Porsche South Africa bought the Kyalami F1 Grand Prix racetrack for 205M rand ($19.5M) "at an auction in Johannesburg" on Thursday, according to Rene Vollgraaff of BLOOMBERG. After the property was sold in less than 60 seconds of bidding, High Street Auction Co. joint Managing Dir Lance Chalwin-Milton said, "Porsche South Africa was the successful bidder. They are going to keep it as a track. I believe they are going to develop around the track, which will then enhance the value for the owners.” The 72-hectare (178-acre) property north of Johannesburg, which features a 4.26-km (2.6-mile) racetrack "was auctioned because the owner, Farm Bothasfontein (Pty) Ltd., is in liquidation" (
BLOOMBERG, 7/24). IOL reported no one "could ever imagine a passionate racing driver such as Porsche SA's CEO Toby Venter flattening the track to build townhouses, as many had feared might happen had this valuable piece of Midrand real estate ended up in a bean-counter's hands." Venter said, ''For every motor enthusiast Kyalami means 'my home' and we're preserving it for racing'' (
IOL, 7/24).
