Flash Briefing: SA govt. says discounted Pfizer vaccine too costly; Mondi goes Turkey; Tiger Brands



By Melani Nathan 

• Pfizer and BioNTech offered to supply South Africa with their Covid-19 vaccine at a discounted $10 a dose (about R148), yet the president’s office still described the cost as prohibitive, according to a person familiar with the talks. The price was worked out according to South Africa’s status as a middle-income nation and is about half of what the drugmakers are charging in the US, the person said, asking not to be identified as the information hasn’t been made public.
• South African medical-insurance companies, business organisations and the government are developing a programme in which the private sector will help fund Covid-19 vaccines for people not covered by insurance. Legislation has been amended to allow the companies to fund shots for people who don’t have medical insurance and talks are now focused on the number of those who may benefit, said Stavros Nicolaou, head of the Health Workgroup for B4SA, a grouping of South Africa’s biggest business organisations.
• Mondi has agreed to acquire 90 % of the outstanding shares in Olmuksan International Paper Ambalaj from International Paper for a total consideration of €66m (R1.2bn). The implied enterprise value on a 100% basis would amount to around €88m (R1.6bn.) Olmuksan is a corrugated packaging player in Turkey, listed on the Istanbul stock exchange. It produces sustainable packaging for food, beverages, agriculture and industry.
• Tiger Brands has announced that the South African Reserve Bank has approved the payment of a special dividend to shareholders. A gross special dividend of 133 cents per ordinary share will be paid to shareholders on the 18th of January.

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