Calgary’s West LRT project represents a number of firsts and other major milestones for the western Canadian city and the province of Alberta. Keith Regan learns how the project’s intentional detour through an extensive public interaction and feedback process is helping to make for a smoother ride now that construction is well under way.

Commercially driven it may be, but as Alan Swaby learns while talking to the GM for North America, this French food company is equally passionate about taste, choice and quality.

The world’s leading producer of exclusively vegetable products isn’t from North America. It’s French. But after conquering practically all the known world, it was inevitable that it would eventually turn its attentions to that continent.

For more than 25 years, Jetcrete has been providing shaft wall building, ground stabilization and related services to mining and construction companies across the Australian continent. Now, thanks to a joint venture with Thyssen Mining, the company is aggressively entering the North American mining market, as Keith Regan learns from the joint venture’s general manager.

In 2009 Ray Smith was parachuted in as CEO and president to rescue True Energy Trust. Now 18 months into the job, he talks to Gay Sutton about the remarkable turnaround, about renaming the company Bellatrix Exploration Ltd., and about his ambitions to make it the rising star of the Western Canadian Basin.

Agnico-Eagle has reported record quarterly revenue, net income and gold production in its second quarter 2010 results, thanks to higher prices for gold, zinc, silver and copper and the impact of four new gold mines commencing operations in the past 14 months.

Record quarterly net income of $100.4 million, or $0.64 per share, includes a non-cash foreign currency translation gain of $17.4 million, as well as a one-time tax recovery of $21.2 million. The result also includes non-cash stock-based compensation expense of $8.1 million.

Defence group BAE Systems and engine supplier Rolls-Royce have signed a £700 million deal to supply products and services for 57 Hawk training jets to India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.

Over £500 million will go to BAE and £200 million to Rolls-Royce, who will build the engines for the jets. BAE will be supplying products and services to enable the aircraft to be built under licence at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL)’s facilities in Bangalore, India.

Newmont Mining Corporation, the world’s second largest mining operator, more than doubled its profits in its second quarter results, thanks to higher gold and copper prices.

Net income rose to $382 million ($0.78 per share) compared to $162 million ($0.33 per share) in the second quarter of 2009. Gold production was reported at 1.3 million ounces, a rise of 12 per cent over Q2 2009.

Nevada produced 420,000 equity ounces of gold, slightly higher than the year ago quarter due to higher underground production at Midas and Leeville.

Spain’s Telefonica has reached an initial agreement to buy Portugal Telecom’s stake in Brazil’s Vivo Participacoes after raising its bid a third time to €7.5 billion, according to reports.

The agreement was said to be reached late yesterday, with the boards of both companies yet to ratify it. Madrid-based Telefonica holds its monthly board meeting today.

Motorists who buy a hybrid vehicle in the belief that it will save them money are mistaken, according to research carried out by the British Columbia Automobile Association (BCAA).

Twelve years after Honda introduced the first gas-electric hybrid vehicle into the mass North American market, car buyers have yet to see the kinds of price reductions that were predicted to occur as hybrids gained popularity and market share, according to the BCAA’s annual Hybrid Cost and Savings analysis conducted in July.

African Barrick Gold has reported a half year net profit rise of 217 per cent.

Profits at the miner soared to $99 million (approx. €76 million) on the back of increased production and the rising price of gold.

Revenue rose by 64 per cent to $424 million (approx. €326 million) and production by 23 per cent to 356,208 ounces. Realised gold prices jumped by 28 per cent to $1,155 (approx €888) per ounce.