©Getty Tamar offshore gasfield Israel’s Harel Insurance and Financial Services said on Sunday that it was in talks to buy up to 4 per cent of the Tamar offshore natural gasfield from Houston-based Noble Energy, currently its biggest shareholder. The sale would be part of framework deal agreed by Noble
Wessex water has revealed its pre-tax profits dropped £12.2 million in the financial year 2015-16. Wessex Water chief executive Colin Skellett The water supplier also revealed that turnover decreased by nearly £20 million from £540.3 million to £520.8 million. Operating profit has dropped as a result of a
Policymakers in Wales should face up to pressing challenges in order to help the nation’s construction sector fulfil its potential. That is according to Mark Bodger, strategic director of CITB Cymru Wales, who believes that further efforts should be made to capitalise on the industry’s optimistic outlook. Writing in a
©Getty Tamar offshore gasfield Israel’s Harel Insurance and Financial Services said on Sunday that it was in talks to buy up to 4 per cent of the Tamar offshore natural gasfield from Houston-based Noble Energy, currently its biggest shareholder. The sale would be part of framework deal agreed by Noble and other investors in Israel’s offshore gas sector with the country’s government in order to address an antitrust challenge and allow the much larger Leviathan gas project to go ahead. More On this topic IN Oil & Gas Harel, Israel’s largest insurer, said in a notice to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange that the talks with Noble covered a 3 per cent share, with an option to buy another one per cent of Tamar. The field began producing gas in 2013, and is now Israel’s main source of supply. The insurance group said that any deal would require regulatory approval. Noble’s spokesperson in Israel declined to comment. Noble agreed as part of a gas framework plan reached with Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to cut its stake in Tamar from 36 per cent to 25 per cent. Delek agreed to sell all of its 31.3 per cent stake. The compromise was a response to a challenge in December 2014 posed by Israel’s antitrust watchdog, which recommended that Leviathan be broken up as Noble and Delek had too much control of the sector already. News of Noble’s sale talks with Harel comes as work finally begins on Leviathan, one of the eastern Mediterranean’s biggest gas reservoirs and a potential cash cow for Noble and Delek, which have signed preliminary export deals with Jordan and two refinery projects in Egypt. The field is also due to supply customers in Turkey with gas via a proposed undersea pipeline, following a reconciliation deal between the Turkish and Israeli governments expected to be finalised shortly. Leviathan, touted in Israel as a game-changing regional energy project, faced long delays after the antitrust challenge, which pushed the investors and Israel’s government into long negotiations on the gas framework, which were complicated by disagreements within the governing coalition. Opposition politicians accused the Netanyahu government of guaranteeing the investors too high a gas price, while the gas companies and the government accused them of economic populism and overzealous regulation. A final version of the gas framework was finally agreed last month after being amended to address a further challenge from Israel’s Supreme Court. Last week Delek and Avner, another Leviathan shareholder, said that they had begun work on a $120m plan to build Leviathan’s production platform, which they described as “a significant milestone for the overall project”. The field is due to begin producing gas by 2019. 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
Wessex water has revealed its pre-tax profits dropped £12.2 million in the financial year 2015-16. Wessex Water chief executive Colin Skellett The water supplier also revealed that turnover decreased by nearly £20 million from £540.3 million to £520.8 million. Operating profit has dropped as a result of a £2 billion programme of work for major water and sewerage improvements. However, customer bills have dropped by five per cent since April 2015. The programme which is currently underway includes a £39 million scheme to improve bathing water quality in the Burnham-on-Sea area to meet tighter standards. A new water supply grid is also being built and is due to be completed in 2017. Wessex Water chief executive Colin Skellett said: “2015/16 was the first year of a new five-year price control. Our focus is on delivering the outcomes our customers and local communities want. “We have made an excellent start and performed well against our commitments, achieving industry-leading customer service and environmental performance.” As part of the supplier’s five-year investment plan, the Wessex Water Partnership has been formed, independently chaired by former water minister Dan Rogerson, the partnership will provide advice and guidance on customer engagement, service, affordability and tariffs. Earlier this year the company announced a joint venture with Albion Water, taking a 51 per cent stake in the independent supplier. Source link
Policymakers in Wales should face up to pressing challenges in order to help the nation’s construction sector fulfil its potential. That is according to Mark Bodger, strategic director of CITB Cymru Wales, who believes that further efforts should be made to capitalise on the industry’s optimistic outlook. Writing in a piece published by WalesOnline, he welcomed plans to set up a National Infrastructure Commission, suggesting it could be the catalyst which the wider sector needs. Noting that the Welsh construction industry is full of potential, the expert said more young people are embarking on apprenticeships in the building trades, while the country’s infrastructure output is expected to expand in the future. In light of these factors, Mr Bodger said steps should now be taken to address pressing challenges in the industry. In his article, he writes that more certainty is required regarding major projects such as the Circuit of Wales, the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon and the Wylfa Newydd nuclear power plant. The new infrastructure commission will also need to focus on skills development within the construction sector, Mr Bodger noted. He stated: “Embedding a strong skills element from the outset in the commission will also be vital. “This is because training the Welsh workforce – through apprenticeships, upskilling and attracting people back into construction – will reduce the skills gap and lead to a positive ripple effect across the Welsh economy.” Boosting skills can offer wider social and economic benefits, he said, such as reducing existing levels of poverty, homelessness and unemployment. The new commission should additionally focus on the subject of finance, according to Mr Bodger. He commented: “Securing long-term investment for the Welsh construction sector will be essential to provide the certainty that’s required to see the sector invest in its people.” In conclusion, the expert said the formation of the National Infrastructure Commission should aim to provide an impetus which can drive the Welsh construction sector forwards. Quoting Prime Minister David Cameron’s words, he said that rather than delaying decisions, it is now time to “get on with it”. Source link
