Standard Bank, Chinese to go nuclear

Johannesburg - Standard Bank Group [JSE:SBK] has agreed with China Guangdong Nuclear Power Company to work on nuclear power opportunities in South Africa, the chief executive of Africa's biggest bank said on Friday.

Jacko Maree, who had just returned from China, told Reuters in an interview the deal was reached during the visit this week to Beijing by South African President Jacob Zuma and more than 300 business representatives.

The Chinese firm operates over 40% of China's nuclear power generating capacity.

"We are working with Guangdong Nuclear Power Company on cooperation in nuclear power projects with South Africa," Maree said. He did not say there were any specific deals on the horizon or give any indication of how big such deals might be.

South Africa, which suffered severe power cuts in 2008, has said it would like a number of nuclear power stations to supply fast-rising demand and reduce its carbon footprint. A nuclear power station run by state utility Eskom accounts for less than five percent of South African power supplies.

The decision on how many nuclear plants to build and who would run them is to be decided in a new electricity plan which is still in the works. Chinese firms could be well placed given the growing political ties between Pretoria and Beijing.

The agreement between Standard Bank and the Chinese nuclear firm also involves Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, the world's biggest bank by market capitalisation. It has a 20% stake in Standard Bank.

In China, Standard Bank also signed memorandum of understanding with China Railway Group to cooperate on funding for rail and infrastructure projects in Africa.

Maree said it did not relate to specific projects, but was a general undertaking to co-operate on opportunities for developing and funding African rail and infrastructure projects.