Europe

The green light has been given for an onshore wind farm in Wales, to be developed by Sweden’s Vattenfall.

The 76-turbine Pen y Cymoedd Wind Energy Project was granted development consent yesterday, by Charles Hendry, energy minister at the Department of Energy and Climate Change. The wind farm is located on publicly-owned land managed by Forestry Commission Wales in the south of the country.

Once operational, it is hoped that Pen y Cymoedd will increase Welsh renewable electricity by 37 per cent.

Tullow Oil has announced the discovery of further oil at one of its wells in the Kenya Rift Basin.

The Ngamia-1 exploration well, located onshore Kenya in Block 10BB, has been drilled to an intermediate depth of 1,515 metres, with the total net oil pay encountered so far increasing to more than 100 metres across multiple reservoir zones.

Gatwick Airport has signed a deal with Air China, which is seeking to expand its London network.

China’s national flag carrier will operate a non-stop service from Gatwick to Beijing International Airport four times a week. The Airbus A330-200 aircraft will depart Gatwick at 1300 on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, arriving at Beijing airport at 0620 local time the following day. Return journeys will leave at 0135 and touch down at Gatwick at approximately 0550 the same day. Monday’s flight will start operating from the beginning of June.

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, has confirmed its acquisition of a 2.987 per cent stake in Ireland’s national carrier, Aer Lingus.

Etihad said the purchase reflected its desire to forge a commercial partnership with Aer Lingus, believing this could lead to significant commercial benefits for both airlines.

Etihad Airways operates 10 flights a week from Abu Dhabi to Dublin and has carried more than 750,000 passengers between the two destinations since it began flying the route in July 2007.

UK-based Sirius Minerals has announced plans for a potash mine in North Yorkshire, following the completion of a detailed scoping study (DSS).

The company said that York Potash has the potential to become one of the world's most important mining and fertilizer projects. Funding options are now being exploredfor the first $2.7 billion development phase.

The project will be sited between Whitby and Scarborough, although Sirius has not yet specified a precise location.

German car manufacturer Daimler has reported a steep rise in its quarterly profits, boosted by record sales of Mercedes-Benz cars.

The company’s net profit for the first quarter of the year increased by 20 per cent to €1.42 billion, with revenue rising nine per cent to €27 billion.

The world wouldn’t be quite as white as it is without an expanding titanium minerals mining operation in the wilds of Mozambique, as Alan Swaby learns from managing director Michael Carvill.

Raleigh, one of the UK’s best-known brands, has been sold to Netherlands-based Accell Group for €60 million.

Accell said the acquisition of Raleigh adds well-known global brands to its portfolio, further strengthening its position in North America and the UK in the markets for bicycles and bicycle parts & accessories.

Anglo American has announced the sale of Scaw South Africa, completing its divestment of the Scaw Metals Group.

The company has sold Scaw South Africa to an investment consortium led by the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) of South Africa, Izingwe Holdings, Shanduka Resources and the Southern Palace Group of Companies.

Allantone Supplies focuses on keeping the maritime traffic that bustles around the UK well supplied with fuel. Running a short-notice, niche operation, the company makes customer service its top priority.