GAZPROM, the Russian energy giant, is seeking a UK partner for an ambitious
multi-million pound plan to supply Siberian gas to western Europe via a pipeline
across the Baltic Sea. Gazprom is understood to have approached Shell, BP and
Centrica, with US investment bank Goldman Sachs said to be advising on the deal.
The pipeline is expected to cost up to dollars 6 billion (GBP 3.3bn) and would
involve the construction of a 1,875-mile link from northern Russia to Germany,
with offshoots to the UK, Finland and Sweden. With construction unlikely to be
completed before 2010, a spokesman for Shell said the company viewed the
pipeline as a "potentially favourable option" for expanding
transportation capacity. Asda close to sealing GBP 40m Safeway deal MORRISONS is finalising terms on a GBP 40 million package of stores for sale
to rival Asda, in line with compensation authority orders. Asda will buy at
least four large former Safeway shops in the West Midlands and noth-west of
England with a fifth still under negotiation. The Competition Commission said it
would allow Asda to buy just six former Safeways from Morrisons when it blocked
the Wal- Mart chain from bidding for the full business. Wal-Mart owned Asda is
understood to have agreed to buy stores in Burton-on-Trent, Coventry, Shrewsbury
and St Helen's. However, the deal still leaves Ken Morrison with 19 stores he
has to sell by the autumn if he is to comply with commission's rules. Lastminute shares fears after Jacobs sell-off MILLIONS of shares in the star dotcom stock Lastminute.com have been dumped
by former vice-chairman Clive Jacobs - although as yet the exact number is
unclear. Lastminute disclosed the sale on Friday after the market closed, and
analysts are predicting it could trigger a slide in the share price this week.
The sale came a day after Lastminute revealed increased losses in its
third-quarter results. Jacobs owned an estimated 12.3 million shares, equivalent
to 3.5 per cent of the company, and although Lastminute declined to put a figure
on the sale, it admitted it took his stake below 3 per cent. If he sold all his shares at last week's closing price of 98.5p, we would
have pocketed GBP 11 million. ScottishPower confident of hitting dollars 1bn target SCOTTISHPOWER chief executive Ian Russell is expected to assure investors
later this week that he is confident of meeting his dollars 1 billion (GBP 543
million) profit-target for the year, despite disappointing early trading figures
from the US. Russell is expected to make the announcement on Thursday, along
with a first- quarter update, which analysts expect to show flat profits as a
result of significantly lower returns from major US subsidiary PacifiCorp.
Excluding provisions for goodwill and other charges, some believe the pre-tax
figure could even show a slight fall against the GBP 204m previously declared. Most stockbrokers, however, still believe the power giant will boost
full-year profits from GBP 920m to GBP 960m.
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