It might take six months for the new operator to finish setting up its infrastructure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
South Africa.- Minister of Trade, Industry, and Commerce, Parks Tau<\/strong>, has reportedly confirmed that he will announce the winning bidder for the South African lottery and sports pool operation on or before May 28, 2025<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The announcement comes barely weeks after the minister issued a request for proposals for a temporary lottery operator licence<\/strong>, a move that had generated criticism and concerns about the transparency and fairness of the licensing process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tau’s latest decision was communicated to approved bidders through a virtual data room last Wednesday<\/strong>. In the notice, which is yet to be made public, the minister stated that he plans to reveal the identity of the successful applicant after licence negotiations met his approval.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, Tau also reminded the bidders of a crucial clause in the Request for Proposal (RFP)<\/strong>, which allows him to negotiate with the next best applicant if talks with the highest bidder break down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ithuba<\/strong> is the current national lottery operator. However, its license is set to expire on May 31. Beginning in 2015, the company has overseen the national lottery for almost a decade. While its initial eight-year license should have expired on May 31 2023, the company received a 24-month extension<\/strong> due to the impact of Covid-19 on its revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Had Tau’s temporary licence proposal been implemented, an interim operator would have overseen the lottery for 12 months, starting from June 1 after Ithuba’s exit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, now, lottery ticket sales are likely to be put on hold from May 31<\/strong> until the new operator sets up its technical infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A representative from one of the companies vying for the licence said: “It takes six months to transition between operators. The new operator runs parallel to the old one. There is a lead time to manufacture the machines [lottery ticket sales equipment]. You also need to have data centres, etc., set up so that when the switchover to the new operator happens, you are ready.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n A faster solution would be for Ithuba to retain the licence. However, that move may trigger a barrage of legal actions from disappointed bidders. The minister has already been accused<\/a> of delaying the awarding of the fourth licence to favour Ithuba.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even if lottery ticket sales are suspended, it won’t affect the National Lotteries Commission (NLC)<\/strong>, which has a substantial R4.3 billion (\u20ac208m) reserve fund to draw from. This would allow it to continue supporting charitable initiatives and covering operational expenses until the new lottery operator starts generating revenue.<\/p>\n\n\nLottery ticket sales may be suspended<\/h2>\n\n\n\n