Ovo Energy slapped with £8.9m fine for inaccurate billing January 29, 2020 Ovo Energy has been charged £8.9m by industry regulator Ofgem after inaccurate information on bills led to some customers being charged too much. The challenger firm, which recently became one of the UK’s largest energy suppliers, fell foul of the watchdog after incorrect annual statements were sent to more than 500,000 customers between July 2015 [...]
De Beers records highest diamond sales since April as 2020 looks brighter January 29, 2020 De Beers, the diamond mining arm of Anglo American, recorded its highest sales of the gems since April last year in signs that the global market is beginning to recover from a nightmare 2019. The firm, which was taken over by Anglo in 2011, sold $545m (£418.7m) in rough diamonds in its first cycle of [...]
Oil majors investing only three per cent of capital into renewables January 29, 2020 Oil majors responsible for half of global output are investing a mere three per cent of their combined capital expenditure on renewable energy sources. According to a new report by law firm CMS, fifteen of the world’s largest oil companies, including Shell, BP, Exxon Mobil, and Saudi Aramco spent approximately $6.6bn of a combined $228bn [...]
Flash crash trader sentenced to one year’s house arrest January 28, 2020 British trader Navinder Sarao who was responsible for the so-called flash crash in 2010 has been sentenced to one year home incarceration. Sarao was arrested in 2015 and pleaded guilty to illegally manipulating the stock markets. The sentence, which was handed down by a Chicago court yesterday, was thrown into doubt after lawyers said it [...]
Ofgem launches probe into troubled Western Link cable January 28, 2020 Ofgem has launched an investigation into National Grid and Scottish Power’s delivery of a high voltage subsea cable which carries energy from Scottish windfarms to north Wales. The £1.3bn Western Link, as the cable is known, has endured a deeply troubled gestation involving multiple delays and outages. Originally designated to come online in 2015, the [...]
FTSE 100 edges higher after coronavirus sell-off January 28, 2020 The FTSE 100 has climbed higher in early-afternoon trading, making up lost ground after stock markets crumbled yesterday amid fears over the spread of coronavirus. The UK’s benchmark index had risen 0.5 per cent by 1.45pm to stand at 7,449. France’s CAC 40, Germany’s Dax and the Euronext 100 each also gained around 0.5 per [...]
Yu Group shares jump as firm eyes successful year ahead January 28, 2020 Business utility supplier Yu Group’s shares jumped 20 per cent this morning as the firm announced that its 2019 revenue would be 35 per cent ahead of expectations. According to a trading update, revenue for the financial year is expected to hit £110m, up from £80.6m in 2018. The group did not give an estimate [...]
Year of the Rat: How China’s coronavirus outbreak is spreading tremors through world markets January 28, 2020 Saturday marked the beginning of the Year of the Rat. This animal — representing the first of the 12 signs of the zodiac — is associated with wealth and prosperity in China. In other cultures, the rat is more often associated with plague and disease. It is unfortunate, then, that the dominant Chinese story this [...]
Energy sector needs to fill 400,000 jobs to reach net zero January 28, 2020 The energy sector will have to recruit 117,000 people in the next decade if the UK is to hit its net zero targets by 2050. According to new research by the National Grid, in total the UK will need to fill 400,000 jobs by 2050 to ensure it makes the transition successfully. The total number [...]
Coronavirus sends US markets into the red January 27, 2020 US stocks markets opened sharply lower this afternoon as investors grew fearful that the coronavirus outbreak – which has killed 81 – will damage the global economy. The S&P 500 was down 1.3 per cent shortly after the bell, while the Dow Jones was 1.2 per cent lower and the tech-heavy Nasdaq had fallen 1.6 [...]
