Energy price cap hits Eon’s UK business hard as sales fall six per cent May 13, 2019 The government’s energy price cap put a dampener on Eon’s revenues in the first three months of the year, it revealed this morning. The figures UK sales decreased by six per cent to €153m (£132m), the company said, adding it had been hit by a triple-whammy including lower energy prices and reduced sales volumes. Read [...]
British Gas owner Centrica ‘may slash dividend’ after challenging start to the year May 13, 2019 Analysts warned that a dividend cut is on the horizon at British Gas owner Centrica after several external factors hit performance in the opening months of 2019. Centrica said that the government’s new energy price cap had dented its figures, including a one-off £70m impact in the first quarter. Read more: British Gas owner Centrica [...]
US investor fires opening shot in battle for control of transport company Firstgroup May 13, 2019 Transport company Firstgroup said today that activist investor Coast Capital has requisitioned a general meeting in an attempt to take control of its board of directors. US investment management firm Coast Capital, which owns 9.77 per cent of the company’s shares, wants to remove six of the eleven current directors and replace them with seven of [...]
Tube delays: Commuters suffer severe delays on key London Underground lines May 13, 2019 Commuters were set to face a painful journey to work this morning as a signal failure and police investigation led to disruption across multiple Tube lines. Read more: DEBATE: Should industrial action on the Tube be banned? Severe delays struck the Bakerloo Line after a signal failure at Warwick Avenue, with Transport for London (TfL) [...]
Ford gears up to announce up to 550 job losses for UK office workers amid turnaround efforts May 13, 2019 Ford is poised to announce as many as 550 job cuts in the coming weeks as part of a major restructuring programme, City A.M. has learnt. Read more: Ford casts further doubt over future of its UK operations post-Brexit The second-biggest car maker in the US is expected to make the reductions among office workers [...]
Arriva joins Stagecoach in taking government to court over East Midlands franchise award May 12, 2019 The government is facing a double-whammy of legal action over its decision to award the East Midlands franchise to Abellio after Arriva Rail joined Stagecoach in taking it to court. Arriva Rail, which is owned by German rail giant Deutsche Bahn, said it was "seeking to obtain more information relating to how the bids for [...]
Tube chaos to hit commuters next week in three-day strike by 1,200 London Underground staff May 12, 2019 Severe delays are expected to hit London’s Tube next week as around 1,200 engineering staff walk out on strike. Read more: DEBATE: Should industrial action on the Tube be banned? Union RMT said its members were going on strike after what it called “serious and damaging cuts” to preparation and inspection schedules. The three-day strike is [...]
Ofgem threatens to revoke energy supplier Solarplicity’s licence over missing payments to small-scale generators May 10, 2019 Ofgem has said it could revoke energy supplier Solarplicity’s license for the second time in a month, raising further questions about the future of the company. The regulator today issued a provisional order against Solarplicity, requiring it to pay money to small-scale producers of renewable energy. Read more: Energy supplier Solarplicity faces extended new customer [...]
Thomas Cook shares gain altitude as Virgin Atlantic joins bidding war May 10, 2019 Travel agent Thomas Cook soared on the markets this morning amid reports that Virgin is joining the race to take over the business. Richard Branson’s Virgin entered the battle to acquire the struggling tour operator’s UK long-haul operations by lodging a preliminary offer, Sky News reported after the bell yesterday. Read more: Thomas Cook shares [...]
Heathrow Airport sees April passenger numbers soar to 6.8m as May 10, 2019 Heathrow Airport had its busiest ever April last month with a 3.3 per cent increase on the year before as passenger numbers soared to 6.79m. It was the 30th consecutive month of growth for the airport as it averaged 226,600 passengers per day. Read more: Fuel and currency costs hit profit at British Airways owner IAG A [...]