Billiton knocks FTSE 100 Mining company BHP Billiton, along with other oil stocks, helped drag the FTSE 100 down 1.4 per cent after it revealed that damage by Hurricane Rita would lead to lower oil production than previously forecast. The company said it would produce 10m fewer barrels of oil this year than it had previously stated. The company [...]
Tullow finds crude again Tullow Oil, the Africa-focused explorer, said yesterday it had made another crude discovery at its Kigogole-1 well in the Butiaba region of Uganda. Tullow, which holds more exploration licences than any other British firm in Africa, said that the well was drilled to a total depth of 616 metres and found two oil zones. The [...]
EDF in fresh talks over £12bn BE bid French power giant EDF is edging closer to a deal to buy British Energy, the nuclear generator, in the wake of fresh talks with some of the UK firm’s largest investors. The French utility, whose £12bn bid was rejected by British Energy’s shareholders in July, has been in productive talks with among others Invesco Perpetual, [...]
Auto maker GM mulls UK output cuts September 4, 2008 Troubled US carmaker General Motors said last night it is closely monitoring the UK, Spanish and Irish markets, to see whether it should cut production due to the economic turmoil. GM Europe vice president of sales and marketing Brent Dewar said: “The economic headwinds in these three markets are concerning. We have already cut production [...]
Branson eyes possible £2bn Gatwick deal September 2, 2008 Richard Branson, the billionaire owner of airline Virgin Atlantic, said yesterday he is eyeing a £2bn bid for airports group BAA’s London Gatwick airport if it were put up for sale. A Virgin Atlantic spokesman said: “This is something we have given a lot of serious thought to.” He added: “We have talked to other [...]
Premier falls on failed well in Vietnam August 29, 2008 Shares in Premier Oil slumped 6 per cent yesterday, after the British-based oil explorer revealed that a Vietnam well it had been drilling had failed. The firm, led by chief executive Simon Lockett, said its Chim Cong well was being plugged and abandoned because “the oil flow rate achieved was marginal”. Its stock closed down [...]
Toyota slashes output August 29, 2008 High steel and fuel costs as well as the slowing global economy forced Japanese car giant Toyota to cut its sales forecast in Britain and across the world yesterday. Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe said he will cut the firm’s annual global sales target for 2009 by 700,000 vehicles to 9.7m. Watanabe said: “We have been [...]
Tullow profits triple August 28, 2008 Shares surged in Tullow Oil yesterday after the British-based oil explorer reported an almost 250 per cent rise in first half net profit, due to high global oil prices. The oil firm, led by chief executive Aidan Heavey, said its profit was £126m in the first six months of the year, compared to £37m in [...]
Virgin airline bucks gloom, boosts profit August 27, 2008 More business passengers helped boost full-year profits by 21 per cent to £34.8m at Virgin Atlantic despite record fuel prices, the airline revealed yesterday. The long-haul carrier, 51 per cent owned by Sir Richard Branson, said its business passenger numbers rose 22 per cent during the year, as Virgin took market share from British Airways [...]
Profits at Rio Tinto jump on high demand August 27, 2008 Bid target miner Rio Tinto posted a better-than-expected 55 per cent rise in first-half profit yesterday, boosted by its takeover of aluminium producer Alcan and strong Asian demand for commodities. The company, which bought Canada’s Alcan, for $38bn (£19bn) just over a year ago, said its pre-tax profit to the end of June rose to [...]
