The United States figured ninth out of twelve in a new energy efficiency ranking of the world's major economies published today by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).

The United Kingdom came in at No. 1 in the first ever International Energy Efficiency Scorecard, with Germany, Italy and Japan filling the next three places.

The World Bank has approved loans totalling $684 million for the Eastern Electricity Highway Project, which will connect Ethiopia’s electrical grid with Kenya’s.

The World Bank financing to both governments—US$243 million for Ethiopia and US$441 million for Kenya—will come from the International Development Association, the Bank’s fund for the world’s poorest countries.

Nobody’s perfect. What quality or ability do you wish you had?

More patience. I don't wait well. Sometimes I take it out on others who don't deserve it and then I have to apologize.

What is the best business book you have ever read, and why?

Stumbling on Happiness, by Daniel Gilbert. The sun can't shine every day. Bad days are occasionally part of the program. Build an infrastructure in your life and in your business to help you through those unavoidable tough days.

Vodafone Group has announced its acquisition of the New Zealand business of Telstra Corporation for £430 million.

The acquisition of TelstraClear was made through Vodafone New Zealand, the country’s largest mobile operator with more than 2.4 million customers. TelstraClear is the second largest fixed operator in New Zealand with a customer base that includes government and large corporations, and small & medium enterprises, as well as consumers. 

As the first public-private partnership on the island, the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital Redevelopment Project has both challenged traditional concepts of how these schemes are undertaken and faced some unique challenges of its own.

Convincing mines to spend more money up-front on the expectation of lower life-of-mine costs is what one South African supplier is working hard to do.

One of Poland’s biggest companies has embarked upon a campaign of global expansion, positioning it among the world’s largest copper and silver producers and paving the way for future growth.

South Africa-based Best Shoes has been focusing its efforts on quality, customer service and strategy in order to continue growing its business.

One South African mining company is producing a refractory material on whose properties the world’s iron and steel producers depend.

In the production of iron and steel, refractory materials fall into the category of consumable commodity—hovering somewhere in the background until all the glamorous hard work has been done and the melted, smelted, refined liquid metal needs moving in a refractory lined vessel from one part of the plant to another.

Kuwait-based Al Fajr Al Jadid specialises in automation and control solutions for industrial applications. Director Ano Nazarian talks about the importance of innovation and keeping abreast of the latest technology.