Financial
∙ Impala Platinum has signed a renewable energy deal which will see 90% of the required power supplied to its Springs refinery. The agreement is with Discovery Green and is seen as a necessary measure as South African companies are desperately trying to slash their CO2 emissions to allow them to retain access to key markets like the European Union, which has erected green tariffs as part of a decarbonisation drive. The agreement will begin in 2026 and will see 130 000 MW of green energy being supplied to Implats per year.
∙ The Minerals Council SA has estimated that South Africa’s mining sector has approximately 7,5 GW of renewable energy projects in various stages of completion. This comes as many of South Africa’s mines are trying to reduce their reliance on Eskom as increased electricity tariffs are reducing the viability of many of the currently productive shafts.
∙ TrendForce’s latest research report highlights that the NAND Flash industry will continue to face dual pressure from weak demand and oversupply in 2025. In response, manufacturers including Micron, Kioxia/SanDisk, Samsung, and SK hynix/Solidigm have similar plans to cut production – a move that could accelerate industry consolidation in the long term. NAND Flash manufacturers are primarily implementing production cuts by lowering utilisation rates and delaying process upgrades.
∙ According to a new research report from the IoT analyst firm Berg Insight, there were a total of 4700 private LTE/5G networks deployed across the world at the end of 2024. The market value for private LTE/5G network solutions reached an estimated $1,8 billion in 2024. Growing at a CAGR of 38%, the total market value for private LTE/5G network solutions is forecasted to reach $8,9 billion in 2029. Nokia ranks as the largest private LTE/5G network solution vendor with about 800 customers and over 1500 private network deployments at the end of 2024.
∙ Shipments of remote tracking systems with cellular or satellite communications capabilities for refrigerated cargo carrying units, including trailers, intermodal containers, rail freight wagons and ULDs, reached 765 000 units worldwide in 2023. Growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8,7%, shipments are expected to reach close to 1,2 million units in 2028. This market segment is set for rapid growth in the coming years, as prices are expected to decrease and smart labels and other devices with a very small footprint are being introduced.
Companies
∙ Mouser announced that it added over 60 manufacturers to its linecard during 2024 and will continue to expand during 2025. The company works closely with its 1200-plus manufacturer partners to provide the fastest and easiest access to the industry’s newest components.
∙ Vertiv has announced the launch of Vertiv Liquid Cooling Services. This offering provides customers with the tools to enhance system availability, improve efficiency, and navigate the evolving challenges of advanced liquid cooling systems with confidence, and is now globally available. The service will support systems for AI and high-density compute applications. Vertiv has been delivering these services for the past year to early adopters, but is now ready to roll the service out globally.
Technologies
∙ Silicon Labs has announced that its xG24 module has been awarded Bluetooth Core Specification version 6. This allows Bluetooth Channel Sounding to be used for localisation and proximity awareness.
∙ SK hynix recently unveiled its development of HBM3e 16hi memory, featuring a 48 GB capacity per cube, with sampling scheduled for the first half of 2025. This new product is aimed at applications that include CSPs’ custom ASICs and general-purpose GPUs. HBM suppliers traditionally introduce two stack height options, such as 8hi and 12hi stacks for HBM3e and 12hi and 16hi stacks planned for HBM4, making the introduction of the 16hi stack for HBM3e somewhat of a surprise.
∙ TrendForce has noted that the global AI market has experienced rapid growth since 2023. By 2025, AI servers are projected to account for over 15% of total server shipments, and by 2028, will be nearing 20%. This is despite recent news of DeepSeek AI underscoring an industry-wide shift toward more cost-effective AI infrastructure. Starting in 2025, however, the industry will see a notable shift toward edge AI inference.
∙ DeepSeek’s low-cost AI model is also forecast to cause an increase in demand for optical communication. The projection is that shipments of optical transceivers, a key component in data centre connectivity, are expected to grow by as much as 56% in 2025. Worldwide shipments of 400G and higher optical transceivers reached 6,4 million units in 2023. This figure is expected to grow to 20,4 million units in 2024 and exceed 31,9 million units in 2025, representing an annual growth rate of 56%.
∙ Semi-solid state batteries, an emerging technology combining the advantages of traditional liquid electrolyte batteries and solid-state batteries, entered trial production in 2020. TrendForce predicts that global automakers will gradually expand the use of semi-solid state batteries in their EV models, driving the market penetration of this technology to surpass 1% by 2027. Chinese automakers began using this technology in 2022 by integrating these batteries into EVs. Leading battery manufacturers in China have now developed this technology to the point where they have achieved GWh-level mass production.
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