BT Sport in exclusive NBA rights win causing another blow to Sky November 28, 2013 BT SCORED another blow to Sky Sports yesterday with the announcement that it signed an exclusive rights deal for the broadcast of top NBA games in the UK and Ireland. The deal will see up to 200 of the games broadcast during the season on BT Sport 1, BT Sport 2 and ESPN, with seven [...]
Boss of RSA Insurance in Ireland quits November 28, 2013 THE CHIEF executive of RSA Insurance’s Irish arm, Philip Smith, has resigned, claiming in a statement that he has been made a “fall guy” for the troubled business. Earlier this month the insurer issued two profit warnings in a week after it uncovered issues in the claims and finance sections of its Irish business. An investigation [...]
Rio Tinto leads FTSE on iron ore project savings November 28, 2013 ANGLO-AUSTRALIAN miner Rio Tinto topped the FTSE 100 yesterday morning, after it delighted investors with $3bn (£1.84bn) of unexpected cost cuts to its iron ore expansion project. The company said production capacity at the Pilbara iron ore mine in western Australia would hit the previously announced 360m tonnes per year target at a significantly lower [...]
Analyst Views: What did you make of Rio Tinto’s cost-saving announcement? November 28, 2013 HUNTER HILLCOAT INVESTEC “We already knew about their production target but it will be interesting to see the pace at which they can bring the extra production on board. They’re making a decision on greenfield production at a later stage so they may not end up building new mines if the iron ore price collapses. [...]
Sita signs deal to turn waste into electricity November 28, 2013 WASTE management company Sita UK yesterday said that it has signed a 25-year contract with the West London Waste Authority to turn household rubbish into energy. Along with its consortium partners Scottish Widows Investment Partners and Japan’s Itochu Corporation, Sita will design, finance, build and operate infrastructure to manage up to 300,000 tonnes of waste [...]
Pennon latest firm to cut back water bill hike November 28, 2013 FTSE 250-listed Pennon, which owns South West Water, yesterday said it would keep water bill increases in line with inflation next year, as it unveiled half-year results broadly in line with expectations. The utility and waste management firm has increased its dividend by 7.2 per cent, in-keeping with company policy to grow shareholder payouts by [...]
Slater & Gordon in £33m swoop for Pannone’s consumer unit November 28, 2013 LISTED Australian law firm Slater & Gordon has sealed its acquisition of a majority stake in Manchester’s Pannone, paying £33m to take control of the firm’s consumer law practice. Slater & Gordon – which was the first ever law firm to go public when it listed on the Australian stock exchange in 2007 – has been steadily [...]
Kenmare rises on repaired plant November 28, 2013 Ireland-headquartered miner Kenmare Resources’ share price went up nearly four per cent yesterday, after the firm said a fire-damaged plant in Mozambique has now returned to full production capability. As previously reported, the Moma mine has also experienced a number of power outages, which impact production. The Mozambican government is working with the state electricity [...]
Falcon Oil & Gas’s losses narrow November 28, 2013 Aim-listed Falcon Oil & Gas yesterday said farm-out talks are advancing in Australia and that it has completed the acquisition of a minority stake in its Australian subsidiary, bringing its holding up to 98.1 per cent. Net loss for the first nine months of 2013 narrowed to $3.73m (£2.28m) from $16.64m last year. The oil [...]
Manroy falls as talks end with USO November 28, 2013 Manroy, the Aim-listed defence contractor, yesterday said that takeover talks have ended with US Ordnance, sending its share price down by 12 per cent. US Ordnance is a Nevada-based manufacturer of military defence weapon systems and machine guns. Manroy said that separate talks are still ongoing with arms manufacturer Herstal. Talks with Italian firearms maker [...]