July 23, 2017

Buckingham sues on stalled stadium project

Buckingham Group is pursuing a winding up order to get the £4.8m it is owed for the stalled East Stand project at Northampton Town Football Club. Above: Work on the new East Stand stopped for a second time in June 2015 Buckingham has twice walked off the project because of

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Food giants launch online sustainability site to meet changing consumer demands

Sustainable food news – by GreenWise staff 2nd November 2015 Bidvest Foodservice and a ‘green alliance’ made up of food industry giants, Unilever, Premier Foods, Delifrance UK, Vegware, and Jacobs Douwe Egberts have today launched plate2planet, a ‘one-stop-shop’ digital platform that aims to address the growing demand in the food sector

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Profits elusive for Australia’s oil groups

The slumping oil price has carved a chunk out of Australian oil and gas majors, with Woodside Petroleum reporting that profits halved in the first six months of the year while Santos swung to a loss of more than $1bn. Woodside said on Friday that net profit after tax halved

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Issue 323 : Dec 2024

July 23, 2017

Buckingham sues on stalled stadium project

Buckingham Group is pursuing a winding up order to get the £4.8m it is owed for the stalled East Stand project at Northampton Town Football Club. Above: Work on the new East Stand stopped for a second time in June 2015 Buckingham has twice walked off the project because of the client’s failure to pay money owed and is now seeing legal redress.  The case hits the courts this week. The action is against its client, County Development Northampton Limited (CDNL), the project vehicle set up by Northampton Town chairman David Cadoza. HM Revenue & Customs has also issued legal proceedings against the club for outstanding Buckingham Group Contracting Limited issued a full statement setting out the troubled history of the Sixfields stadium project, which was originally conceived by 1st Land Ltd before being taken over by CDNL. Buckingham’s statement says: “In order to assist Northampton Town Supporter’s Trust in their efforts to deliver accurate information to Cobblers supporters we would like to point out that our Contract with 1st Land Ltd to build the replacement East Stand at Sixfields was valued at £4.151m. “The structure which we have been building is not the original scheme designed by RMJC Architects and permitted by the Borough Council on 28th November 2013 under Planning Application N/2013/1048. This original scheme incorporated conference facilities, a banqueting suite with ancillary corporate hospitality facilities, new kitchens and a gymnasium. “Buckingham’s earliest involvement at Sixfields was in January 2014 when we were asked to produce a budget price for this original scheme which was going to cost in excess of £8m to build and fit out. This original scheme represented a total transformation of the football club’s facilities and as club chairman David Cardoza said at the time ‘would take the football club into the 21st Century’. “The decision to abandon the original scheme and replace it with a bog-standard spectator stand came exclusively from the football club via the club’s project managers – Jemmerley Ltd – in an email dated 17th April 2014, and Buckingham signed a JCT Contract with 1st Land Ltd on 1st May 2014 to build the amended design for the replacement East Stand at a contract value of £4.151m. “The football club had already entered into an arrangement for 1st Land Ltd to act as main contractors for the overall re-development package at Sixfields. The overall package included some upgrading work to the flood-lighting and some relatively minor works within the West Stand “The value of the main contract which the football club awarded to 1st Land Ltd was £8.2m. “1st Land Ltd made three payments under their contract with Buckingham between 1st May and 14th July 2014. These payments totalled £441,917 net of VAT. These are the only monies Buckingham have ever received for works carried out and certified to date on the East Stand. “When we pulled off site in September 2014 we were owed a total of £1.852m by 1st Land Ltd. We pursued Mr Grossman for payment up until the beginning of December 2014 when we commenced administration proceedings against 1st Land Ltd. “At the end of March 2015 Buckingham reached agreement with David Cardoza to return to Sixfields to recommence work on the East Stand. This agreement was based on repeated assurances received from Mr Cardoza that there were adequate, additional loan monies which remained available to draw down from the Borough Council to fund the completion of the East Stand works. “We signed a new JCT Contract to complete the East Stand with County Developments (Northampton) Ltd [CDNL] and returned to site to resume work on 13th April 2015. Under this new contract CDNL also accepted liability to pay Buckingham the £1.852m debt owed by 1st Land Ltd, no later than 31st December 2015. “The first payment to Buckingham under the new contract with CDNL was due on 8th May 2015 but was not forthcoming. On 20th May 2015 we issued a formal notice to suspend works on the grounds of non-payment. “We wish to make it clear that the reason why the East Stand construction works ceased completely in early June 2015 was entirely due to non-payment of monies due and certified. The cessation of works had nothing whatsoever to do with any purported proposals from any prospective investor with plans to re-design the stadium. We stopped work because we were not paid. “For the avoidance of doubt we have not been paid a penny by CDNL. CDNL are liable to Buckingham for circa £2.989m for works completed and certified on the East Stand, and for the debt that CDNL took over from 1st Land Ltd, which is why we are pursuing a winding up order against CDNL in the High Court this Thursday 22nd October 2015.” Northampton Town chairman David Cardoza said that he was “working night and day to secure a resolution to all of the issues that the club are facing at the moment”.     This article was published on 20 Oct 2015 (last updated on 21 Oct 2015). Source link

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Food giants launch online sustainability site to meet changing consumer demands

Sustainable food news – by GreenWise staff 2nd November 2015 Bidvest Foodservice and a ‘green alliance’ made up of food industry giants, Unilever, Premier Foods, Delifrance UK, Vegware, and Jacobs Douwe Egberts have today launched plate2planet, a ‘one-stop-shop’ digital platform that aims to address the growing demand in the food sector for useful and practical information about sustainability. “Our customers, and those of our plate2planet partners, care deeply about sustainability and operators across the industry are taking measures to tackle the challenges,” said Shirley Duncalf, head of Sustainability at Bidvest Foodservice. The platform will share green knowledge, including ‘how to’ guides, case studies, handy tools, supply chain stories, guidance on regulations and best practice examples for those working in the industry. Duncalf said plate2planet’s collective wealth of knowledge was “unparalleled” in the industry. “Our aim, in sharing these resources in a single space, is to support the entire industry to make small but effective changes which can ultimately have a huge impact on a global scale, and on profit margins. Our message is that by working together we can truly enact positive change,” she said. A recent survey by the Sustainable Restaurant Association revealed that 83 per cent of consumers said sustainability directly affects their dining choices. Bidvest said making sustainable business choices is a challenge for caterers to navigate, who face ever-evolving changes to sustainability policy and regulation as well as to consumer demands. “Caterers are looking to drive successful green initiatives that truly add value to their own community, customers and their bottom line but many of them tell us they do not have the resources to research trends, find new suppliers or dissect complicated reports and Government documents,” Duncalf said. Commenting on the launch, Sarah Robb, channel marketing manager at Premier Foods, said: “We are thrilled to be involved in this initiative. At Premier Foodservice we believe we have a crucial role in helping to build a sustainable future for the industry and we’re continually looking for ways to reduce our environmental footprint and minimise our impact; whether that’s through the sourcing of local ingredients, reducing emissions or buying responsibly to ensure the upmost quality and authenticity of our products. We believe this is an excellent platform for the foodservice industry to share best practice and work collaboratively in driving the sustainability agenda forward.” Peter Bolger, national account controller for Bidvest at Unilever Food Solutions, added: “The launch of the new digital platform platetoplanet.co.uk is perfectly in line with Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan, which is our blueprint for sustainable business. “We are excited and pleased to be associated to this initiative and to join hands with Bidvest to create a space where people can share and learn about news and opportunities around sustainability.” Also partnering on the site is Planet First, the sustainability consultancy that provides The Planet Mark a certification for organisations that want to demonstrate their ongoing commitment to sustainability. Bidvest is the first food service company to sign up to The Planet Mark and is keen to see its suppliers adopt the ‘kitemark’.  Steve Malkin, ceo Planet First and founder of The Planet Mark, said: “We’re delighted to be partnering on Plate2Planet. 90% of BidvestFoodservices’ customers claim sustainability is important to their business and at Planet First and The Planet Mark we believe every organisation can be sustainable and can contribute to a planet where everyone can thrive. Like this story? Please subscribe to our free weekly e-newsletter at the top of the page for more content like this. Related content: Related links: Source link

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Profits elusive for Australia’s oil groups

The slumping oil price has carved a chunk out of Australian oil and gas majors, with Woodside Petroleum reporting that profits halved in the first six months of the year while Santos swung to a loss of more than $1bn. Woodside said on Friday that net profit after tax halved from a year ago to $340m in the six months to June 30. Sales revenue slid 22 per cent from a year earlier to $1.807bn as oil prices dropped 46 per cent in the same period. More On this topic IN Oil & Gas Slumping oil prices fell into a bear market earlier this year, weighed down by a two-year supply glut, though they rose above $50 a barrel overnight for the first time since June amid persisting hopes an informal Opec meeting next month will yield a production cap. Peter Coleman, chief executive officer, talked up Woodside’s operational performance, saying: “Combined with the low cost of our operations and a continued focus on cost reduction we are in a robust position as oil price forecasts improve in 2017.” He said Woodside would add “significant volumes” from its Wheatstone liquefied natural gas project to the company’s portfolio in mid-2017, and further low-cost production from its Greater Enfield project in 2019. But the company faces major challenges in finding growth opportunities. Earlier this year it indefinitely halted development of the $40bn Browse LNG project, located off the coast of Western Australia, in which it is the major partner alongside Royal Dutch Shell, BP, a joint venture between Japan’s Mitsubishi and Mitsui, and a subsidiary of PetroChina. That was the second major blow for Woodside in a little more than three months, after it dropped an A$11.6bn bid for smaller rival Oil Search, an ASX-listed and Papua New Guinea-focused producer. Oil and gas explorer Santos, meanwhile, on Friday reported a net loss of $1.1bn for the first half, hit by a $1.05bn impairment charge against its new Gladstone liquefied natural gas export project. A year ago, the company reported a $30m net profit. Excluding impairments, the company posted a loss of $5m in the first half, versus a $25m underlying profit a year ago. Much like Woodside, Santos’s averaged realised oil prices was down 29 per cent from a year ago, leading to a 6 per cent drop in sales revenue — in spite of production volume rising 10 per cent and sales volume increasing 32 per cent. Kevin Gallagher, chief executive, acknowledged the company has much work still to do in embedding a new operating model, driving down costs and using available cash flow to reduce debt. But he said Santos has “made good progress” towards being cash flow break-even at between $35 and $40 a barrel on a portfolio basis, and is “forecasting a free cash flow break-even price of US$43.50 per barrel for 2016, down from US$47 per barrel”. Following a difficult 2015 in which the company’s share price almost halved as it raised capital and sold assets to bolster its balance sheet, Santos in February scrapped its pledge to maintain or increase its dividend every year. This week, Australian electricity and gas provider Origin Energy similarly cancelled its final dividend, as it reported a 41 per cent slump in first-half profit. Shares in Woodside were up 2.2 per cent on Friday morning in Sydney while Santos rose 0.4 per cent, in a broader market that was up 0.1 per cent. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016. You may share using our article tools. Please don’t cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web. Source link

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Strong new leisure occupier muscles into Cowgate, Peterborough

Savills, on behalf of Webb Commerce, has let space at Britannic House, 15/27 Cowgate in Peterborough to Fit 4 Less. The budget gym operator has agreed to a new 15-year lease and will occupy 9,490 sq ft (881 sq m) on the first floor of the building. The property, which was formerly occupied by Rileys as a snooker hall, was granted planning consent for the change of use earlier this year. Edward Gee, associate in the business space agency team at Savills Peterborough, comments: “Situated in a thriving city centre location, the new gym will be a welcome addition to Peterborough’s growing leisure offer. We are very pleased to have secured this deal on behalf of our client and we look forward to seeing the gym open shortly.” Fit 4 Less was advised by GCW. Source link

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