Cold war over Russian energy as EU increases pressure on Gazprom April 21, 2015 Tensions between the West and Russia are expected to heighten further today when European Union anti-trust officials ramp up proceedings against state-owned energy giant Gazprom The new EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager is likely to deliver a formal statement of objections to the Russian energy giant. An investigation into the firm’s pricing policies was [...]
Ed Davey forces Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman to sell off North Sea gasfields April 20, 2015 Energy secretary Ed Davey has given the Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman six months to sell off the North Sea gas fields. Davey notified Fridman’s LetterOne company of the decision yesterday, informing it that if the sale did not occur by the deadline he had set, the firm’s licenses in the North Sea would be revoked. [...]
Production flat but shares rise on Evraz tender April 20, 2015 RUSSIAN steelmaker Evraz, which counts Roman Abramovich as its majority shareholder, said production volumes remained flat in the first quarter yesterday. The company, which is chaired by the Chelsea FC owner, said consolidated crude steel output was stable at 3.9m tonnes with its mills at full capacity. The production of steel products, net of re-rolled [...]
UK pressures Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman to sell North Sea oil fields April 20, 2015 Unfortunate news for Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman: the government has threatened to revoke the licenses of a dozen North Sea gas fields belonging to his investment vehicle, L1 Energy, unless they're sold. The Department of Energy and Climate Change said LetterOne, the owner of subsidiary L1, must sell the oil and gas fields within three [...]
Championship promotion race: A guide to the eight clubs slugging it out for the £3bn Premier League reward April 19, 2015 With Chelsea seven points clear at the top and Manchester City four points ahead in fourth, there isn't too much left to get excited about in the Premier League season. But you don't have to look too far to get your fix of title-fight drama. The Championship is set for yet another barmy, barnstorming finish [...]
Champisonship promotion race: A guide to the eight clubs slugging it out for the £3bn Premier League reward April 17, 2015 ENTER ENTER [infographic id="57"] Bournemouth – 83 points Whatever happens in the next three games, this is already Bournemouth's greatest ever season. In only their second season since promotion from League One (and just their fifth season in the second tier), the Cherries are unlikely leaders of the chasing pack. With an unassuming three-sided ground, [...]
Film review: Child 44 April 17, 2015 Cert 15 | ★☆☆☆☆ According to Child 44, post-war Soviet Russia is a place where the walls have ears and the woods have marauding killers addicted to the blood of children. Little rings true in this collage of Cold War nightmares, but nothing offends reality quite as much as the absurd Reeushyan icksshyents adopted by [...]
Direct Line with Vladimir Putin: The weird tradition of the Russian President’s annual phone-in April 16, 2015 If you're into Russian politics, tonight is one of the highlights of the political year: Direct Line with Vladimir Putin will air on Russian TV – the Russian President's annual marathon chat show, during which he takes questions put to him by the Russian public for the 13th time. It's an annual tradition dating back [...]
Which are the world’s most powerful passports? Britain and the United States April 16, 2015 With the ability to cross 147 borders without the need for a visa, US citizens have the most powerful passports in the world, new research has found – although that's shared with the UK. Financial advisory firm Arton has put together a passport index which ranks the world's most "powerful" passports, crunching data from the International Air Transportation [...]
Delta airlines suspends its service to Moscow as dollar strengthens April 15, 2015 Is US airline Delta's Moscow route the first major casualty of the strong dollar? The airline said today that it will suspend its flights to the Russian capital from December, as the rouble's volatility and the falling price of oil pushes down demand. Moscow isn't the only one losing out: it will also cut its [...]