OWN CORRESPONDENT, Pretoria | Wednesday
CONTROVERSIAL South African arms manufacturer Denel, which has undergone a major transformation in recent years, has “turned the corner” and expects to start realising profits next year, says acting chief executive Flip Botha.
Releasing Denel’s results, Botha said the company’s gross revenue increased by 20% in the past financial year, with last year’s net loss of R745m being cut to R206m.
Significant gains had been made in the United Kingdom, and business in Asian countries continued to grow, Botha said, predicting that the company would break even in the current financial year to start making a profit in 2001/2.
Denel would greatly benefit by its participation in South Africa’s defence acquisition package, Botha said.
Denel’s gross income in 1999/2000 amounted to R3396m, compared to R2836m in the previous year. Exports rose from R1003m in 1998/99 to R1269m in the past financial year.
Public Enterprises Minister Jeff Radebe lauded Denel’s performance, saying with its involvement in major projects, including the defence procurement packages, Denel could become an important source of new jobs.
South Africa also stood to benefit from the industry’s ability to stay abreast with international research and development on alternatives to weapons of mass destruction, Radebe said.
“Furthermore, the industry has moved rapidly to engage higher precision and performance in an attempt to remove the random element from warfare.”
At the same time, modern trends put the emphasis on securing the lives and wellbeing of soldiers.
“Hence, research and development into armour protection, detection systems, and various defensive weapons is critical.”
Radebe added: “The hard fact is that we can only remain at the forefront if we remain within a military context.”