By Investigative Contributor – Zanele Khumalo
When Mantengu Mining announced it had acquired Sublime Technologies for just US$100,000, many assumed it was a distressed asset grab. They were wrong.
At the time of acquisition, Sublime was widely reported as Africa’s only known commercial producer of silicon carbide (SiC) a material vital for electric vehicle inverters, high-efficiency solar systems, abrasives, and high-temperature refractories. The company boasted R337 million in turnover, R12 million in net profit, and retained $1 million in cash at the time of the deal.
Even more remarkably, the acquisition included a non-negotiable clause: no jobs could be lost. All 121 employees at Sublime were protected, and the S189 process was halted.
What made this deal so remarkable wasn’t just the price tag, it was the strategic foresight. SiC is forecasted to play a foundational role in the next generation of clean energy. The fact that Africa only had one functioning producer and that it was undervalued was a gap few noticed. Mantengu did.
Now, the company plans to scale furnace capacity and invest in advanced crushing and grinding. Mantengu’s strategy isn’t just supply it’s control across the value chain, enabling them to serve high-end manufacturers while preserving local value.
The acquisition also delivers ESG benefits. Job preservation, local beneficiation, and the potential to supply clean-tech markets all make Sublime a unique asset. Mantengu’s plan isn’t just to operate the plant but to reimagine it as the anchor of a broader green manufacturing corridor.
Analysts already view this move as Africa’s first truly green-tech mineral acquisition. If it succeeds, it could launch Mantengu into global relevance and establish South Africa as a critical node in the world’s clean-tech materials supply chain.
