This Week In The News

NEWS IN SHORT

• South Africa is getting a new airline that will provide low-cost flights between Cape Town and London in the United Kingdom (UK). The airline, Norse Atlantic Airways, is launching a new direct route between Cape Town International Airport and London Gatwick Airport on 28 October 2024, which will run three days per week.
  
  
• MTN is South Africa’s most valuable brand, even if its value has dropped by 8% year-on-year to under R70 billion.
  
  
• KwaZulu-Natal charges the most for new vehicle license discs out of every province in South Africa.
  
  
• South African car insurers will not pay for damage caused by Eskom.

• Accelerating Excitement: 7th Edition of Festival of Motoring powered by WesBank speeds into Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit this August! Returning to the legendary Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit from 30 August to 1 September, this year's festival is set to ignite your passion for all things automotive.

• Old Mutual has received approval from the Prudential Authority to establish a bank in South Africa, which is expected to launch by yearend. The Old Mutual Bank is one of four banks launching in South Africa. It will be joined by the Young Women in Business Network (YWBN) Mutual Bank, the state-owned Postbank and SA Innovative Financial Services Cooperative (SAIFSC) from the Department of Women, Youth and People with Disabilities.

• Transport minister Sindisiwe Chikunga says that her department is making strides with introducing new driving license cards in South Africa, with printing expected to start by the end of April. With the new printer, the Driving License Card Account, DLCA, should be able to produce a card within five working days – nine days faster than the current printer.

• The Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Gwede Mantashe, has warned petrol stations in South Africa that more random testing will be carried out following a concerning trend of stations selling
  contaminated diesel

 

V2G: two-way charging may be the next big thing in EVs.

V2G charging lets EV owners charge at overnight off-peak rates then sell power back to grids at a profit during peak hours. Companies from General Motors to Volvo Cars, alongside utilities and charging app operators, are calculating their financial cut as EVs that allow their owners to sell power back to grids become a more realistic prospect.

Bidirectional, or vehicle-to-grid (V2G), charging lets EV owners charge at overnight off-peak rates then sell power back to grids at a profit during peak hours.

For short periods, a million EVs could provide as much power as a large nuclear power plant, says Nick Woolley, CEO of UK software firm ev.energy, which is working on V2G technology with Siemens, Nissan, Volkswagen and others.

For many years V2G remained largely theoretical, as the Nissan Leaf was the sole EV capable of it. That has begun to change with the help of smart electricity meters, artificial intelligence and modelling by innovative energy companies.

Most major car makers, including Tesla, BMW, Volkswagen, Renault and Toyota, are expected to launch V2G capable models over the coming years. Chinese manufacturers, such as BYD have also developed the technology and, crucially, the Chinese government plans a big role for V2G by 2030. 

Within the next few months, GM will launch an electric Chevrolet Silverado bakkie capable of powering homes — the same technology as V2G — and all its EVs will have bidirectional capability by 2026, said Aseem Kapur, GM Energy’s energy solutions director.

 

New Kia Picanto goes on sale in South Africa

The new Picanto range offers six models to choose from, and prices now start at R260,995.

The South African pricing for the new Kia Picanto is as follows:
• Kia Picanto 1.0 LX Manual – R260,995
• Kia Picanto 1.0 LX Auto – R278,995
• Kia Picanto 1.2 EX Manual – R284,995
• Kia Picanto 1.2 EX Auto – R302,995
• Kia Picanto 1.2 EX Plus Manual – R307,995
• Kia Picanto 1.2 EX Plus Auto – R325,995

Each purchase comes with a 5-year/unlimited-kilometer warranty and roadside assistance plan, as well as a 2-year/30,000km service plan.