NEWS
USTDA introduces US carbon capture
and recycling technology to South Africa
The US Trade and Development Agency awarded a grant to
Swayana (Pty) Ltd, a Pretoria-based energy project developer,
for a feasibility study that will use innovative US technologies
to convert waste gas – also known as off-gas – into a valuable
commodity at a plant in South Africa’s Mpumalanga
province. The project will use proprietary technologies from
Illinois-based LanzaTech, Inc. to create ethanol from off-gas,
generated as a byproduct of ferroalloy smelting.
Consul General at US Consulate General Cape Town, Virginia
Blaser, witnessed the signing.
“USTDA is pleased to support this cutting-edge project, which
is creating new opportunities for innovative US technologies
that will support South Africa’s commitment to reduce
pollution in energy-intensive manufacturing industries,”
said USTDA’s Acting Director Thomas Hardy. “This project
will open up a new low-carbon footprint fuels and chemical
industry in South Africa,” said Joseph Zinyana, Director of
Swayana. “The potential for this technology in South Africa
is huge because we have many minerals beneficiation plants
producing carbon-rich off-gases, but need the technology to
turn them into useful products.”
Hardy signed the grant along with Zinyana at the American
Corner at the Central Library in Cape Town, South Africa.
Angola-based Internet Exchange Point,
Angonix, now top-three in Africa
In just two years, Angonix – a
Luanda-based IXP – has grown
exponentially to become the
third largest African IXP and a
competitive force in Angola and
the sub-Saharan region.
Managed by Angola Cables,
Angonix allows global and local
networks such as Internet service
providers (ISPs) and content
Darwin Costa, Project
delivery networks (CDNs) to
Manager at Angonix
interconnect directly to exchange
Internet traffic. Angonix currently
has 17 members, including leading financial institutions, cable
and satellite companies, ISPs, mobile phone operators and
various communications service providers.
Darwin Costa, Project Manager at Angonix, explains what
makes the IXP unique: “We provide a physical access point
through which major networks with their own autonomous
system numbers can connect and exchange traffic. As a
neutral IXP, Angonix allows content to be localised at greatly
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INTELLIGENTCIO
reduced per-bit delivery costs and offers improved routing
efficiency. Its commercial offering features peering Ports of
1G Ethernet and 10G Ethernet, with speeds of 1,000Mbps and
10,000Mbps, respectively.
“With a suite of strategic communications assets on the
continent, Angola Cables will become the only carrier able to
directly connect networks from the Americas and Europe to
the third largest platform in Africa, Angonix. Remote peering
services will soon be launched, whereby peering ports on
Angonix will be available in other markets.”
Proud of the impact the organisation is seeing in improving
Internet access in Africa, Costa adds: “With a suite of strategic
communications assets on the continent, Angola Cables will
become the only carrier able to directly connect networks
from the Americas and Europe to the third largest platform
in Africa, Angonix. Remote peering services will soon be
launched, whereby peering ports on Angonix will be available
in other markets.”
He adds that the growth of Angonix has exceeded even the
most optimistic of forecasts.
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