Renergen runs damage control as social media spat turns into PR nightmare

Renergen CEO Stefano Marani could never have predicted that his curt response to a social media post would rapidly snowball into a public relations nightmare, causing the company share to crash 40% over the following two weeks and forcing it into damage control mode.

The post in question was from self-styled activist investment manager Albie Cilliers, who accused the company of misleading stakeholders about the progress in its helium production.

This comes as the company has suffered two setbacks at its Virginia gas project in the Free State - one in December last year and one in January this year.