Last-minute IDC deal could halt Tongaat Hulett liquidation

Vision Group is in talks with the Industrial Development Corp. to take an equity stake in sugar refiner Tongaat Hulett in exchange for additional funding.

The deal would see additional capital injected into the business and assist the 134-year-old sugar producer’s effort to avoid liquidation of its largest assets in South Africa, Vision Group shareholder Robert Gumede said in an interview.

IDC could also take equity across the group, which includes operations in Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Botswana, as well as in the South African business, he added.

Vision Group bought R11.7 billion in debt from Tongaat’s lenders and is in talks with the government to assist with regulatory changes to ensure the sustainability of the country’s sugar business, said Gumede. South Africa recently agreed on a plan to not only rebuild industry, but to also diversify into offerings including biofuels to protect farmers against challenges such as price fluctuations.

Once certain changes are in place, and if an agreement can be reached with the IDC, Vision Group will also put money into the equity side of the business, he added.

The administrators of the business could consider withdrawing the liquidation filings once a deal with the IDC can be reached, Gumede said. Should the IDC decide to take equity in the business, a lot of the risk will be shared, he said, adding that Vision Group’s plan from the start was to share risk with development-finance institutions.

The IDC is engaging with stakeholders on Tongaat.

“The IDC has acted in good faith and remains guided by its developmental mandate, fiduciary responsibilities, and the protection of public funds,” it said.

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In February, the joint practitioners for business rescue – a local form of bankruptcy protection – applied to a South African High Court to discontinue their proceedings and place Tongaat into so-called provisional liquidation. At the time, Vision Group and the IDC were unable to agree on the funding and refinancing arrangements needed to complete the transaction within the agreed timelines.

Since then, the parties have been in negotiations, and an outcome on a deal is expected within days as the specifics on the structuring of a deal are worked out, according to the parties involved. The plan is to try to avoid liquidation if possible in order to save thousands of thousands of jobs linked to the sugar industry, Gumede said.

A liquidation hearing is scheduled to start on 17 June.

Other members of Vision Group include Zimbabwean businessman Rute Moyo, Egyptian entrepreneur Amre Youness, and Nauman Ahmed Khan, the founder of Pakistan’s Almoiz Group.

Tongaat Hulett, founded in 1892, employs thousands of workers and indirectly supports tens of thousands of additional jobs. It first came under pressure in 2019, when it was hit by an accounting scandal. It was officially placed into administration three years later.

Named after the uThongathi River in South Africa’s southeastern KwaZulu-Natal province, Tongaat operates three mills with the capacity to crush more than 4.8 million tons of cane a year, according to its website.

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