Thulaganyo Sethibe|Published
Vision Group, the selected buyer of Tongaat Hulett’s assets, was not represented at a crisis meeting convened by the Provincial Commissioner of KwaZulu-Natal, Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi amid concerns over salaries, growers and the company’s rescue process.
Robert Gumede, the Mpumalanga billionaire who heads Vision Investments 225, was not invited to the meeting at SAPS provincial headquarters in Durban, despite his consortium being the approved buyer of Tongaat Hulett's assets.
The meeting included Tongaat's business rescue management, the Industrial Development Corporation, sugarcane growers and representatives of the Zulu Royal Household. SAPS spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda confirmed Vision's absence from the attendee list.
No official reason was given, but police said the meeting was called by SAPS itself to manage tensions while an alleged organised crime investigation into Tongaat's liquidation continues. The exclusion is significant because of where ownership stands today. Legally, Tongaat Hulett is still under business rescue practitioners.
Plan to boost production
Gumede's Vision Group is not yet the full owner — it is the selected bidder funding the rescue through debt it bought from banks, awaiting final transfer of assets. The IDC is converting its R2.75 billion emergency funding into a 25% stake in Vision's Southern African sugar operations, with Vision holding 75%.The old shareholders, who have not traded since July 2022, will formally exit when Tongaat is delisted from the JSE on November 3.
After that, Tongaat will continue as a private company being restructured, with its shares held by transfer agent Computershare. The business rescue practitioners have said they will not oppose delisting, as it is consistent with the adopted rescue plan which requires the sale of all businesses to Vision. Gumede's relationship with stakeholders has been complex.
On August 30, he and associates briefed King Misuzulu kaZwelithini in Durban on his rescue vision, telling the monarch the company would boost production from black farmers and produce ethanol and electricity.
The Royal Household then escalated matters, writing to Trade Minister Parks Tau and the IDC, demanding an explanation of the IDC transaction and raising concerns about community participation.
Commitments to be monitored
The Competition Commission's approval of the Vision deal included commitments to allocate shares to communities associated with cane-growing operations and to workers through a beneficiary structure.
The Royal Household argued those commitments must be monitored transparently. There is also a historical context to the tension. The Ingonyama Trust, chaired by the king, holds roughly 2.8 million hectares in KZN, close to 30% of the province.
In 2012, Tongaat signed a landmark accord with the Ingonyama Trust Board to develop sugar on tribal land, recognising that future cane supply growth would come from rural communities. The trust therefore holds leverage over future cane supply, and its support is seen as critical.
thulaganyo.sethibe@iol.co.za
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