Listen to our latest Investing Matters Podcast episode 'Uncovering opportunities with investment trusts' with The AIC's Richard Stone here.
Well said Badger, I'm sitting on a £10k investment with an average of 22p. I just can't find any shares that are going to recover that amount in the near future! I would rather average down if there was a glimmer of hope! GLA long term sufferers.
APPOINTMENT OF PERMANENT CFO CPPGroup plc (CPP or the Group), the international assistance business, is pleased to announce that, following receipt of regulatory approval, Michael Corcoran has been appointed Chief Financial Officer and a Director of the Group. Michael has more than 20 years' experience in senior finance roles in regulated financial services businesses and served as the International CFO for Franklin Templeton Investments, a listed global investment management business operating in 35 countries. Roger Canham, Non-Executive Chairman, commented: "The Board is delighted that Mike has agreed to join CPP and that we have been able to secure someone of his calibre. I look forward to Mike making a significant contribution as we continue to make encouraging progress with our strategy to drive the Group's turnaround." CEO, Stephen Callaghan, commented: "I look forward to Mike's continued contribution towards CPP's strategic development as we move the firm towards our objective of becoming the international assistance business of choice. His strong business and regulatory background is exactly what CPP needs of its new CFO."
Norwegian oil and gas company Statoil has awarded a contract to Wood Group to provide four-year operations and maintenance for its two wellhead platforms (Alpha and Bravo) and modification services for both units and the FPSO Peregrino, in the Campos basin, offshore Brazil. The contract’s scope includes offshore services and covers all production processes and equipment except drilling services and introduces a new operating model for the field, as for the first time the company is bundling all these services in one single contract in order to boost integration and simplify the contract management. “We have decided to group these contracts in line with our corporate strategy of simplification, cost optimization and production efficiency. We have been working closely with Wood Group in Peregrino field and we look forward to strengthening our partnership for the next four years,” says Pål Eitrheim, senior vice president for Development Production International South America and Brazil Country Manager.
Wood Group is leading five new joint industry projects (JIPs) which will use the company’s subsea experience to solve industry-wide challenges. According to Wood Group’s press release issued Tuesday, these international projects, which will run between 2015 and 2018, will see Wood Group Kenny (WGK) work with several oil and gas operators, contractors and regulators to improve quality, safety and competence across the sector and achieve significant savings in design and unplanned intervention costs:
Wood Group Intetech (WGI), a leading asset integrity specialist serving the global oil and gas industry, has been awarded USD $1 million worth of work in the form of 11 new contracts. The agreements span the Americas, Europe and the Middle East, and include the provision of well integrity software and consultancy services. WGI's asset integrity solutions are improving project economics by substantially reducing OPEX related to well maintenance and workovers, and supporting safe production from mature assets. Dr Liane Smith, Managing Director of Wood Group Intetech, comments: 'The recent success of WGI's solutions is extremely encouraging. This is a challenging time for the industry, and operators are turning to WGI to help them achieve greater operational efficiencies and generate maximum value from their assets.'
These are challenging times for the UKs renewable energy industry. It finds itself fighting for its life under a barrage of government cuts. Perhaps David Cameron just has a thing against solar panels stuck on the roofs of houses. It would neatly explain away the decision to cut subsidy funding by 87%, a scheme which has led to tens of thousands of people installing a source of renewable energy on their homes in recent years. In fact the UK has the enviable title of country with most solar power production in Europe – almost at the 2020 target. The 625,000 homes which installed them generate twice as much energy as Drax, England’s largest power station. The UKs plan to effectively shut down this renewables scheme came three days after the US announced a $1bn programme that would increase the number of homes with solar panels. Maybe this is what the Tories meant when they talked about a ‘new solar revolution’ after they won the election. Details dear boy, details. The Government has estimated 958,000 homes, schools and communities which would likely have taken up the option of installing solar panels will not now do so.
UP TO 40 North Sea platforms are in danger of being shut down early because of the collapse in the price of crude oil, a new analysis shows. The figures from specialist adviser Hannon Westwood will alarm George Osborne. The chancellor introduced a raft of tax breaks in March to revive Britain’s troubled industry, but they had little effect in the face of the oil price dive from $115 last summer to less than $50. The collapse, coupled with the North Sea’s high operating costs, has pushed many operations deeply into the red. Last week Maersk Oil became the latest company to pull the plug rather than restructure to reflect the new price environment.
Further to the Company's announcement on 21 August, the Directors of Marechale Capital are pleased to announce that Kettering Borough Council has granted planning permission for Northfield UK Solar Limited's ("Northfield") 49.9MW solar scheme at Desborough. The Company has a 26% equity shareholding in Northfield and this solar scheme. If the project is successful at the next DECC CFD (Department of Energy and Climate Change Contract for Difference) auction, originally scheduled for October but now delayed until further notice, there may be significant additional value (yet to be quantified as it will depend to a significant extent on the result of the auction) for Marechale Capital and the other Northfield shareholders. The Company continues to await the outcome of the planning appeal on Northfield's other solar scheme proposed at Stanford, which is expected this Autumn. The Company's Directors wish to point out, in the light of last week's significant share price rise, that the approximate value of the net assets on its balance sheet is currently around £850,000. While the Directors believe there is potentially significant additional value in Marechale Capital's investments, including Northfield, which may be realised above their book value there are significant risks involved in achieving this.
The committee considered that the size of the plots remained too small for the number of proposed units, as had been indicated previously. It was agreed that planning permission be REFUSED for the following reasons:-
No interest there, the last news on the plans was in May, so no coverage of it being up for a decision, last planning meeting minutes on Kettering council website are from April so don't hold your breath for that update! What I did notice was not many plans get rejected!