South Africa: Sugar Giant Tongaat Hullet Quits Stock Market As Workers Wait for Answers

What the report says

South African sugar producer Tongaat Hulett is moving ahead with a stock-market exit while workers and creditors await further clarity on the company’s future. According to Scrolla, the company said its shares will be delisted on 3 November. The report also says Tongaat has been in business rescue since October 2022, a court-supervised process aimed at keeping a distressed company operating while options such as restructuring or a sale are explored.

The article says about 5,800 workers at Tongaat went on strike for nearly four weeks and won a 6% wage increase, backdated to April. The strike began on 17 August, and workers returned on 9 September. The settlement also included payment for six strike days, though the reported agreement did not mention the transport and housing allowances workers had sought.

Scrolla further reported that Tongaat’s emergency funding from the state-owned Industrial Development Corporation ended on 30 September, with no extension announced at the time of publication. The funding had helped cover operating costs, including salaries. The company’s rescue practitioners said operations were continuing normally, but the end of support leaves open questions about longer-term financing and ownership. The company has said a restructuring, sale or winding-up remains possible, each of which would leave Tongaat no longer running the business.