the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) to secure licensing and airspace.

SANBS is in a strong position compared to where it began, collecting six times the amount of blood it used to, despite bumps in the road along the way. However, supply can still be an issue, with only around 500,000 of South Africa’s 53 million inhabitants donating blood.

20% of these donors are secondary school students, which also means that supply levels drop over school holiday periods such as Easter and Christmas.

SANBS has invested in many mobile units with which to lead drives throughout the country, which are able to tackle this shortage.

However, there are further expenses and challenges in obtaining this essential resource.

For example, hepatitis and HIV are both

HEADS UP

prevalent in many areas of the country, and this must be screened for in every unit of blood donated to SANBS. This process takes place in SANBS’ state of the art laboratories and costs the organisation R500,000 a day.

This is a small price to pay for a safe and reliable blood supply, but it is one of the many areas in which SANBS can never relax its standards. When it comes to a resource as precious and essential as donated blood, the organisation can never have an ‘off’ day – it must consistently meet every stringent standard, and it goes without saying that in such a health and safety conscious industry, the South Africa National Blood Service is highly regulated. All nurses and technicians employed by the organisation are continuously trained and registered with a statutory council who ensure that necessary high standards are maintained. Due to the risk of staff coming into contact with individuals infected with hepatitis B or HIV, employees are immunised for hepatitis B and only the highest quality

protective equipment is permitted, such as needles with protective sheaths and specialist medical gloves. Any concerns that a member of staff may have contracted HIV from a donor will see them receive prophylactic treatment immediately.

In every way it can, SANBS is striving to be the best that it can be. If drones are able to be utilized in this innovative way, then location should no longer have the definitive impact it currently has on whether or not a South African resident receives the full care that they need, which will go a long way to combat one of the forms of social and economic inequality faced by the varied population. Blood is yet another frontier on the road to greater economic freedom and equal opportunity in the wide-spread country – one that might not come immediately to mind, but one that, in an emergency, could be the decider between life and death.

Endeavour Magazine | 43

44 | Endeavour Magazine

PROGRESSIVE PROPERTY PEOPLE Broll Ghana chevron-square-right www.brollghana.com phone-square +27 11 441 4000

Broll Ghana, the biggest independently-owned, Pan-African property company in Ghana, celebrated its 15th anniversary this year.

The company focuses on property management, offering services to many of Africa’s top property portfolio investors. Whilst its Ghanian operations are based out of Accra, the Broll Property Group has subsidiaries throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. We took a look at how Broll Ghana celebrated its recent important anniversary, as well as how the multipronged property company group has been fairing during the pandemic.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

W

ith its success based around the notion of companies and organisations expanding their physical footprints, the period of lockdowns, limited travel and working from home that we’ve had seems as though it would have raised implications for Broll Ghana. Given that it advertises itself towards groups looking to expand across African borders, one would be forgiven for wondering how the company has been getting on for the past 18 months.

However, at its recent anniversary celebration, the Broll Property Group’s Board Chairman Rev George Amoako-Nimako shared, during a reportedly emotional speech; “Our company has indeed grown and continues to grow in the face of myriad of challenges in the general economy, as well as our particular sector. We have been able to cement our reputation as the brand of choice for sterling property management and related services.”

The Board Chairman was moved as he spoke about seeing the company reaching the point that it had after a long road of work, and especially given the most recent period of challenge. Sounding positive about the future, following what he described as a very successful initial 15 years, he predicted; “We Endeavour Magazine | 45

BROLL GHANA

expect that the years ahead will see a higher level of performance because we have learned our lessons very well.”

As Broll Ghana state on their website, “We offer high-performing solutions built on a culture of innovation, distinguished by service excellence and long-standing client relationships – which is why we are renowned as the ‘progressive property people’.” This slogan is a new one that Broll Ghana unveiled at its anniversary celebrations, along with a new logo. “Many of Africa’s largest property portfolio investors have chosen us as their preferred service provider thanks to our proven track record in delivering superior returns. We align the interests of the property investor, tenants and the property manager using a strategic blend of skills, experience, knowledge, relationships and proactive operational efficiency.”

The Broll Property Group was founded in 1975, and Broll Ghana is just one of many subsidiaries

46 | Endeavour Magazine

throughout Africa. Their other subsidiaries are in Botswana, Cameroon, Eswatini, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Réunion, Seychelles, South Africa, Uganda and Zambia. Between all of these, it’s no wonder Broll is a go-to service provider for people looking to expand over African borders!

As the company states about itself; “Our success is built on a culture of providing progressive property solutions which stems from a tangible understanding of local markets across Africa. We aim to deliver strategic fully-integrated property services, global best practices and innovative solutions for property owners, occupiers, investors and developers wherever they invest on the continent, seizing opportunities and maximising value.”

Broll Ghana was founded in 2006, the result of several entities working together: the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), SIC Insurance Company, and of course, Broll Property Group. Since then, the world has changed significantly, with Covid only the latest in a long line of curve-balls that have been thrown. And yet, despite all of that, it has not only survived but thrived. When it was first founded, the Ghanian subsidiary had only two areas of focus – property and facility management – but over time, it has expanded greatly. Today, it works in a broad number of areas of the property market, including corporate real estate, shopping center management, market research, consultancy, property brokering and project management.

So, how has the company responded to the pandemic? Like many, it has taken the time to turn its attention to its digital operations, and the future is set to be one with a far heavier emphasis on these digital and online elements.

Whilst this is a change, these elements tie in comfortably with the company’s existing aims: namely, aiding clients in managing and maintaining assets. When the company was first founded, there wasn’t much in the way of a maintenance culture in the African property market, so it identified and filled this niche.

Now, the latest development in this area is the

PROGRESSIVE PROPERTY PEOPLE

BROLL GHANA

introduction of a new piece of management software called Broll Vantage: designed as the company’s response to its new digital focus, the program seeks to improve transparency and flexibility within property management processes.

Talking about Broll Vantage, the company explains; “This user-friendly cloud-based system is designed specifically for property and facility managers who need to access our contractor services, quickly and confidently.

Our aim is to ensure that our contractors, facility and property managers comply with all Occupational Health and Safety policies and procedures. We intentionally and selectively only partner with compliant, leading contractors across the continent, and as such this strategy is facilitated and governed through this patented platform.”

Other initiatives of Broll’s include the Broll Academy, which trains up Broll staff to further develop their property knowledge, as well as

48 | Endeavour Magazine

taking on and trading fresh graduates, and the Broll Foundation – the group’s CSR department.

With the group still going strong, these initiatives are still in operation, thus allowing the group to continue to benefit others and share their surviving success. For businesses to move forwards post-pandemic, this type of future-building and shared success is key, and it seems as though Broll has plenty of training and influence to go around, both in Ghana and throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. Here’s to 15 more years.

Endeavour Magazine | 49

50 | Endeavour Magazine

THAT’S WHAT WE LIKE Pepsi Jamaica chevron-square-right www.pepsico.com phone-square 876 757-3839 As one of the largest, oldest, and most prestigious beverages brands in the world, PepsiCo is a company that needs no introduction.

This mega-company has annual sales above 65 billion dollars and a portfolio of leading global brands such as Pepsi, Gatorade, 7up, Lipton, Frito Lay and Quaker. In terms of strength and brand recognition, Pepsi is a global A-lister, standing shoulderto-shoulder with the likes of McDonalds, Coca-Cola, Microsoft and Google. In terms of flavour… well, it’s for good reason that Pepsi carbonated soft drinks are enjoyed by millions, if not billions of people in every corner of the world.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

S

ince the Pepsi-Cola name first appeared on the shelves of stores and restaurants on August 28th 1898, the company has gone from strength-to-strength, providing consumers with refreshing beverages for any occasion. However, as industry global giants like Pepsi have found, the matter of producing, bottling, and distributing its products in sufficient quantity to reach its customers in 200 countries is an impossibility. Bearing in mind that Pepsi sells an estimated 1,000,000 cans and bottles of Pepsi products each day in the US alone – a number which must surely leap to the hundreds of millions sold globally – even a world-class company of Pepsi’s calibre cannot operate successfully using a centralised production and distribution model. At best it would be woefully inefficient, at its worst a disaster.

To ensure that customer demand for Pepsi products is satisfied, responsibility for the bottling and distribution of Pepsi drinks falls to specialist regional bottling companies, whose commercial purpose is centred specifically around achieving the production and output needed to meet demand for Pepsi products within its sphere of influence, and expand market share where possible – a franchise operation, in other words, that puts Pepsi out Endeavour Magazine | 51

PEPSI JAMAICA at the front, wherever they are in the world.

And make no mistake about it – whatever the country and whatever the state of the marketplace, Pepsi’s regional bottling operators lead the field.

Take the Caribbean island of Jamaica, for example: here, Pepsi’s regional bottling subsidiary, Pepsi Jamaica, boasts a 61% share of the country’s bottled soft drinks market.

Following three years of successive growth, it would be no exaggeration to say that Pepsi Jamaica, owned by the Latin American beverages giant, Continental Beverage Corporation (CBC) of Guatemala, has hit a purple patch which shows no sign fading.

It is no coincidence that the company’s recent growth spurt has come about following a period of heavy investment in its bottling lines and production facilities. In-line with the company’s intention to boost growth by a further 25% over the coming three to four years, Pepsi Bottling Company Jamaica has invested US$10 million on a new bottling line, alongside

W T C

a further $1.5 million spend to increase the number of Pepsi drink dispensers, soda fountains, and coolers deployed throughout shops, wholesalers, and other retail outlets and channels across the island.

The successful roll-out of an ambitious and aggressive growth strategy designed to consolidate Pepsi Jamaica’s positioning as the island’s market leader has quite literally borne fruit, following, its acquisition of all grapefruit supplies in Jamaica and Belize – a move that has provided the company with the ingredients needed to drastically boost output and sales of Ting, and achieved a threefold growth in sales since 2013 as a result. Pepsi Jamaica has also introduced 17 new products, including a flavoured water called Splash, and a grapeflavoured Tropicana that is outperforming expectations. Since Splash’s market entry in 2012, the drink has scored 20% of the flavoured water market.

With a surge of upstart new entrants into the market such as iCool and CranWata, along with

Willie’s Trucking Co. Ltd. lauds the owners and management team of Pepsi Jamaica for their visionary and transformational leadership in making Pepsi an exemplary company and brand.

has a fleet of GPS monitored tractor heads, shipping containers, chassis ranging from 20 to 48 feet, flatbeds, lowboys, and forklifts. Our electronic communication system and strategic locations with the ports ensure prompt and efficient haulage services.

Willie’s Trucking is proud of its long-standing business partnership with Pepsi Jamaica commencing in 1993.

Willie’s Trucking, incorporated in 1992, specializes in container and heavy haulage services and is registered with global credit reporting agency Dun & Bradstreet. Willie’s Trucking

Willie’s Trucking remains dedicated to its commitment to deliver exceptional service with integrity.

52 | Endeavour Magazine

THAT’S WHAT WE LIKE

W T C

A valued partner of Pepsi Cola Jamaica Limited since 1993 Committed to superior quality service in container haulage, heavy equipment and equipment rental.

“Equipment you can count on.

People you can trust.”

Driven with Integrity Willie’s Trucking Company Limited 22 First Street, Newport West, Kingston 13, Jamaica

Specializing In Container Haulage From Port Bustamante

(876) 937- 3553, (876) 901-3667, (876) 276-7920 williestruckingcompanylimited@gmail.com

“Haulage At Its Best”

PEPSI JAMAICA

the threat posed by Pepsi’s long-time archrival, Coca Cola, such ruthlessness has been a necessary measure taken with long-term selfpreservation in mind. When you’ve been at the top as long as Pepsi Jamaica Bottling CompanyCBC has, you learn how to stay there.

PepsiCo’s operations in Jamaica and Central America are representative of the company’s long and prestigious heritage in the region. In 1942, PepsiCo issued CBC its first production and commercialisation franchise for Guatemala, marking the beginning of a 70-year strategic alliance. It is telling that CBC are the oldest bottlers of PepsiCo outside the United States of America, and this close relationship has continued to grow and evolve over the years. Today, CBC is now anchor bottler for nine markets within Latin America and The Caribbean: Jamaica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Ecuador and Peru – a list of countries which will continue to grow as the PepsiCo-CBC partnership expands

54 | Endeavour Magazine

further into new territories. In recognition of CBC’s operative excellence, PepsiCo has named CBC and Pepsi Jamaica Bottling Company as “Latin American Bottler of the Year” several times and “Worldwide Bottler of the Year” in 2012 – an accolade that understandably generates much pride in the business.

Understandably, there is much optimism at Pepsi Jamaica because looking ahead there is a huge amount for the company to be optimistic about. Following the signing of a strategic alliance between Pepsi Jamaica and global beer brand, Red Stripe in 2013 – one of the world’s best-loved beer brands, now part of Diageo, together, the two companies have gone on to vastly improve their distribution infrastructure in unison and develop synergies that have allowed them to develop their product portfolio even further. All in all, it is clear that Pepsi Jamaica Bottling Company is only going one way – up. In the words of their 2020 slogan, that’s what we like!

AMAZING WORLD

EATING INSECTS TO SAVE THE PLANET?

by Alice Instone-Brewer Some cultures have long been embracing According to an interview with the BBC, insects as a source of protein, either as a staple Israeli entrepreneur Dror Tamir seems to be part of their meals or as a tasty extra snack. In passionate about two things: global food and other cultures, calling an insect ‘tasty’ would environmental equality, and grasshoppers. attract a shudder and a strange look. However, More specifically, he’s been interested in the die-hards for protecting the environment have insect as a food source since he was a child, after been turning to this food source to relieve the hearing stories from his grandmother about environmental strain of the meat industry for Israel facing food shortages and struggles in the some time – the issue is, they’ve having a bit 1950s. These existing issues were aggravated of a struggle convincing others to do the same. by swarms of locusts, and so, some people – One Israeli company believes they have the like Dror’s grandmother, who was a cook on a answer: flavoured jellied sweets. They don’t collective farm – turned to eating them. And look like grasshopper, they don’t taste like they weren’t too bad! grasshopper...but they’re grasshopper. In fact, According to Dror, grasshoppers taste like they’re locust. pecans, mushrooms, coffee and chocolate.

56 | Endeavour Magazine

to crack into with insect meat as a concept, many nations around the world have already embraced insects in their diet. Not just locusts, but crickets and mealworms too, as well as caterpillars, termites and palm weevils. The biggest countries for this are the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Congo, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Nigeria and South Africa, as well as many parts of the Middle East.

The advantages really are huge: not only could these sources of protein relieve some of the demand on the other meat industries, but they are far lower-impact to farm and have a much faster turn-around! For example, it only takes 29 days for a locust to become fully grown – Dror says his firm are able to breed 400 million a year in their facility. Some insects can even live on waste, thus becoming a brilliant form of recycling.

Not an appetizing thought? Perhaps more focus needs to be placed on that ‘pecans, mushrooms, coffee and chocolate’ flavour, and That’s a delicious sounding mix! On top of that, less on the waste-disposal angle. Whatever Dror’s company flavours its gummies to take way we look at it, some scientists are saying the experience even further from the original that soon, we may have no choice but to insects, for those who find it too squeamish. get on board: by 2050, the world population Oddly enough, these protein-packed gummies is expected to reach 9.8 billion up from the therefore now come in strawberry and orange current 7.7 billion. All those extra mouths are flavour. In the future, Dror is also hoping to going to need food from somewhere, and produce products that can be used more farming is already under more pressure than it effectively in meals and filling snacks, such as can handle in an environmentally safe manner. energy bars, burgers and falafel balls. A pecan, Whilst this practice isn’t common-place mushroom, coffee and chocolate falafel ball? in western countries, it does exist. There are That almost sounds tempting. firms and services that provide insect meat in Wouldn’t it be a beautiful sort of poetry if Europe, the US and the UK, as well as products locusts could be used to relieve global hunger? such as grasshopper flour, but it is yet to hit Of course, whilst the West is one of the main mainstream supermarkets. At this point, what’s problem-areas when it comes to meat industry one more change to normality? If it’ll help the pollution, and therefore an essential place planet, bring on the locust falafel!

Endeavour Magazine | 57

58 | Endeavour Magazine

CLIMATE CHANGE: ENERGY FOR BISCUIT BAKING Baker Pacific chevron-square-right bakerpacific.net phone-square +44 7710305309

In past issues of Endeavour, we have featured biscuit oven and baking company, Baker Pacific, on several occasions. We’re always keen to hear what Iain Davidson, company ROLE, is up to, whether it’s releasing a latest book or revolutionising biscuit oven design.

Lately, Iain has been looking into the relationship between biscuit baking and climate change, and how to improve matters for a greener future. Below is an article and report penned

by Iain that further explores the issue, breaks down the science, and looks at what can be done.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

1. Combustion Data: Natural Gas Gas has been and continues to be the predominant fuel for biscuit baking ovens.

The development and availability of natural gas supplies have made gas the main fuel for the baking industry throughout the world.

Countries where electricity was the main energy source, for example China and countries where diesel oil was used for example India and the Middle East now use gas as the lowest cost energy source.

The combustion of natural gas is a major source of greenhouse gases which are causing climate change. This has become a major concern throughout the world. This situation makes it essential that we seek ways to reduce the carbon footprint of the biscuit baking industry.

1.1 Combustion Process The combustion process is a reaction of rapid oxidisation started by the correct mixture of fuel, oxygen and an ignition source. In order for complete combustion of natural gas, excess air is supplied.

Endeavour Magazine | 59

BAKER PACIFIC

The chemical reaction for natural gas combustion with 20% excess air is:

is an important indication of the combustion efficiency. The content of carbon dioxide after combustion with CH4 + 1.20 x 2(O2 + 3.76 N2) -> CO2 + 2 H2O + 0.5 O2 + 9.4 N2 excess air is approximately Ref. Engineering Toolbox 10.5% for natural gas and Air is composed of 20.9% of oxygen, approximately 13% for light fuel oils.

78% of nitrogen and 1% of other gases. For most applications, every 1 m3 of natural gas, approximately 10 m3 of air is required to provide complete combustion of natural gas. To ensure complete combustion of the fuel, excess air is drawn in by the burners. The combustion efficiency will increase with increased excess air, until the heat loss in the excess air is larger than the heat provided by more efficient combustion.

When fuel and oxygen in the air are in perfectly balance and the fuel is burned completely, the combustion is said to be stoichiometric. Typical excess air to achieve the best efficiency for combustion is 10-20%.

FIG.1 Stoichiometric combustion Carbon dioxide is a product of the Ref. engineeringtoolbox.com/ /stoichiometriccombustion and the content in the flue gas combustion-d_399.html

60 | Endeavour Magazine

CLIMATE CHANGE: ENERGY FOR BISCUIT BAKING

1.2 Carbon Dioxide Emission from Burning Natural Gas To calculate the Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emission from a fuel, the carbon content of the fuel must be multiplied with the ratio of molecular weight of CO2 (44) to the molecular weight of Carbon (12) -> 44 / 12 = 3.7 Carbon Dioxide emission from burning a fuel can be calculated as qCO2 = cf / hf MCO2 /Mm where:

particularly fossil fuel use and distribution and agriculture. Work on reducing air pollution is valuable and can lead to lasting cuts in methane emissions.

Water vapour is also a potent greenhouse gas, but it has a short lifetime and is an amplifier, not a driver of climate change.

Human activities currently emit an estimated 10 billion tonnes of carbon each year, mostly by burning fossil fuels.

Ref. The Royal Society www.royalsociety.org

qCO2 = specific CO2 emission [kgCO2/kWh] cf = specific carbon content in the fuel [kgC/kgfuel] hf = specific energy content in the fuel [kWh/kgfuel] MC = Molecular weight Carbon [kg/kmol Carbon] MCO2 = Molecular weight Carbon Dioxide [kg/kmol CO2] Emission of CO2 from methane, natural gas is given below: Specific carbon content: kgc / kg fuel

0.75

Specific energy content:

kWh / kg fuel

15.4

Specific CO2 emission (amount of fuel basis)

kgco2 / kg fuel

2.75

Specific CO2 emission (amount of energy basis)

kgco2 / kWh

0.18

Note Heat loss - 55-75% - in power generation is not included in the numbers.

Ref. Engineering Toolbox – carbon dioxide emissions

2. The Biscuit Industry Carbon Footprint 2.1 Climate Change and Green House Gases Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere absorb heat energy from the sun and emit it, keeping the earth’s surface and lower atmosphere warm. Greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide, water vapour, methane and nitrous oxide. The biggest contributor to the warming of the climate is carbon dioxide, CO2. Since preindustrial times the atmospheric concentration of CO2 has increased by over 40% and methane by over 150%. More than half of this increase has occurred since 1970.

Methane is an important greenhouse gas which leaks during industrial processes,

The biscuit industry now uses gas as the fuel for baking in almost every country. Natural gas is now widely available and economic. However this gives our industry a large carbon footprint. It will attract pressure in many countries to reduce the use of gas, by using electricity from renewable sources and improving efficiency.

Efficiency can be improved by: • Effective insulation of the baking chambers and return band • Burner specification and adjustment for low CO2 emission • Baking chambers of minimum cross section to increase radiation from the surfaces • Heat recovery systems for Indirect Fired ovens • Using the extraction from the flues for heating factory services such as heating water • Using hot flue gases to pre-heat combustion air

BAKER PACIFIC

2.2 Energy Usage For Baking The table below indicates some typical values for energy usage for baking.

Product type

Energy for baking kWh/kg (excluding oven losses)

Energy for baking kWh/kg (including est. losses)

Short dough biscuits

0.2121

0.404

Semi-sweet biscuits

0.2502

0.477

Crackers

0.3402

0.646

Note: 1 From actual installation Note: 2 From calculations see Chapter 20

2.3 Consumption Of Gas For Baking Density:

0.68 kg/m3

Density at baking temperature

0.4 kg/m3

Heat value of burning natural gas (methane):

42 - 55 MJ/kg (11.6 – 15.3 kWh/kg )

Average energy per kg of gas:

13.45 kWh/kg

www.world.nuclear.org

The calorific value, density and energy for natural gas vary with the source, process and delivery. The values above are from the sources listed under references.

Energy usage

kWh/kg

Natural gas consumption for baking one tonne of biscuits

Short dough biscuits

0.404 kWh/kg

30.0kg of gas

Semi-sweet biscuits

0.477 kWh/kg

35.5kg of gas

Crackers

0. 646 kWh/kg

48.0kg of gas

Average power requirement per tonne of product range 509 kWh CO2 emissions: 104 kg per tonne of product Average gas consumption per tonne 37.8 kg range A bakery with three production lines 2.4 The Carbon Footprint producing a total of 50 tonnes per 8 hour shift The combustion of 1.0kg of natural gas and 20 shifts a week will produce approximately produces 2.75kg of CO2 and 0.18 kWh of energy. 1000 tonnes of biscuits per week. www.engineeringtoolbox.com

The average production of CO2 for one tonne of product range (short dough / semisweet, cracker) is: 37.8 x 2.75 = 104 kg 62 | Endeavour Magazine

The CO2 emissions will be approximately 104,000 T per week and over 5,200,000 T per year.

CLIMATE CHANGE: ENERGY FOR BISCUIT BAKING

Biscuit consumption and CO2 emissions in several countries

In these countries the total population of 2327 million produce 960500 T of CO2 emissions each year from biscuit production.

Per capita emissions: 0.413 kg/year The total global CO2 emissions in 2016: 35,753,305,000 T. The world population is 7.46 billion. Per capita CO2 emissions: 4.79 T

led to rapid development of renewable energy sources, solar, hydropower, wind and biomass.

In addition nuclear power is an important source for the generation of electricity. The methods of the generation of electricity have changed during the last 10 years and now energy from some renewables is less costly than energy from new fossil fuel sources.

www.worldometers.info/co2-emissions

LCOE (Levelised costs of energy): based on 2.5 Energy Sources For Biscuit Baking the cost of building the power plant and the The current energy source for biscuit costs of fuel and operation during the plants baking world-wide is gas. The option in some lifetime. countries is fuel oil. However oil has a higher CO2 emission rate than gas, 3.15 kgco2/kg fuel USD/MWh 2009 2019 compared to 2.75 kgco2/kgfuel for gas.

359 40 Electricity has substantial advantages for Solar photovoltaic baking, but currently is expensive and the main Solar thermal tower 168 141 generation systems involve substantial CO2 Nuclear 123 155 emissions. Fossil fuels have been the cheapest 135 41 source of power for generating electricity. Onshore wind However, burning fossil fuels for generating Coal 111 109 electricity and heat is the largest source of Gas peaker 275 175 greenhouse gases, causing 30% of global Gas 83 56 emissions. www.ourworldindata.org

3. Generating Electricity from Renewable Energy Sources The concern over climate change and the urgent need to reduce carbon emissions has

Electricity costs from solar fell 13% yearon-year reaching USD 0.068 / kWh in 2019.

Onshore and offshore wind costs fell about 9% Endeavour Magazine | 63

BAKER PACIFIC

year on year to USD 0.053 / kWh and USD 0.115 / kWh respectively for newly commissioned projects.

Renewables made up 26.2% of global electricity generation in 2018. It is expected to rise to 45% by 2040. Over half of all utility scale renewable capacity additions in 2019 achieved lower costs than the cheapest equivalent new coal plant. www.c2es.org

www.energypost.eu

3.1 Power Generation Costs For Renewable Energy USD/MWh

2010

2021

Solar photovoltaic

0.37

0.05

Solar thermal tower

0.35

0.07

Offshore wind

0.16

0.13

Onshore wind

0.08

0.05

www.energypost.eu

The price of generation from onshore wind and solar PV-generated power have both fallen below USD 0.05 / kWh. Fossil fuel powered generation usually costs between USD 0.05/ kWh and 0.18/kWh. These developments will continue based on concerns over climate change and the need to reduce carbon emissions. This will affect the options for energy for biscuit baking.

in 2020 reaching 38% of the total electricity generated. For several individual countries it is now the main source of electricity, including United Kingdom, Germany and Spain. In United Kingdom 54% of electricity came from low carbon sources. In 2020 renewable energy sources accounted for 12% of the total energy consumption and 20% of electricity generation in the USA. Japan’s government has pledged to increase renewable sources, solar and wind, for electricity generation from 10% in 2018 to 2224% by 2030.

The Renewable Energy Master Plan (REMP) for Nigeria seeks to increase the supply of renewable electricity from 13% of total electricity generation in 2015 to 23% in 2025 and 36% by 2030. Renewable electricity would then account for 10% of Nigerian total energy consumption by 2025. REMP targets higher electrification rates, from 42% in 2005 to 60% in 2015 and 75% by 2025.

In a number of countries in Asia Pacific, Latin America and Africa energy from biomass contributes a significant source of energy with low carbon dioxide emissions. The most common biomass materials used for energy are plants, such as corn and soy and wood. The energy from these materials can be burned to create heat or converted into electricity.

Some coal fired power stations are now being converted to burn biomass.

FIG 3 Increase in energy from renewables 2019 - 2025

From International Energy Agency. www.iea.org FIG 2

After Lazard

3.2 Development Of Electricity Generation From Renewables Renewable energy became the biggest source of electricity in the European Union 64 | Endeavour Magazine

Renewables will become the largest source of energy by 2025, surpassing coal.

CLIMATE CHANGE: ENERGY FOR BISCUIT BAKING

DSM International Ltd Hong Kong

Quality, Professional, Expertise

Tel: +852-2545-6122 Fax: +852-2541-9643 Email: sales@dsm-intl.com

www.dsm-mc.com

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BAKER PACIFIC

3.3 Future Developments For Biscuit Baking It is predicted that electricity will in the future be a preferred energy for many industries, based on competitive costs with current gas supplies and the need to reduce reliance on fossil fuels. In addition electricity is a clean and easily controlled energy source. Electric baking ovens have the following features: • Radiant heat transfer which is penetrative and achieves optimum volume and texture of the products • Clean energy that does not contaminate the products or the baking environment.

There are no products of combustion.

• Dry heat which is efficient in reducing moisture content. Steam application and turbulence systems provide humidity as required by the baking process • Electric heaters are easily and accurately controlled • Minimum oven maintenance is required.

Solar panels Photo by MICHAEL WILSON on Unsplash

4.2 Solar energy for a new bakery A bakery roof of 4,500m2 could support 2000 solar panels of 96cells and 350W capacity for each panel. The panel size is 1.90m x 1.0m.

Energy = solar panel watts x average hours of sunlight per year x 0.75 0.75 typical efficiency factor. Hours based on mid Europe: 2000 hours per year

4. Solar Energy Calculation: 4.1 New Biscuit Bakeries

350 W x 2000 hrs x 0.75 = 525,000W per year per panel 525 kWh/panel x 2000 panels = 1,050,000kWh per year Vivint Solar www.vivintsolar.com

FIG 4 New PT Mayora Indah bakery in Indonesia with

solar panels

Modern biscuit bakeries have long flat roofed production areas. The image above is an example of modern bakery design. New bakeries now often have production areas of around 150m x 30m, 4,500m2. This area could be used for solar panels.

66 | Endeavour Magazine

Power Requirement For A Production Line: Average power requirement for producing 1000kg of cracker, semi-sweet and short dough biscuits: 509kWh Our 2000 solar panels would power the production line for approximately 2000 hours.

Average hours of sunlight per year: • • • • • • •

Europe: Paris 1660, Rome 2500 USA: Chicago 2508 Brazil: Sao Paolo 1948 Asia: Bombay 2680, Jakarta 2975 Africa: Lagos 1885, Johannesburg 3182 China: Shanghai 1874 Australia: Sydney 2426

CLIMATE CHANGE: ENERGY FOR BISCUIT BAKING

So there you have it! A bit dense? For more information and a bigger break-down on this and other biscuit over matters, you can check out Iain’s various books, as well as his contributions on www.biscuitpeople.com Iain Davidson graduated from the School of Industrial Design (Engineering) at RCA in London in 1965 and joined Baker Perkins Ltd as an Industrial Design Engineer. He worked in the Technical Department on the design of new biscuit and bakery processing machines until 1975, gaining a thorough technical knowledge of the machines and processes.

He rose through the ranks at Baker Perkins, until he was appointed leadership roles such as Managing Director of Baker Perkins (Hong Kong) Ltd and Director of Baker Perkins Japan KK. Iain established PT Baker Pacific Mandiri in Indonesia in 2000, and in Hong Kong in 2004. Baker Pacific Ltd is now a UK registered company.

REFERENCES CEIC Data www.ceicdata.com 2021 Center for Climate and Energy Solutions www.c2es.org 2021 Energy Post.eu www.energypost.eu 2021 Global Solar Atlas www.globalsolaratlas.info/map 2021 International Energy Agency www.iea.org 2021 INHABITAT 909 N. Pacific Coast Highway, 11th Floor, El Segundo, CA 90245, USA

https://inhabitat.com 2021 IPCC. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

www.unfoundation.org/climate/panel 2021 Lazard www.lazard.com 2021 NFPA Committee Input No.48 – NFPA 87-2012

www.nfpa.org 2021 Nuclear Energy Agency www.oecd-nea.org/lcoe 2021 Our World in Data www.ourworldindata.org 2021 Photovoltaic Software www.photovoltaic-software.com 2021 Photonic Universe www.photonicuniverse.com 2021 Statista www.statista.com 2021 Testo Inc. Applications Guide Rev. 1.0. 2006 www.testo-international.com 2021 Thermowatt DhE www.thermowatt.com

www.dhesrl.com 2021 The Engineering ToolBox www.engineeringtoolbox.com 2021 UK Power www.ukpower.com 2021 Vivint Solar www.vivint.com 2021 Watlow www.watlow .com 2021 World Bakers www.worldbakers.com 2021

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READY FOR THE NEXT STEP Staatsolie chevron-square-right www.staatsolie.com phone-square +597 499649

Founded in 1980, Staatsolie saw its 40-year anniversary come and go during an unusual year for everyone, and like many companies, its 2020 Strategy for Success came to a head in unexpected circumstances.

The company culture was founded on a spirit of pioneering and courage in the face of uncertainty, all of which is exactly the kind of attitude companies have needed for the past year and a half.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

L

ast time we spoke to Staatsolie, its Managing Director Rudolf Elias told us what it had planned for 2020; we looked back at its strategy from a 2021 perspective to discuss what’s happened since, what might happen next, and whether or not the company is living up to its slogan to be ‘ready for the next step’.

Staatsolie is the state-owned oil company of Suriname, tasked with overseeing the entire sector for the country, involved in oil exploration, drilling, production, refining, marketing, sales, and transportation. It has a grand standing within its country, but it has smaller and less certain origins: as the company says of itself, “Staatsolie set up to pave a way into the unknown, without knowing exactly what we would achieve... ‘Confidence in one’s own ability’ is the common thread in our entire existence - a trust that starts in 1980 and has never been shamed.”

These passionate words refer to the fact that, when Staatsolie was first founded, it was a small operation without the required knowledge or resources to tackle its task, but it learnt and grew, and did so determinedly. Oil was first found in Suriname in 1920, but it wasn’t until 1960 that any oil was actually drilled and Endeavour Magazine | 69

STAATSOLIE

recovered. Even then, Suriname was unable to attract international interest in its oil deposits, and so, in May 1980, not wanting to waste the resource available to it any longer, the government created a petroleum commission.

As a part of this commission, Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname N.V was formed, and instructed not only to reach out to international bodies, but in the meantime, to get on with doing the exploration work itself. Suriname wasn’t going to sit and wait for another country to come in and allow it to tap its resources – it decided that it was time to develop a means to do this for itself, and put geologist Eddy Jharap at the helm of the operation.

In the company’s own words about its history: “The vision of Eddy, as Managing Director, was to prove that even without foreign knowledge and expertise, results could be achieved in former colonies. He wanted to show the world that Suriname could build and maintain a modern industry with its own

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resources, and on its own, while there was little belief in the viability of the company. In order to achieve this, Eddy surrounded himself with like-minded people with high values who were true to the mission.”

It’s an inspiring story, and 40 years later the company was called on to exercise this same spirit in the face of an all-new challenge. It has, at least, been doing so from a position that is now firmly established and extremely successful – Eddy Jharap would be proud. Today, Staatsolie works closely with the big names of the global oil and gas sector, organising what is currently one of the two biggest earning industries for Suriname, the other being gold. It even has a finger in that pie, with a 25% partnership in a goldmine with Newmont. However, it is oil that is its purpose and focus, and in 2015, it went back to the drawing board of how best to utilise and pursue this resource for its country.

This 2016-2020 Strategy for Success was clear. Its main focus was the decision to pour

READY FOR THE NEXT STEP

the majority of its efforts into the upstream.

Whilst some attention would be given to making its downstream operations more efficient and cost effective, these efforts would no longer involve a noteworthy capital investment. This was partially due to the fact that over the past ten years, the company had already spent a great deal on investing in this side of their operations, including a new $1 billion oil refinery, which expanded Staatsolie’s electricity capacity from 30 MW to 90MW. The creation of this refinery had been a vision for Staatsolie from as early as 1982, and in December 2015 it finally became reality. From here, then, the company was ready to refocus its development efforts, and future investments were focused on the upstream. This focus on upstream activities fell into three categories: oil production, offshore joint ventures, and of course, exploration.

Staatsolie became involved in exploration on three different fronts: near shore, shallow

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STAATSOLIE

offshore and deep offshore, with deep offshore defined as anything beyond 70 meters of water depth. These three categories were all tackled differently; deep offshore exploration was left in the hands of Staatsolie’s IOC partners, whilst in the near shore and shallow offshore areas, they conducted the exploration themselves, with the intention of finding partners to help them tap the resources once they were discovered.

‘Once they were discovered’ is the important term here. The company has always prepared for its successes before it achieves them. Early in its existence, its board realised that, in order to process large amounts of oil, funds would be required, and this is why it held and stil holds investments in other industries. Today, Staatsolie holds investments in both gold mines and electricity generation, which has helped it through a period of low oil prices and has certainly helped to support it during life’s more recent complications. As Managing Director

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Rudolf Elias put it, ““We must remember that we have to keep moving constantly. With every investment you have to take into account that the oil pricing behavior will be one of high peaks and deep valleys. We have had to deal with a pandemic and we can see the impact on the oil price, and there could be something this drastic again. Therefore, we must make sure to invest wisely to keep Staatsolie viable for the next one hundred years.” He concluded with the company’s time-old slogan; “Let’s be ready for the next step!”

“Staatsolie has a very healthy balance between assets, equity and debt,” Rudolf continues. “In this respect, our ratios are one of the best among oil companies and we are far ahead of the competition. This is also confirmed by our banks. And yet it is time for Staatsolie to go to the next level. We won’t reach our destination for another two or three years. But what is important is that we keep moving and keep developing, as we have been

READY FOR THE NEXT STEP

doing for the past forty years. That’s why we’re so successful today. It is time that we take the next step towards the international capital market so that the world gets to know us.”

Looking to this future, Rudolf hopes to see a good portion of Staatsolie’s revenues going towards welfare funds, following Norway’s example. It may be surprising to learn that the company is also looking towards green energy – whilst it is staying true to the task it was given 40 years ago, it is aware that the world has changed since its commission began, and thus work has begun to investigate adding green sources to its energy portfolio. In particular, this research is focusing on the possibilities of a hydro energy project.

The world isn’t what Staatsolie expected it to be 40 years ago, but the company’s careful preparations and long-term view has gotten it to where it planned to be, and has built it a firm foundation upon which to survive the currently storm. Not only that, but it seems to be doing so

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with the same spirit that first saw the people of Suriname rolling up their sleeves and preparing to tackle a new industry. As the company wrote whilst celebrating its anniversary: “We never stand still. We keep moving, full of enthusiasm, with the vision for the future and with the same passion that ignited in 1980.”

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AMAZING WORLD

CHILLING CREEPY CRAWLIES

by James Lapping Once again, Halloween approaches, and is originally a native of the Crimea region in once again it is time to gather your silver Ukraine but has somehow found its way to the bullets, crucifixes and baseball bats wrapped United Kingdom in the last 15 years. The ghost with barbed wire to warn away any monsters slug is as creepy as you think it is - it has no eyes that might come for you in the night. Ghosts and is white in colour, hence the name ‘ghost’. and ghouls, too, become rampant in October, If that isn’t creepy enough for you, then you will coming out of the woodwork to spook innocent be delighted to know that the ghost slug is a victims living in large, stereotypically haunted carnivore and eats earthworms like there’s no houses. However, it is not only ghosts of the tomorrow. What makes this even more sinister dead that you have to worry about at this time is the ghost slug’s teeth: these are shaped like of year; there’s something else out there, and blades, and can rip through an unsuspecting not only are they just as creepy, but they’re earthworm with ease. Terrifying! crawly, and they’re real too!

Though ghost slugs have been scientifically We begin with the ghost slug. This animal identified by researchers, there is still a chance is also known as selenochlamys ysbryda, but they come from the realm of the dead. It is funnily enough, this doesn’t roll off the tongue no coincidence that, similar to spirits from quite as well as ghost slug. The ghost slug the nether realm, ghost slugs leave a trail 74 | Endeavour Magazine

of ectoplasm in their wake – well, in a sense.

Also, it is well known that salt holds purifying properties and can be used to warn off evil spirits…and you can also use it to kill slugs.

Coincidence? The similarities are overwhelming, so beware!

Ghost slugs are not the only spooky creepy crawlies that could haunt you this Halloween.

Ghost moths might fly into your room at night, and you may think they’re just attracted to the light, but no, they’re after you! Moths might scare you enough already - after all, they are basically ugly butterflies. The ghost moth, most common throughout Europe, can grow up to 7cm in width and has silver and white markings, yet it is not these ghost-like features that give it its name. Folklore suggests that ghost moths are in fact the souls of the dear departed. Next time you see a ghost moth, maybe it’s a distance dead relative, or acquaintance come to seek revenge! Or maybe it is just a moth… Either way, unlike the ghost slug, the ghost moth follows a plant-based diet and enjoys fungi, grasses, and flowers, not devouring other beasts with blade-like fangs.

To put you further on edge, there are many more ghost animals lurking about in the wild, though some are scarier than others. These include the ghost snake and ghost shark: neither of these really need their names prefixed with ‘ghost’ as they are both scary enough already.

Some of the less sinister ghost animals include the ghost bat, which sound terrifying but are actually cute and harmless, and the same goes for the ghost frog and the ghost crab.

It seems that ghosts are real after all: they fly around us and crawl beneath us. So, beware of the bite of the ghost slug and the foreboding arrival of a ghost moth. Next time you step out the house, make sure you’re wearing your proton pack – it’s time to bust some ghosts!

(Please don’t actually hurt the ghost slugs, or any other slugs, for that matter).

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SHIPPING IN THE NEW NORMAL Tanzania Ports Authority chevron-square-right www.ports.go.tz phone-square +255 211 7816

Shipping and ports management is a complex beast at the best of times, but in our pandemic-rocked world, the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) has had its work cut out for it like never before. With Tanzania a point of discussion for many when it comes to COVID-19 response, we took a look back at the TPA to remind ourselves of what a large task it is carrying out – now more than ever.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

A

s its name suggests, the Tanzania Ports Authority handles all things portrelated in Tanzania: established in 2004, TPA oversees a complex system of mainland, sea and inland waterways, regulates and licenses port and marine services and facilities, manages vessel traffic and ensuring port safety and security. A government-owned body, TPA carries a vast and challenging responsibility on its shoulders, because its work affects far more than the welfare and trade of its own country. All trade and transport links are essential lifeblood for any country, and in the case of Tanzania, the country has many landlocked neighbours.

These neighbours therefore rely on Tanzania’s ports for their own sea-trade, travel and some of their overseas aid, meaning many eyes are on the TPA and many country’s prosperity relies on it. These neighbours include Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda – no small order.

Dar es Salaam, on the Indian Ocean coast, is one of Tanzania’s major cities (population: 6 million), and as Tanzania’s enter port, is a commercial hub for the country. Following this, the other major sea ports are Tanga and Mtwara, which are complimented by smaller sea ports Endeavour Magazine | 77

TANZANIA PORTS AUTHORITY

Kilwa, Lindi, Mafia, Nyamisati, Kisiju, Bagamoyo, and Pangani. Then, there are the country’s lake ports: Mwanza Noth and South Ports, Nansio, Kemondo Bay, Bukoba and Musoma on Lake Victoria; Kigoma and Kasanga on Lake Tanganyika and Itungi Port, Kiwira, Manda Liuli and Mbamba Bay on Lake Nyasa.

Dar es Salaam itself grew up from a small fishing village, and an open-air museum recreates and commemorates this history for visitors. Now, it is East Africa’s largest city, and fifth largest in the whole of the continent. This vibrant hub’s origins in fishing are one of many reminders of Tanzania’s close and beneficial relationship with its coasts and waterways.

Given this relationship, TPA strives to bring world-class logistics and maritime services to Eastern, Central and Southern Africa. Its job is not only to host and facilitate existing trade but, through doing so at a high standard, encouraging further trade to take place. As Director General Deusdedit C.V Kakoko put it, “The Authority performs the role of both a landlord and operator over the ports, with the main objective of promoting effective management and operations of sea and inland waterways; provision of services in relation to loading and unloading of cargo and passenger services; developing, promoting and managing port infrastructure and superstructure, and maintaining port safety and security.”

The foremost issue that a port must tend to is the need for smooth and efficient harbour services; these involve not only the mooring and unmooring of ships, but making sure that all movement between arrival and departure happens smoothly, that every vessel is clearly guided to the correct berth, and that the necessary resources are available to them whilst they are in dock. “The safety of your ship as it enters any of our ports is one of our top priorities,” said the Director General. “We offer a number of services to all vessels that enter our ports including pilotage, tugging and mooring, to ensure that your vessel is safely docked and allowing you to safely conduct your business at our ports.”

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Port services also include the handling of various forms of cargo. “We are well equipped with an array of machinery and equipment to handle a wide range of cargo. Our teams of highly trained professionals in various fields work around the clock to ensure that cargo entering and exiting our ports is in pristine condition and on time.” TPA break cargo down into three types: dry bulk, break bulk and bulk liquid. Dry bulk cargo refers to any unpacked, homogenous product, such as grain, rice or coal.

This type of cargo is easy to drop or pour into containers, down shoots etc. Meanwhile, break bulk refers to any cargo that must be loaded individually, whether this be individual items or containers. This includes products such as vehicles, vehicle parts and agriproducts, but despite the name, also refers to hardy products such as iron, steel and other metals. Lastly, as is apparent from the name, bulk liquid refers to any and all liquid cargo, including LNGs and other hazardous products.

As we know, every country has had its journey to navigate with COVID, and Tanzania is no exception. Like all of us, the country has had its unique house of cards to uphold whilst responding to the pandemic, and in its case, this led the President to some different calls to those many governments have made, such as never implementing a full lockdown.

Some countries criticized Tanzania’s leaders for not implementing a lockdown within the country, but, as we are more aware of now than ever, the impact of such measures is complicated, as are the needs of each individual country. According to Tanzania’s government, its president John Magufuli opted against because implementing one would have had severe consequences for the country’s population that Tanzania would have struggled to counter, such as the economic impact on many households who would be pushed into poverty, or a strain on the already over-busy healthcare services in trying to remotely tend to a population that struggles with illnesses such as tuberculosis and HIV. Whether or not one agrees with the assessment, it is significant

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to note that such elements have been a strain on many countries that did opt for lockdown, and Tanzania’s leaders felt that, in their case, the country’s economy and infrastructure wasn’t fit for that task.

That said, none of this means that Tanzania was without a COVID response – good news, as a country that serves as an international port for so many. Its government followed and implemented the many WHO safety measures we are now all familiar with, invested in and boosted its abilities to produce PPE, and has also been contributing to the world’s joint vaccination and curative efforts by studying its many local medicinal plants. Again, this has been viewed by some as a counter-effort to the vaccine, but Tanzania’s spokespeople have said that it is intended as a supportive effort alongside other studies, rather than an eitheror situation.

All of this brings us to another essential but less obvious aspect of TPA’s responsibilities –

emergency response. When one hears ‘safety and security’ in regards to a port or similar industrial undertaking, one’s mind might go straight to security personnel and surveillance etc., and this is all a requirement too, but on top of that, TPA must be ready to respond to accidental threats such as fire or, very prominent in our minds these days, medical emergency. TPA’s security and fire teams are both available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to respond to any emergency at the port and neighboring areas. It may seem surprising that TPA has its own fire brigade, but given the amount of fuel alone, never mind other flammable cargo that travels around a port, it is an important resource to have. As the TPA describes, “The fully functional and wellequipped fire brigade consists of experienced firemen and rescue professionals, armed with top-of-the-line equipment and vehicles to tackle anything from fires and explosions to chemical and biological hazards. The brigade

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does periodical drills to ensure the staff, visitors and other port users are well prepared for any emergency response. The drills are used to benchmark response time and further used to train the emergency responders, staff and port users in order to maintain a constant state of readiness and awareness. The brigade also participates in firefighting efforts outside port areas in collaboration with respective local authorities.”

Amongst TPA’s other emergency responders is their medical response team, who are trained to handle any medical emergencies around the port areas. This training includes the ability to respond to both physical and mental issues that port users may have. The teams work with a chief medical officer and have a dedicated health center on site that’s fully equipped with staff, a clinic and facilities capable of support life-saving surgery. On the other side of the spectrum, there is even a gym to allow staff to keep fit and healthy.

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TPA’s work is never done; as well as overseeing the many operations that make up the life of busy ports, it must continually look forwards. Originally, the port authority had been planning to target 2020 as a boost for trade and travel, linked with plans to even unveil and open a new port. World-over, plans for 2020 have had to change, and yet, we are all still looking ahead, ready for a world that is reopening more and more. With Tanzania’s slower uptake on the available vaccines than some, the immediate future for its ports is currently unclear, but one thing is certain: the TPA will continue to support and expand its harbours’ efforts, for Tanzania and the countries around it, just as it has since its founding.

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KEEPING THE LIGHTS ON National Energy chevron-square-right https://national.energy phone-square +44 203 859 5045

National Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago, is committed to supporting the twin islands’ infrastructure, to the development of the nation’s gas-based energy industry and to monetising the country’s extensive natural gas resources to the benefit of this industrial hub.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

A

s we all know, Trinidad & Tobago form an oil and gas reliant industrial hub with key ports in LNG shipping. In fact, as the third richest country in the Americas by GDP (Purchasing Power Parity) after the United States and Canada, Trinidad and Tobago moved up six places in The World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report in 2017. As such, the management of the islands’ energy is a demanding task, as is the management and utilisation of their hydrocarbon resources.

Since we last spoke with National Energy (then the National Energy Corporation or NEC), the company has been engaging in all enterprises within the hydrocarbon-based and energy-intensive industries, with a view to further promoting, developing and facilitating downstream energy-based industries and businesses on the islands.

National Energy was incorporated in 1979 as National Energy Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago to continue the work first started by the Coordinating Task Force in monetising the country’s natural gas resources, as well as developing and managing industrial and marine infrastructure. National Energy was also involved in the construction and operation of the early petrochemical plants and the port Endeavour Magazine | 85

NATIONAL ENERGY

and marine infrastructure which service all plants at the Point Lisas Industrial Estate.

Today, National Energy (née National Energy Corporation) is well positioned as the force that will drive the expansion of the energy sector into the future. The company is taking a proactive approach to promoting Trinidad and Tobago’s energy brand regionally and internationally, including the company’s recent re-naming and re-branding, as well as continuing to execute the development of energy projects and infrastructure under the guidance of the Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs.

In its primary role as overseer to the nation’s gas-based industrial infrastructure, National Energy is responsible for the development and identification of new industrial estates, as well as the deep-water ports that service them, with such projects providing a crucial contribution to the national economy through the creation of strategic national assets in the

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marine, energy and infrastructure sectors. This covers work in procurement, design, project implementation and supervision of publicly funded projects, and involves working closely with and going between the government, local and international investors, consultants and contractors.

On top of this, the NE is also responsible for the maintenance and management of Trinidad and Tobago’s two existing industrial estates and port facilities, which are essential in servicing the nation’s energy and industrial sectors and overseeing the import and export requirements of petrochemical and metal plants.

Although NE continues to focus on the above areas, its current mandate also includes identifying and developing new industrial estates and deep-water ports, as well as the development and management of the existing La Brea and Union Industrial Estates. However, whilst the company is most focused on inregion projects, it is also turning its eye overseas,

KEEPING THE LIGHTS ON

investigating ways to ship its knowledge and expertise to the energy sectors in Guyana and Suriname.

Similar to this overseas outreach, NE also hosts supplier forums that seek to promote and introduce suppliers from the oil and gas industries, and well as raising awareness about their internal processes. At these forums, suppliers are able to network and meet each other, as well as forming stronger bonds with NE’s staff themselves. This somewhat unique approach is NE’s preferred way of building relationships with existing and potential suppliers. Even after these summits, communication and direct interaction between themselves and their suppliers is key to NE; they believe in keeping lines of communication open at all times, allowing in-house staff and supplier companies to interact easily as one team. Similarly, this focus on bonds means NE prefer forming long-term relationships over flitting between loyalties to chase the

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NATIONAL ENERGY

lowest price; instead, their approach builds trust between steady relationships, allowing for credit on larger purchases and more secure business for both parties. That said, they dissuade nepotism by reminding their suppliers to stay competitive!

When asked what exciting developments they had on the horizon, NE were keen to mention their integrated melamine/ formaldehyde cluster project at Union Industrial Estate. This project aims to utilise locally produced melamine and methanol to create higher valued products, such as OSB (oriented strand board) and veneer. A first for Trinidad and Tobago, the project also seeks to bridge the gap between the energy and manufacturing sectors of the economy.

NE currently employs around 130 people, not including its many highly skilled subcontractors. The development of their employees is a serious matter to the company, with Personal Development Plans developed

for every individual on the NE payroll. Great attention is paid not only to staff’s training, but their ongoing competency and ever-improving abilities. Within this, there is also a strong focus on career development and promotion from within. As NE see it, in an industry that is always evolving and growing, the development of each employee is crucial for standards to remain high and employees’ training to stay relevant.

In doing so, they keep ensuring that Trinidad and Tobago are not only benefiting from high standards themselves, but can continue their trend-setting global rise.

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Facilities One floating drydock of 50.00 x 22.00 x 1.60 meters with breadth of 18.00 meters between the wing walls and a lifting capacity of 1100 tons One floating drydock of 30.00 x 13.40 x 1.22 meters with breadth of 10.05 meters between the wing walls and a lifting capacity of 150 tons 88 | Endeavour Magazine

One slipway with a capacity of 100 tons and one for new buildings and repairs of vessels up to 600 tons with a length of 70.00 meters One machine shop for repairing and machining of shafts, bearings and parts One propeller shop for repairing several kinds of propellers such as manganese bronze, bronial, aluminum and stainless steel

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CLEANER METHODS TSK Grupo chevron-square-right www.grupotsk.com phone-square +34 984 49 55 00

The pressure for clean energy is rising, and for power companies, this could mean an abrupt change – unless, like TSK, they have been preparing.

We spoke with Joaquin Garcia Rico, TSK’s CEO, about the group of companies’ global success and widely diversified offerings in the power and industrial sectors; in particular, we spoke about how it is preparing for, as well as contributing to, the changing landscape of energy.

Written by Alice Instone-Brewer

T

SK has become one of Spain’s leading companies in terms of EPC projects (engineering, procurement, and construction) in the energy, industrial, minerals handling and environment sectors.

Its reach goes far beyond Spain, however; in fact, 97% of the company’s operations are international, with a portfolio that has, over the years, included projects in over 50 countries.

Currently present in 35 countries, with a team of over 1000 employees, TSK’s wide-reaching operations generate a turnover of more than €1000 million. You can’t argue with that level of success.

TSK specialises in the execution of turnkey projects and the supply of technological solutions for industrial plants, power generation plants, water treatment plants, oil & gas or storage facilities and raw material handling. In particular, the company has 30 years’ experience in the engineering, construction, assembly and commissioning of electric generation plants, and is able to offer technologies such as open-cycle, combined-cycle, cogeneration, wind farms, thermalsolar and photovoltaic plants, as well as hydraulic and biomass plants.

In total, the company has been involved in the construction of 212 generating plants, for Endeavour Magazine | 91

TSK GRUPO

companies including ENDE, CFE, Energia del Valle de Mexico, PLN and APSCL. We spoke with Joaquin, TSK’s CEO, about how TSK has achieved and maintained this success. He felt that one of the company’s main strengths was its diversity, working with a range of technologies and across a range of markets. “Our diversification allows us to adapt and deal with decelerations. We survived one of the most important crises in history, growing and strengthening ourselves year after year until becoming one of the most important engineering firms in Spain.” Geographically, a large proportion of its business is currently in Latin America – unsurprising, given the company’s Spanish origins. Latin America accounts for 39% of TSK’s current market, followed by the Middle East at 32%, Asia at 10% and Africa at 9%. However, it also spans markets in terms of industries, including its involvement in both non-renewable and renewable energy.

It also means adapting to what its customers

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want in terms of services – for example, whilst TSK began as a heavily EPC-based company, its operational and maintenance support services are increasingly sought after by its client base, and it has shifted and expanded its efforts accordingly.

“We have achieved our objective of consolidating ourselves in a volume of activity at around 1 billion euros of sales for the third year in a row. After a decade of growth to double digits where we have multiplied our business volume by 10, now our main strategy is to keep growing, but at a more moderate pace, and especially to keep a diverse book of business where we do not depend on any type of activity or any specific territory. In our sector, reaching sales of 1 billion euros, with our own capital of more than 350 million euros, means that we are big enough to execute the majority of the projects that are tendered in our areas of activity, which allows us to select the projects we feel the most appropriate at each moment.”

TSK works heavily, but not exclusively, within the oil & gas sector, and it must consider the same question facing every company in the world of power generation – climate change.

“Our company has a long-term outlook: the increasing in population and as improving quality of life will boost the demand for new infrastructures, largely energy and industrial. “It is without a doubt that energy generation must contribute in a steadfast way to sustainable development that protects the planet and ensures prosperity to everyone. With this purpose, it is clear that the medium and long-term energy future turns inevitably to renewable energy. Nevertheless, this transition cannot jeopardise the prosperity of some areas for the benefit of others.”

In other words, Joaquin and TSK acknowledge the urgent importance of renewable energy, but are reluctant to retire non-renewables altogether, or at least to do so too suddenly. Joaquin sees a rising demand for energy in the future, and so believes that both energy types must be used in balance – especially as countries that economically rely on non-renewable sectors wean themselves off it.

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Unlike such countries, TSK is not inhibited by being reliant on any one sector, and, whilst Joaquin advises caution in running towards a purely renewable future, the company has been engaging with and investing in this sector for some 15 years. “One of our distinguishing marks is our sturdy commitment to fighting against climate change.” To this end, TSK has specialised in business segments that will be key in a renewable energy future, such as largescale energy storage. In a joint venture with the English company Highview Power, TSK has developed a long-lasting energy storage system that operates on a massive, gigawattper-hour scale. The system uses a proprietary cryogenic energy storage technology that allows immediate transition from thermal and nuclear energy to renewable.

“This has positioned us as a cutting-edge technological company at an international level, opening up an impressive field of opportunities before the unstoppable growth

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of renewable energies. Our solutions are not only economically feasible, but also scalable, clean and long lasting and can be implemented ipso facto.”

The joint venture with Highview Power is just one of many renewable energy projects for TSK and this is not even its only breakthrough development – TSK has also devised a concept of a solar hybrid plant that combines photovoltaic technology with thermosolar technology, which would allow for the generation of renewable energy 24 hours a day at a competitive cost. “This solves the problem of the intermittency of renewable energies,” explains Joaquin. “On the one hand, the main advantage of thermosolar technology is that it allows for generating electricity in a manageable way at any time of the day, having the capacity to store energy on a great scale.

On the other hand, the main advantage of photovoltaic technology is the competitivity when referring to the cost of investment and

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maintenance.” Combining the two allows TSK to harness the best of both worlds, allowing this renewable energy plant to compete with non-renewable sources in a meaningful way.

The full list of TSK’s current renewable projects could go on and on; it sees that this is the market of the future, so whilst it hasn’t abandoned other industries, clean energy accounts for a fair proportion of its contracts. It has completed work for ACWA Power, Masdar, EDF, Macquarie and EOSOL, with new contracts around the world. One notable new project is its 40M€ contract to build the first wind farm in Saudi Arabia. This farm (400MW) will be the largest of its kind in the Middle East. It has also been chosen by ERANOVE to construct the first combined cycle plant in Togo – a 65MW plant that will account for 30% of the country’s energy needs. The full list is extensive, with each contract value in the tens of millions.

As well as investing in cleaner power sources, Grupo TSK also works diligently to improve the

green practices of its plants and operations. In August this year, fellow regasifcation company Reganosa awarded TSK the integration of a cryogenic compressor in their Mugardos Regasification Plant in Galicia. Its installment is expected to take 21 months. The integration of this cryogenic compressor will improve both the flexibility and the efficiency of the terminal, reducing its greenhouse gas emissions to zero.

All in all, Grupo TSK’s reach is not one to take lightly; it has spent its 30 years of operation maneuvering itself to be deeply positioned in multiple sectors across multiple markets throughout the world, supporting both longestablished industries and those of the future.

Whichever way the pendulum swings, TSK will stay secure, and its evolving plans and technological capabilities ensure that it won’t be left behind by trends. We believe that is the right way to work, and its success is a testament to this approach.

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