Denel CEO to step down

The chief executive of South Africa’s beleaguered state-owned defence firm Denel will step down on August 15, the company said on Monday.

Denel, which makes equipment ranging from armoured vehicles to attack helicopters and missiles, has struggled to pay employee salaries amid a liquidity crisis aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company did not say why CEO Danie du Toit was resigning and he declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.

In its statement, Denel said an interim CEO would be appointed shortly.

One of several state firms being kept afloat with government bailouts, Denel received R1.8 billion ($108 million) from the state last year.

It was promised another R576 million in this year’s budget, but those funds are earmarked to help clear debt and so far only R72 million has been disbursed.

In an interview with Reuters earlier this month, du Toit said Denel may not survive the next few months unless the government lets it use some promised bailout funds to generate revenues rather than to repay debt.