Paris calls off car curbs after pollution eases March 17, 2014 A BAN on half of the cars in Paris has been lifted after just one day after pollution levels fell back below those in Beijing. Motorists with even-numbered licence plates were ordered off the roads in the French capital yesterday, though nearly 4,000 drivers were fined €22 each for breaching the limit imposed to try [...]
Chinese exchange raises $10m investment from Bitcoin bugs March 17, 2014 CRYPTOCURRENCY Bitcoin has been given a new lease of life in China, despite a recent crackdown in the world’s second largest economy. The company that claims to be China’s largest Bitcoin exchange by volume – called OKCoin – has announced a $10m Series A funding round, with venture capital firm Ceyuan leading the way, followed [...]
Cairn slides on plugged well March 17, 2014 CAIRN Energy slumped almost three per cent in early trading yesterday, yet closed just 0.2 per cent down, after the Scottish oil and gas explorer said a well located off Morocco had been plugged and abandoned without testing. The FTSE 250 firm said that the area requires further evaluation by itself and its joint venture [...]
Genel ramps up Kurdish output March 17, 2014 OIL EXPLORER Genel Energy, which is led by former BP chief executive Tony Hayward, said yesterday that it has started production from two new wells in Kurdistan. Norway’s DNO International, in which Genel holds a 25 per cent working interest, is operator of the Tawke licence, where the two wells are producing at a combined [...]
Brady’s new contracts disappoint March 17, 2014 Brady, a software maker for the commodities sector, has reported earnings before exceptional costs falling nearly 40 per cent to £3.5m with revenue rising four per cent to £29.3m. Chief executive Paul Fullagar said that its 16 new contracts in 2013, including two record contracts, had taken longer to negotiate and had impacted performance. “While [...]
US special forces seize Libya ship March 17, 2014 US special forces have seized a tanker that fled with a cargo of oil from a Libyan port controlled by anti-government rebels, halting an attempt to sell crude on the global market. Gunmen demanding regional autonomy and a share of oil wealth had managed to load the ship, which escaped Libya’s navy and triggered a [...]
UK enters defining decade for nuclear March 17, 2014 THE UK needs political consensus to make nuclear energy cheaper in this “defining decade” for the power sector, according to a new report published today. The research by Carbon Connect, overseen by a group of industry and academic experts, follows a six-month inquiry chaired by former energy minister Charles Hendry and shadow energy minister Baroness [...]
Rio Tinto paid less tax last year but warns of higher costs ahead March 17, 2014 RIO TINTO paid 19 per cent less tax in 2013, but warned that new regulations would raise future costs. In its latest annual tax report published late on Sunday, the FTSE 100 mining giant said it paid $7.5bn (£4.5bn) of taxes in 2013, $5.7bn of which were paid in Australia. This was a 19 per [...]
Smiths News to change name to Connect Group March 17, 2014 SMITHS News yesterday announced a rebrand to Connect Group next month as the company continues to diversify its business to become a specialist distributor. Britain’s biggest supplier of newspapers and magazines, that was spun out of stationers WH Smiths eight years ago, said the change aligns with its move away from a being pure newspaper [...]
Capital & Counties seals £665m loan for Covent Garden portfolio March 17, 2014 CAPITAL & Counties (Capco) said yesterday that it has secured a new £665m loan to help expand its huge £1.2bn Covent Garden estate. The developer said the five-year unsecured debt facility will replace three existing secured loans and provide “improved operational and financial flexibility” to support its expansion. Capco has been sprucing up its Covent [...]
