USA and Canada

To some, solar power represents the perfect environmental energy source, one which will be ever present so long as the sun continues to shine. Arguments for solar power also draw on the fact that solar power plants promote clean energy production by producing virtually nothing in the way of pollution, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the carbon footprint of a project.

In an age where negative stories seem to supersede positive news the vast majority of the time, it is always refreshing to hear an optimistic voice or opinion. We have all been privy to the damaging effects that have come in the wake of the sharp fall in metal prices and economic activity in the mining sector, a prolonged event that has seen a lot of company’s share prices plunge as they fail to raise much needed capital, however if you search around you will find people that are much quicker to speak of the opportunities that do exist today.

Mining has been a fundamental part of Ontario’s economic fabric for centuries and is now seen as an integral component of its future. Ontario’s native population is widely credited with being the first to tap into the province’s mineral wealth, while major discoveries and mine development in the 20th century helped to underpin Ontario's rise to the status of Canada's most populous and wealthiest province, and supported Canada's development as an industrialised and globally competitive nation.

There’s a sense of purpose at Canadian junior Potash Ridge – and the tone is set by its President and CEO Guy Bentinck a Chartered Accountant who has devoted the 20 years he has spent in the mining sector to finding smart ways of securing finance. He is not a man whose head can be turned by specious arguments: every step in the development of a project has to be considered, and realistic contingency planning built in.

In much the same way that Trinity Exploration and Production operates under the motto that “it’s not just about oil”, Joel “Monty” Pemberton has lived most of his working life with the belief that it’s not just about how much money one can earn.

The market has a lot to answer for, and so do investors in search of a quick buck. Where gold mining is concerned, it is a well-known fact that as the price on the international metal exchanges fluctuates the viability of higher cost mines comes into question. There are properties all over the world that have been put into mothballs either because all the high grade material has been taken or because they can’t any longer sustain a decent margin.

“While the theme of the conference remains mostly the same, the finale of a year’s worth of hard work, what we do hope to do is mature the event and the presentations that take place each year,” states Lean Program Director, Glenn Uminger. The conference he is referring to is the University of Kentucky’s Lean Systems Program, 2013 Users Conference, held on 10-11 September, 2013.

Having started the day priced at $26 each, Twitter’s share closed at $44.90, giving the microblogging site a value of just over $31 billion.

With more than 13 million shares traded in the first hour after the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) opened alone, it was far and away the biggest technology listing since that of Facebook in 2012. Twitter’s choice of exchange ahead of the technology-rich Nasdaq exchange proved somewhat surprising, however as a way of avoiding the technical glitches and delays that Facebook’s IPO launch experienced it clearly worked.

“If you ask me what factors have contributed most to our success,” says SOS Safety International’s Managing Director, Carmen Nieves, “I would have to say it is a healthy combination of hard work and effort, a lot of negotiating, a lot of sales and ultimately a lot of satisfied customers.”

Struggling smartphone maker BlackBerry has fired its CEO Thorsten Heins, who leaves with a $22 million severance package. He will be replaced at the end of November by John Chen former CEO of Sybase. The move comes as the company turns its back on a $4.7 billion rescue deal from its principal shareholder Fairfax Financial, in favour of a plan to raise $ 1 billion in convertible bonds: Fairfax has pledged to buy $250 million worth of them.