State-owned enterprises chiefs accompanying President Thabo Mbeki on a three-day state visit to France next week hope to whet the appetite of their French counterparts to invest in SA and the rest of the continent as part of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad) programme.

The delegation includes executives from power utility Eskom, the Coega Development Corporation, arms manufacturer Denel, Transnet and the Industrial Development Corporation.

Companies such as Denel, South African Airways (SAA), the Development Bank of Southern Africa and Coega already have partnerships with French entities and it is expected that they will also use the visit to strengthen their relationships.

Transnet chairman Bongani Khumalo said: "The visit promises tremendous opportunities for ventures and partnerships in the various sectors of transport and logistics. There are also considerable well-developed telecommunications and information technology competencies within Transnet."

Last year SAA, a subsidiary of Transnet, bought a new fleet of 41 aircraft from Airbus at a list price of $3,5bn.

Government might also use the opportunity to seek a strategic equity partner for Eskom.

The public enterprises department intends to sell 30% of Eskom generation, with 20% earmarked for private investors and the remaining 10% being reserved for black economic empowerment companies.

Ian Phillips, a special adviser to Public Enterprises Minister Jeff Radebe, said the visit would be used to offer French investors exposure to SA's transport, energy, telecommunications and energy systems.

He said French investors were interested in "expanding investment opportunities in Africa" in support of Nepad.

Foreign affairs spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa said bilateral discussions between SA and France would focus on several issues, including progress made in the institutionalisation of the African Union and Nepad, and in African conflict resolution efforts.

Multilateral matters would include the reform of the United Nations, the outcome of the Cancun world trade talks and the reform of the international financial institutions.

Mamoepa said France was strategic for Africa and SA and had been instrumental in placing the issue of debt relief on the Group of Eight agenda during the Lyon summit in 1996.

France is among SA's 10 most significant economic partners.

It was the ninth-largest export market for 2002 (R6,8bn) and the seventh-largest import market (R11,3bn) for the same period.

The country is currently the ninth-biggest foreign direct investor to SA, at R3bn.

With acknowledgements to Khulu Phasiwe and the Business Day.