France says world is "practically in energy war"

French Finance Minister Thierry Breton said the world was locked in a sort of energy war, with oil prices soaring over the past two years. "We are practically in an energy war. The price of a barrel of petrol has multiplied threefoold," Breton told Europe 1 radio station.

(2006-07-25 19:19:17 SGT) [Energy] Permalink

AMD agrees to buy ATI for $5.4 billion

news.yahoo.com :

Advanced Micro Devices said it would buy Canadian graphics chipmaker ATI Technologies for $5.4 billion, in what analysts called an aggressive but expensive move to compete with Intel. The deal will give AMD, the No. 2 supplier of computer processors, better high-end graphics products for mobile computing, gaming and media markets.

While there are potential savings from the deal, it also compounds the risk facing AMD, which is embroiled in a bitter price war with Intel, analysts said. It expects to finance the cash portion of the transaction with a combination of cash and new debt. Ratings agencies Standard & Poor's and Moody's Investors Service said they may cut AMD's credit ratings as a result of the acquisition.

(2006-07-25 19:14:56 SGT) [Biz] Permalink

Power failure knocks out part of NEL train services

channelnewsasia.com :

A power failure around lunch time on Monday knocked out part of the North East Line train services, causing 4 stations, HarbourFront, Outram Park, Chinatown and Clarke Quay, to be closed to the public. 100 passengers had to be evacuated from a stalled train just after Outram Park Station. The problem started at 12.45pm when a southbound NEL train stalled in the tunnel some 200 metres after leaving the Outram Park Station. Outside the affected stations, things quickly got busier as the breakdown stretched into the evening rush hour.

Investigations showed a wire which supplies traction power to the trains had come loose. Monday's transit breakdown is one of the longest in Singapore's history. The last such breakdown was in 1993 when there was an SMRT train accident and service was only resumed the following day.

(2006-07-25 19:12:49 SGT) [Energy] Permalink

HDB to build two-room flats in Sengkang

channelnewsasia.com :

The HDB will be building two-room flats for the first time in 20 years. The first such project will be at Fernvale Vista in Sengkang. The HDB will build 86 two-room flats at Fernvale Vista and will consider building more if there is a demand. These will be ready in three to four years.

With a price tag of between $54,000 and $75,000, they are targeted at the low-income group - those with a monthly household income of $1,000. To help low-income families with urgent housing needs, the HDB will convert about 180 five-room and executive units in Jurong West and Sengkang into 2-room and 3-room flats. They will be available by the year-end.

(2006-07-25 19:07:44 SGT) [Biz] Permalink

SMRT plans fare hikes for its bus, MRT, LRT services

channelnewsasia.com :

SMRT Corporation is planning to raise fares for its bus, MRT and LRT services. It will apply for a fare adjustment by the August 1 deadline set by the Public Transport Council.

The SMRT Corporation says its total operating costs have ballooned by 20% this year because of the increase in diesel prices. The fare hike will follow the PTC's formula of a maximum increase of 1.7%, which translates to a rise of one or two cents, if approved.

(2006-07-25 19:02:46 SGT) [Biz] Permalink

Will Mexico soon be tapped out?

peakoil.com -> latimes.com :

Output at Mexico's most important oil field has fallen steeply this year, raising fears that wells there that generate 60% of the country's petroleum are in the throes of a major decline. Exceeded in size only by Saudi Arabia's leviathan Ghawar field, Cantarell is a prolific giant that is past its prime. Monthly production peaked in late 2004 at just over 2.1 million barrels per day (mbpd) and has fallen more than 15% since then, down to 1.8 mbpd in May. Experts agree it has nowhere to go but down.

Seawater is threatening to swamp the wells of Cantarell as the field's pressure diminishes, a debilitating symptom of old age that makes it tougher to extract the remaining oil. Leaked internal reports of Pemex's own worst-case scenarios published in Mexican newspapers show production plummeting to about 520,000 barrels a day by the end of 2008 - a 71% free-fall from May levels in less than three years.

A rapid demise would pose serious challenges for the world's No. 5 oil producer. The oil field has supplied the bulk of Mexico's oil riches for the last quarter of a century. It would also be bad news for the United States, for which Mexico is the No. 2 petroleum supplier, behind Canada. And it could exacerbate tight global supplies that have kept oil at record prices.