King Canute -- the first socialist?

WHEN King Canute of England (actually he was a Dane) thought he was so powerful that he could turn back the tide, he got his feet wet. He was the first socialist, believing theory was more powerful than the law of nature. Here in South Africa we have our own Canutes. They believe that by issuing lofty decrees, market forces can be " managed". Latest example is the purported ban on maize being used to make biofuels, theory being that if it is allowed the price of bread will rise. Ho, hum. Someone should do Economics 101. You see, children, if the price of maize goes up because bio fuel refiners demand more of it than can be supplied, more will be produced. Keeping the price of maize low by Government Fiat (which a ban on its use as biofuel will do) will simply mean farmers will grow something that is more profitable to them. Less maize produced will lead to a higher price for a while until the balance is restored.

Oh, Engen, Engen, Engen!

WHO would have Herb Payne's job? Herb, poor fellow is Engen's spokesman and yesterday he had to stick his head over the parapet to explain away yet another fire at the Engen refinery. This time it was a pretty small one, but any fire in the flammable atmosphere of an oil refinery is bad, bad news. What's up? Well, as Spigot recalls, the Engen refinery was formerly the Mobil one. It was the first to be built in South Africa, more than 50 years ago. Now, even big pipes wear out. After a certain point even the best maintenance regime is not enough. Mobil knew this more than anyone so when the opportunity to exit South Africa covered in anti-apartheid glory, came, Mobil took it, leaving new owners to face the capital crunch coming down the track. And here we now are.The Engen refinery needs a total overhaul. Who will pay this kind of money when we have a national Energy Regulator consisting of amateurs or ideologues and a Ministry of Minerals and Energy rapidly being stripped of any expertise it once had? Solution? Not more regulation but less. Not politically correct attempts to " manage" the oil industry either by stuffing it with people with not much more than pigment in their favour, or supporting hopelessly expensive and untried biofuels plans. Let the market decide and leave it at that. The fire yesterday, which broke out at the refinery's vacuum unit and was extinguished in 10 minutes, followed a massive blaze at the refinery two weeks ago. Thankfully, there were no injuries.

Now to find some farmers

Zimbabwe has commisioned its first biodiesel plant. Costing US$80 million ( where did they get the money?) the plant allegedly has a capacity of 100 million litres of biodiesel annually using as raw material, cotton seed, soya beans, jatropha and sunflower seed. Right. Who will produce these crops? Spigot asks because at least two of them are food and likely to be eaten first. Unless, of course, old Bob himself is going to be the farmer. It might work but a safer bet is to start raising donkeys for hauling work. They can live off the veld. They reproduce like crazy as well. A bit slow though.

SHOW SOME RESPEC, MON

It had to happen. The language of the Black American Ghetto has come to South Africa. Some Black people now feel "disrespected", according to reports emanating from Durban. We are all going to have to learn what that means. First to meet the challenge will be Engen, Sapref and Mondi who all have plants in the Wentworth area south of Durban and -- thanks to incredibly stupid town planning -- a large amount of sub-economic housing on their doorsteps, complete with occupants who are only too willing to be cannon fodder for the environmental lobby. The latest gambit by this lobby is an attempt to mount a class action against Engen, Sapref and Mondi. No doubt this will accuse these companies of wilfully polluting the atmosphere and causing all manner of illnesses among their neighbours. In the process the coffers of the environmentalists will no doubt swell most satisfyingly -- if not during, certainly after, a successful suit. Spigot is not sure of the history of Mondi in this area but he is aware of Engen's and Sapref's. In both cases their plants were put up at a time when all around was swamp -- not a sub-economic council house in sight. Not a school, not a crèche; nothing. It was thanks to the "liberal" Durban City Council, that the next 40 years was spent packing in council housing. Do the neighbours of Sapref, Engen and Mondi complain to the Council? Do they hell, the Council is not nearly as rich. Leaders of the pack in the attacks on the three companies are known to Spigot as former residents of the area. Spigot wonders if they still do.