Europe

BP has agreed to sell its liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distribution business in the UK to DCC, a sales, marketing, distribution and business support services group.

BP’s LPG distribution business supplies a wide range of industrial, commercial and domestic customers with an annual volume of approximately 87,000 tonnes of bulk and cylinder LPG. It has 116 staff and operates from a network of 13 locations throughout the UK with a fleet of 62 delivery vehicles.

Industrial gases and equipment supplier Air Products has announced it is to build an energy-from-waste plant in Teesside, UK.

The Tees Valley plant, located at the New Energy and Technology Business Park near Billingham, Teesside, will be the first of its kind in the UK, and will use advanced gasification energy-from-waste (EfW) technology.

The plant will be the largest of its kind anywhere in the world, with an approximate capacity of 50MW.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world's biggest contract chipmaker, has agreed to invest €276 million into the Dutch manufacturer ASML.

ASML will use the money for the research and development of next-generation lithography technologies, including extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography technology and 450mm lithography tools.

ASML is one of the world's leading providers oflithography systems for the semiconductor industry, manufacturing complex machines that are critical to the production of integrated circuits or chips

Italy’s Eni has announced a giant new natural gas discovery offshore Mozambique.

The discovery was made in the eastern part of Area 4 at the Mamba North East 2 exploration prospect, the fifth exploration well successfully drilled in the area.

Mamba North East 2, where Eni will now conduct a production test, was drilled in 1,994 metres of water, reaching a total depth of 5,365 metres. The well is located approximately nine kilometres east of Mamba North East 1 and approximately 23 kilometres from Mamba South 1, 60 kilometres off the Capo Delgado coast.

Rig operator Prosafe has been awarded a contract by an undisclosed client for the provision of the Safe Scandinavia accommodation support rig at a project in the UK sector of the North Sea.

The firm period of the contract is 187 days, with on-site operations planned to commence in April 2013.

The total value of the contract for the firm period is approximately $58.1 million.

Renewable energy developer Mainstream Renewable Power has submitted an application for a 450MW offshore wind project off the Fife coast in Scotland.

Jaguar Land Rover has announced the creation of more than 1,100 new jobs at its Castle Bromwich plant in the UK.

The company, which is the UK's largest automotive employer, will expand its workforce at the West Midlands-based advanced manufacturing facility to support the launch of new Jaguar models. Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) said the launch of the new models will also support thousands of jobs in the UK supply chain.

Bristol, UK-based Imperial Tobacco Group has reported growth for the nine months to the end of June in its interim management statement issued today.

The company has also confirmed that its overall financial position and group operational performance for the financial year to 30 September 2012 is in line with expectations.

In the nine months to 30 June 2012, Imperial said that tobacco net revenue was up three per cent, adding that its total tobacco portfolio was performing well, with ongoing price/mix improvements within each region.

A European consortium has embarked upon a €23.9 million project to design and deploy a 39 MWh energy storage facility in Puglia, Italy.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance has announced it will invest US$160 million in Korea to meet anticipated demand for new vehicles and to grow its Renault Samsung Motors brand.

Production of the next-generation Nissan Rogue in Busan, Korea, will begin in 2014, with an annual capacity of about 80,000 units. The plant aims to build a total of 180,000 vehicles this year for sale in Korea and 60 other countries.