Biography
About Phiwo Thango
Phiwo’s entrepreneurial spirit has resulted in the formation of Bingelela Alloys (BA), Bingelela Capital (BC), and Bingelela Investment Consortium (BiC) which are shareholders of Isizinda Aluminium and Richards Bay Minerals respectively. He is the Chairman of BA and BiC Boards and also a Board member of Isizinda Aluminium.
Recently he has founded T5 Properties (T5) with a group of 93 shareholders and successfully raised about R2.5m over a 3 months period which has been invested in a unit at Zimbali Lakes for holiday letting.T5 Holdings and formed T5 Mining in partnership with Bingelela Capital and submitted a Letter Of Expression Of Interest in a Mine in the City of Umhlathuze.
Phiwo is one of the founders of Nothani Educational Trust www.nothani.org.za which has assisted more than 7 students who have qualified with full bursaries for tertiary studies and currently have 5 students that are still at the universities.
Phiwo is the past President of the Zululand Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ZCCI) and has served in other structures of the Chamber as Chairman of the
Richards Bay Division and SMME Forum. He has also served on the KZN BBBEE Advisory Council to Provincial Government.
His interests have always been the development of SMME’s. During his tenure as Chairman of Downstream Aluminium Centre for Technology (DACT) he was
instrumental in setting its vision to be a nationally recognized Centre of competence that develops and supports innovative and technology based SMME’s in the Aluminium and metals.
His career began at Unilever as a process operator, where he moved up the ladder in the production Department, later heading the Packing and Product Development Department. This was followed by ever more challenging roles in the Aluminium Smelter Industry at BHP Billiton Hillside Aluminium, including intensive training at Aluminium Pechiney Smelters in France during the construction and commissioning of the plant. He has been a Production Superintendent in the Reduction and the Carbon departments during his 7 year tenure.
Phiwo is currently the Group Managing Director of Morecare Engineering services (MCE) www.mceservices.co.za for 20 years. MCE specializes in Fabrication, erection and installation of structural steel including piping and machining of components, electrical services which provides services to the Aluminium and Titanium Smelters and Mines, Coal Mining, Paper and Pulp, Chemical and Sugar Mill Industries etc.
