Halfords inks £62m deal for automotive servicing business National December 1, 2021 Cycling and motoring services giant Halfords has acquired National, the tyre and automotive servicing business in a £62m deal. National operates under the brands National Tyres and Autocare, Viking Wholesale Tyres and Tyre Shopper. The deal will mean Halfords is the largest vehicle service, maintenance and repair business in the UK and help the company [...]
Business travel equilibrium unclear to everyone, Virgin Atlantic boss says December 1, 2021 Virgin Atlantic’s chief executive Shai Weiss believes business travel forecasts are still very unclear to all airlines, because of the pandemic’s unpredictable nature and the consequent measures taken by governments to curb the spread of the virus. Speaking on a panel at London’s World Aviation Festival today, Weiss stated that despite seeing a recovery of [...]
Heathrow reopens Covid terminal to respond to Omicron challenge December 1, 2021 Heathrow reopened today its Covid terminal to process travellers arriving from red list countries. From 3pm today, Terminal 4 will see only those arriving from countries where there is a higher rate of Omicron cases, keeping them away from the rest of passengers. Mandatory face coverings as well as intensive cleaning regimes, enhanced ventilation and [...]
Carbon capture could break even by end of decade if markets continues to mature: Equinor December 1, 2021 Carbon capture and storage (CCS) services for large industrial emitters could break even in the next 10 years if emitting a tonne of carbon costs around 100 euros per tonne, Equinor’s CCS chief said at the Reuters Next conference . CCS transports CO2 from where it is emitted, typically a smokestack, and stores it, usually in [...]
Volkswagen exec warns battery technology and materials will cost north of $30bn December 1, 2021 Volkswagen’s planned European battery cell plants and securing vital raw materials will cost as much as 30 billion euros ($34 billion), board member Thomas Schmall said, putting a price tag on the expansion for the first time. Schmall, who is in charge of technology at Europe’s largest carmaker, said in an interview at the Reuters [...]
Fiat and Vauxhall owner Stellantis warns EV costs will lead to job cuts December 1, 2021 Stellantis NV Chief Executive Carlos Tavares said external pressure on automakers to accelerate the shift to electric vehicles potentially threatens jobs and vehicle quality as producers struggle to manage the higher costs of building EVs. Governments and investors want car manufacturers to speed up the transition to electric vehicles, but the costs are “beyond the [...]
Number of UK unlicensed vehicles up by 85,000, DfT stats show December 1, 2021 The number of unlicensed vehicles being driven across the country has gone up by 85,000 in the last two years. Statistics from the Department for Transport (DfT) have shown that in 2021, 1.9 per cent of all vehicles in UK traffic did not pay their vehicle excise duty (VED). Data have also revealed that the [...]
Pendragon raises profit outlook as supply issues deemed “not as bad” December 1, 2021 UK motor retailer Pendragon has raised its profit outlook for the full year for the second time in less than two months. After initially lifting it from between £55m and £60m to approximately £70m on 7 October, the group said this morning its underlying profit for the full year to 31 December 2021 has gone [...]
Omicron variant will have “limited overall impact”, Qatar Airways boss says November 30, 2021 Qatar Airways’ boss Akbar Al Baker has said he hopes that the new Omicron variant detected last week “will have a limited overall impact” on aviation’s recovery, with the “process of unlocking” continuing. Delivering the keynote speech at the UK Aviation Club this afternoon, Al Baker – who has been at the helm of the [...]
Sadiq Khan admits entire Tube line may close if government doesn’t stump up emergency TfL cash November 30, 2021 Sadiq Khan has confirmed he may have to close an entire Tube line if the government does not quickly come up with a financial settlement for cash-strapped Transport for London (TfL). Khan today said any one of London’s 11 Tube lines could potentially be closed as tensions continue to flare between City Hall and Whitehall [...]
