- Amal Hasson
Thursday, 21 July 2011 12:49
http://www.english.globalarabnetwork.com/images/stories/2010/MAY/invest_bank_sharjah_uae.jpg
Global Arab Network - Capital Intelligence (CI) has announced that it has maintained Invest Bank’s (IB) Foreign Currency ratings at ‘BBB’- Long-Term and ‘A3’ Short-Term. The ratings are underpinned by the support of the federal government and the Bank’s strong capital adequacy ratio. The Support Rating is maintained at ‘3’ and reflects its private-sector ownership. IB’s Financial Strength rating is affirmed at ‘BBB-‘, with the Bank’s strong capital base and good profitability being major supporting factors and its small balance sheet and the high customer concentrations in its deposit base being constraining factors. A ‘Stable’ Outlook is assigned to all the ratings.
Invest Bank (IB) has managed the economic downturn reasonably well. The Bank continued to maintain a high level of capital and indeed its capital adequacy ratio at end 2010 was one of the best in the UAE banking sector. The Bank also experienced fewer asset quality problems than many of its peers, partly because as a corporate banking institution it had a relatively small unsecured retail credit portfolio, which saw significantly increased delinquencies in the banking sector. IB also had no exposures to two major Saudi-based business groups that defaulted in 2009, unlike many other banks in the country. IB’s asset quality ratios strengthened last year partly due to write-offs of older bad loans. While non-performing loans (NPLs) did rise in 2009 and 2010 owing to the weaker credit environment, the Bank’s strong operating profitability enabled it to comfortably absorb the higher provision charges. Liquidity ratios tightened last year but were at acceptable levels. Net profit growth was modest last year, however key profitability ratios were strong. IB offers plain vanilla banking products to small and medium-sized companies and its personalised services permit high margins.
IB was incorporated in the emirate of Sharjah in 1975. Its principal shareholders are businessmen from Sharjah and Abu Dhabi. With total assets of AED10 billion at end-March 2011, it ranks among the smaller banks in the country. The Bank is primarily a corporate banking institution. The bulk of its customers are small and medium-sized companies, although with the growth of the Bank’s capital IB is increasingly in a position to reach out to some of the larger companies as well. Contractor and trade finance and loans to manufacturing companies are important corporate banking activities. The Bank operates a small network of 12 branches.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Iraq signs deal to build Karbala Refinery
Sunday, July 24, 2011
http://www.tradearabia.com/news/OGN_202462.html
Baghdad: 3 hours and 30 minutes ago
Iraq’s Ministry of Oil has signed an implementation agreement for the construction under BOO terms of a new refinery at Karbala with RKC (Refinery of Karbala Corporation).
The new refinery will have a daily capacity of 200,000 barrels of crude oil and will produce high quality, high octane gasoline (regular and premium) as well diesel fuel for the domestic market.
“Karbala Refinery will be located 100 km south of Baghdad on a 6 sq km plot of land, and will be the most advanced state of the art refinery with almost full conversion rate and with an estimated cost of $6.5 billion,” said Dean Michael, CEO of Refinery of Karbala Corporation.
The Italian company Saipem will be providing the processing and the technical aspects of the project.
Such a refinery is due to become the most technically advanced refinery in Iraq with the use of the latest available technologies that will ensure almost full conversion of crude to final products in line with new Iraqi laws in refining and the environment, a statement said.
RKC has committed to commence production in 48 months from the final contract date.
With production from the new refinery, the Ministry of Oil will be able to largely supply the domestic market with better quality gasoline and diesel products, the statement added. – TradeArabia News Service
http://www.tradearabia.com/news/OGN_202462.html
Baghdad: 3 hours and 30 minutes ago
Iraq’s Ministry of Oil has signed an implementation agreement for the construction under BOO terms of a new refinery at Karbala with RKC (Refinery of Karbala Corporation).
The new refinery will have a daily capacity of 200,000 barrels of crude oil and will produce high quality, high octane gasoline (regular and premium) as well diesel fuel for the domestic market.
“Karbala Refinery will be located 100 km south of Baghdad on a 6 sq km plot of land, and will be the most advanced state of the art refinery with almost full conversion rate and with an estimated cost of $6.5 billion,” said Dean Michael, CEO of Refinery of Karbala Corporation.
The Italian company Saipem will be providing the processing and the technical aspects of the project.
Such a refinery is due to become the most technically advanced refinery in Iraq with the use of the latest available technologies that will ensure almost full conversion of crude to final products in line with new Iraqi laws in refining and the environment, a statement said.
RKC has committed to commence production in 48 months from the final contract date.
With production from the new refinery, the Ministry of Oil will be able to largely supply the domestic market with better quality gasoline and diesel products, the statement added. – TradeArabia News Service
Who really owns companies, bank accounts and other financial assets within their borders
WORLD BANK CALL FOR CRACKDOWN ON FINANCIAL SECRECY IS WELCOME
22 Jul 2011 09:21
Source: member // Christian Aid
Christian Aid has welcomed a new from the World Bank for countries to exchange information about who really owns companies, bank accounts and other financial assets within their borders, in a bid to help recover the billions currently stolen from poor countries each year.
‘Christian Aid is delighted that the Bank is speaking out about the urgent need for countries to lift the financial secrecy which criminals abuse to hide dirty money,’ said Dr David McNair, the agency’s Senior Adviser on Economic Justice.
‘At present, some countries obstruct investigators who are attempting to trace and recover the staggering amounts of money stolen from poor countries, by claiming that they do not have the information sought.
‘The Bank’s recommendation that countries should create publicly-available registries of who owns what within their borders could make a dramatic difference to poor countries, which currently struggle to trace and recover even a small fraction of the billions they lose to tax dodging, corruption and other financial crimes.
‘Christian Aid estimates that at present, the amount developing countries lose to tax dodging by companies trading across borders is some $160 billion a year, which is one-and-a-half times the amount they get in aid from rich countries.
‘Access to information is also crucial for tax authorities wanting to pursue suspected international tax dodgers. At present, many developing countries cannot access this information – global financial secrecy works powerfully against them.’
The Bank’s recommendations about reforms needed to help recover stolen assets come in a new 196-page report called Barriers to Asset Recovery.
It states: ‘Establishing a national bank registry of account holder information is a powerful tool to facilitate the tracing of assets and to accelerate and assist international cooperation.’
The World Bank also notes: ‘Because criminals often use other individuals, attorneys, and legal persons to hide assets, such tools would be even more useful if they identify the beneficial owner of the account and any power of attorney related to the account. By helping to identify accounts, central bank registries…speed the work of law enforcement authorities in asset recovery cases.’
As well as recommending the creation of such registries, the report makes a host of other suggestions aimed at helping developing countries recover more of the $20 to $40 billion which it estimates they currently lose through corruption each year. The Bank also estimates that of this huge outflow, only $5 billion of stolen assets has been repatriated over the last 15 years.
‘Christian Aid is also pleased to see the Bank recognising that what it calls ‘excessive banking secrecy’ is part of the problem facing poor countries and that greater exchange of financial information between countries is part of the solution,’ added Dr McNair.
Christian Aid is part of the End Tax Haven Secrecy campaign, which is calling on G20 leaders to agree at their November summit in Cannes, France, on action to effectively end tax haven secrecy. A new system through which all countries can automatically share financial information with each other is a critical part of such action.
For more information please contact Rachel Baird on 0207 523 2446, 07545 501 749 or rbaird@christian-aid.org
22 Jul 2011 09:21
Source: member // Christian Aid
Christian Aid has welcomed a new from the World Bank for countries to exchange information about who really owns companies, bank accounts and other financial assets within their borders, in a bid to help recover the billions currently stolen from poor countries each year.
‘Christian Aid is delighted that the Bank is speaking out about the urgent need for countries to lift the financial secrecy which criminals abuse to hide dirty money,’ said Dr David McNair, the agency’s Senior Adviser on Economic Justice.
‘At present, some countries obstruct investigators who are attempting to trace and recover the staggering amounts of money stolen from poor countries, by claiming that they do not have the information sought.
‘The Bank’s recommendation that countries should create publicly-available registries of who owns what within their borders could make a dramatic difference to poor countries, which currently struggle to trace and recover even a small fraction of the billions they lose to tax dodging, corruption and other financial crimes.
‘Christian Aid estimates that at present, the amount developing countries lose to tax dodging by companies trading across borders is some $160 billion a year, which is one-and-a-half times the amount they get in aid from rich countries.
‘Access to information is also crucial for tax authorities wanting to pursue suspected international tax dodgers. At present, many developing countries cannot access this information – global financial secrecy works powerfully against them.’
The Bank’s recommendations about reforms needed to help recover stolen assets come in a new 196-page report called Barriers to Asset Recovery.
It states: ‘Establishing a national bank registry of account holder information is a powerful tool to facilitate the tracing of assets and to accelerate and assist international cooperation.’
The World Bank also notes: ‘Because criminals often use other individuals, attorneys, and legal persons to hide assets, such tools would be even more useful if they identify the beneficial owner of the account and any power of attorney related to the account. By helping to identify accounts, central bank registries…speed the work of law enforcement authorities in asset recovery cases.’
As well as recommending the creation of such registries, the report makes a host of other suggestions aimed at helping developing countries recover more of the $20 to $40 billion which it estimates they currently lose through corruption each year. The Bank also estimates that of this huge outflow, only $5 billion of stolen assets has been repatriated over the last 15 years.
‘Christian Aid is also pleased to see the Bank recognising that what it calls ‘excessive banking secrecy’ is part of the problem facing poor countries and that greater exchange of financial information between countries is part of the solution,’ added Dr McNair.
Christian Aid is part of the End Tax Haven Secrecy campaign, which is calling on G20 leaders to agree at their November summit in Cannes, France, on action to effectively end tax haven secrecy. A new system through which all countries can automatically share financial information with each other is a critical part of such action.
For more information please contact Rachel Baird on 0207 523 2446, 07545 501 749 or rbaird@christian-aid.org
Saturday, July 23, 2011
39 dead after Chinese bullet trains collide
World Jul. 24, 2011 - 06:43AM JST ( 12 )
BEIJING —
Emergency workers battled on Sunday to rescue survivors from the mangled wreckage of two Chinese bullet trains involved in a high-speed collision which left 32 dead and nearly 200 injured, reports said.
The first train had been halted by a lightning strike and was rear-ended by the second, state media said, causing two carriages to fall off a viaduct in a disaster likely to raise fresh questions over the safety of China’s rapid rail expansion.
Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao called for “all-out efforts” to rescue injured passengers, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Railways Minister Sheng Guangzu, who was heading to the scene from Beijing, ordered an “in-depth investigation” into Saturday’s accident, the agency reported.
The high-speed service from Hangzhou to Wenzhou, in eastern China’s Zhejiang province, was rammed from behind in Wenzhou’s Shuangyu town, China National Radio said.
It derailed and two of its carriages fell from an elevated section of track at around 8:50 p.m., Xinhua reported, citing local firefighting sources. Some 191 people were injured, it said.
Pictures posted on Chinese websites and microblogs showed a long rail carriage standing vertically, with one end leaning on the viaduct and the other resting on the ground about 20 meters below.
A second carriage was lying fully on the ground below the track, having apparently fallen completely off, with rescue personnel swarming over it.
The photos also showed mangled metal sections of one carriage and people being carried away from the scene, although it was not clear whether those victims were injured or dead.
Xinhua said the capacity of each train car was about 100 passengers.
China National Radio quoted an unnamed Shanghai Railway Bureau official who had gone to the scene as saying the first train was halted by a lightning strike.
Xinhua said the train itself had been struck by lightning but other reports suggested it may not have been a direct hit.
The first four coaches of the second train had also been knocked off the track by the force of the collision, Xinhua said.
The accident occurred less than a month after China inaugurated with great fanfare a new flagship $33 billion line from Beijing to Shanghai that halves the rail journey time between China’s two most important cities to five hours.
The line has suffered problems with delays caused by power outages, sparking a slew of criticism online and in Chinese media.
China has recently poured money into a further expansion of the network but the huge investments have spurred allegations of corruption and raised concerns over costs and whether corners were being cut on rail safety.
In April 2008, 72 people were killed and more than 400 injured when one train derailed and another collided with it in the eastern province of Shandong.
© 2011 Agence France-Presse
===
Jul 23, 12:00 PM EDT
Chinese state media say 11 dead in train accident
By SCOTT McDONALD
Associated Press
AP Photo
AP Photo/STR
World Video
Advertisement
Multimedia
Video photo gallery on trash in China
China celebrates 60th year
Panorama of Tiananmen Square
Remembering Tiananmen
A year after China quake
Migrant laborers struggle to find work
Checking Beijing's Air
China's morning exercises in parks
Exploring Chinese Cuisine
Beijing Architecture Changes For Games
Woman Rescues Homeless Quake Dogs
China Holds Funeral for Panda
China's 1-child Policy Causes Extra Pain
Map of Earthquake Zone in Central China
Entrepreneurs Move Into, Out of China
Olypmics in Beijing Highlight China's Water Woes
Foreign Buyers Head to China Despite Problems
Coal Use Produces Pollution, Illness
Coal Means Profit, Woes for China
China Extending Its Reach Around the World
In China, the Desert Closes In
Latest News
Chinese state media say 11 dead in train accident
12 years later, China's most-wanted sent back
Clinton calls for 'restraint' in South China Sea
China considers ordaining 7 more bishops amid rift
41 killed in bus fire in central China
Buy AP Photo Reprints
PHOTO GALLERY
AP Photo
China has worst train wreck in a decade
Audio Slideshow
Panorama of Tiananmen Square
Remembering Tiananmen
Interactives/Galleries
Washington Commuter Train Crash
BEIJING (AP) -- At least 11 people were killed and 89 hurt Saturday when a Chinese bullet train lost power after being struck by lightning and was hit from behind by another train, knocking two of its carriages off a bridge, state media reported.
The official Xinhua New Agency said four cars on the second train also derailed, but it did not say how serious that was.
The first train was traveling from the Zhejiang provincial capital of Hangzhou when the accident happened in Wenzhou city at about 8:30 p.m. (1230 GMT), Xinhua said.
It said one carriage from the first train fell about 65 to 100 feet (20 to 30 meters). Pictures on the Internet showed the second car was standing on its end and leaning against the bridge.
Xinhua quoted an unidentified witness as saying "rescuers have dragged many passengers out of the coach that fell on the ground."
The trains involved are "D" trains, the first generation bullet train with an average speed of about 95 miles (150 kilometers) per hour and not as fast at the Beijing-Shanghai line that opened June 30.
Xinhua said the train hit by lightning was "D3115." The other train was "D301," which was traveling from Beijing to Shanghai.
China has spent billions and plans more massive spending to link the country with a high-speed rail network. Recently, power outages and other malfunctions have plagued the showcase new high-speed line between Beijing and Shanghai since it opened last month.
Official plans call for China's bullet train network to expand to 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers) of track this year and 10,000 miles (16,000 kilometers) by 2020.
The huge spending connected with the rail expansion also has been blamed for corruption, and Railways Minister Liu Zhijun was dismissed this spring amid an investigation into unspecified corruption allegations.
No details have been released about the allegations against him, but news reports say they include kickbacks, bribes, illegal contracts and sexual liaisons.
==
Signal system designer apologizes for train crash
Updated: 2011-07-28 15:03
(Xinhua)
Comments(0) Print Mail Large Medium Small
0
BEIJING - A signal system design company apologized on Thursday for a design flaw in one of its products that allegedly caused Saturday's deadly high-speed train collision.
The Beijing National Railway Research and Design Institute of Signals and Communication posted an apology letter on its website on Thursday, expressing its condolences and regret to the victims of the accident and their families.
"We feel very sorry" for the deadly train accident that caused so much loss of life, the letter said.
The company promised to cooperate in investigations, take responsibility and shoulder any due punishments that may result from the investigations, the letter said.
Design flaws in railway signal equipment led to Saturday's fatal train collision near the city of Wenzhou in East China's Zhejiang province, the Shanghai Railway Bureau said earlier on Thursday.
After being struck by lightning, the signal system at the Wenzhou South Railway Station failed to turn one of its green lights to red, which caused the rear-end collision, said An Lusheng, head of the Shanghai Railway Bureau, at an investigatory meeting held by the State Council, or China's cabinet, in Wenzhou.
The signal equipment was designed by a Beijing-based research and design institute and was put into use on Sept 28, 2009, An said.
The accident has revealed the railway sector's vulnerabilities in safety infrastructure and management, An said.
The accident has left at least 39 people dead and 192 others injured so far.
The State Council has set up an investigatory panel to work at the site of the crash, the Ministry of Railways (MOR) said in a statement on Tuesday.
==
Wen: Crash probe result to 'stand test of history'
Updated: 2011-07-28 13:37
(Xinhua)
Comments(17) Print Mail Large Medium Small
5
WENZHOU - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao promised the investigation into the fatal train crash will offer a result that could "stand the test of history".
Wen made the remarks while speaking to press at the site of the deadly train crash near Wenzhou of eastern Zhejiang Province.
The State Council has set up an independent investigation panel, which includes authorities from the security, supervision and judiciary departments, Wen said.
He said the investigation will be "open, transparent" and "under public supervision."
"We shall carefully listen to public opinions and reach a responsible result," Wen said.
China will severely punish those who are responsible for the fatal train collision, Premier Wen said. "We will severely punish those who are responsible for the accident and those who hold responsibilities of leadership in accordance with the country's laws," Wen told the press.
He stressed that the government's top priority is to "protect people's life."
"The country's development is for the people, so the most important thing is people's life."
The premier pledged to offer timely and accurate information on follow-up situations to the public after Saturday's fatal train collision.
Only by disclosing the truth to the public could the accident be handled successfully, he said.
He also urged the Ministry of Railways (MOR) to give an "honest answer" to the people on the way it had handled the aftermath of a fatal train crash.
"I called the minister of railways soon after the crash happened, and what I said to him was just two words -- 'save people'," said Wen after mourning victims and expressing condolences to the relatives of the dead.
"I believe the top principle in handling accidents is to save the victims by all means," said Wen.
"The Ministry of Railways should give an honest answer to the people as to whether it has conformed with this principle in dealing with the collision," said Wen.
Wen said that safety is a top priority in China's high-speed railway technology export.
"The high-speed railway construction of China should integrate speed, quality, efficiency and safety. And safety should be put in the first place," said Wen.
Wen noted that scientific planning, reasonable designing and orderly development are principles for the country's future railway construction.
The construction should not put sole emphasis on the speed, but should integrate it with quality, efficiency and safety, with the safety always the first priority, Wen said.
Wen urged nation to work harder to develop technologies that are "more secure and reliable."
The nation should brace up to develop technological brands with China's own intellectual property rights and products with international competitiveness.
He said that was "a lesson to be learned" from the accident that left 39 people dead and 192 others injured last Saturday.
Wen said he was "confident in the China's future, no matter in its development, construction, technology or education."
===
Probe finds China train crash "avoidable"
Posted: 12 August 2011 1347 hrs
Workers clearing wreckage of mangled carriages after the train accident. (AFP PHOTO)
Photos 1 of 1
Workers clearing wreckage of mangled carriages after the train accident. (AFP PHOTO)
Related News
• Chinese manufacturer pulls bullet trains over "flaws"
Share
BEIJING: Investigators have found that a high-speed rail crash that killed 40 people in China and provoked public outrage was "completely avoidable," the official China Daily newspaper reported on Friday.
The accident "should not have happened," the paper quoted government minister for work safety Luo Lin, who is heading the investigation team, as saying.
The initial conclusions come after investigators into the July 23 collision of two high-speed trains performed a simulation of the events leading up to the disaster, in which 40 people were killed and nearly 200 injured.
Describing the accident as "completely avoidable", Luo told the paper the probe had found design defects that were likely to have caused equipment failures, and that emergency plans were also deficient, but did not elaborate.
The disaster on the outskirts of the eastern city of Wenzhou was a major embarrassment to the Chinese government, which had made the construction of the world's biggest high-speed rail network a key political goal.
Luo's comments came a day after the government said it was suspending approval of new railway construction projects and ordered that the maximum speed of trains on the newly-built lines be lowered by as much as 20 percent.
On Friday, a state-owned manufacturing company said it was recalling 54 bullet trains on the newly opened high-speed link between Beijing and Shanghai for safety checks.
China's government has also said it will reduce its train fares by five percent in a move believed to be aimed at attracting commuters back to the country's beleaguered rail system.
BEIJING —
Emergency workers battled on Sunday to rescue survivors from the mangled wreckage of two Chinese bullet trains involved in a high-speed collision which left 32 dead and nearly 200 injured, reports said.
The first train had been halted by a lightning strike and was rear-ended by the second, state media said, causing two carriages to fall off a viaduct in a disaster likely to raise fresh questions over the safety of China’s rapid rail expansion.
Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao called for “all-out efforts” to rescue injured passengers, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Railways Minister Sheng Guangzu, who was heading to the scene from Beijing, ordered an “in-depth investigation” into Saturday’s accident, the agency reported.
The high-speed service from Hangzhou to Wenzhou, in eastern China’s Zhejiang province, was rammed from behind in Wenzhou’s Shuangyu town, China National Radio said.
It derailed and two of its carriages fell from an elevated section of track at around 8:50 p.m., Xinhua reported, citing local firefighting sources. Some 191 people were injured, it said.
Pictures posted on Chinese websites and microblogs showed a long rail carriage standing vertically, with one end leaning on the viaduct and the other resting on the ground about 20 meters below.
A second carriage was lying fully on the ground below the track, having apparently fallen completely off, with rescue personnel swarming over it.
The photos also showed mangled metal sections of one carriage and people being carried away from the scene, although it was not clear whether those victims were injured or dead.
Xinhua said the capacity of each train car was about 100 passengers.
China National Radio quoted an unnamed Shanghai Railway Bureau official who had gone to the scene as saying the first train was halted by a lightning strike.
Xinhua said the train itself had been struck by lightning but other reports suggested it may not have been a direct hit.
The first four coaches of the second train had also been knocked off the track by the force of the collision, Xinhua said.
The accident occurred less than a month after China inaugurated with great fanfare a new flagship $33 billion line from Beijing to Shanghai that halves the rail journey time between China’s two most important cities to five hours.
The line has suffered problems with delays caused by power outages, sparking a slew of criticism online and in Chinese media.
China has recently poured money into a further expansion of the network but the huge investments have spurred allegations of corruption and raised concerns over costs and whether corners were being cut on rail safety.
In April 2008, 72 people were killed and more than 400 injured when one train derailed and another collided with it in the eastern province of Shandong.
© 2011 Agence France-Presse
===
Jul 23, 12:00 PM EDT
Chinese state media say 11 dead in train accident
By SCOTT McDONALD
Associated Press
AP Photo
AP Photo/STR
World Video
Advertisement
Multimedia
Video photo gallery on trash in China
China celebrates 60th year
Panorama of Tiananmen Square
Remembering Tiananmen
A year after China quake
Migrant laborers struggle to find work
Checking Beijing's Air
China's morning exercises in parks
Exploring Chinese Cuisine
Beijing Architecture Changes For Games
Woman Rescues Homeless Quake Dogs
China Holds Funeral for Panda
China's 1-child Policy Causes Extra Pain
Map of Earthquake Zone in Central China
Entrepreneurs Move Into, Out of China
Olypmics in Beijing Highlight China's Water Woes
Foreign Buyers Head to China Despite Problems
Coal Use Produces Pollution, Illness
Coal Means Profit, Woes for China
China Extending Its Reach Around the World
In China, the Desert Closes In
Latest News
Chinese state media say 11 dead in train accident
12 years later, China's most-wanted sent back
Clinton calls for 'restraint' in South China Sea
China considers ordaining 7 more bishops amid rift
41 killed in bus fire in central China
Buy AP Photo Reprints
PHOTO GALLERY
AP Photo
China has worst train wreck in a decade
Audio Slideshow
Panorama of Tiananmen Square
Remembering Tiananmen
Interactives/Galleries
Washington Commuter Train Crash
BEIJING (AP) -- At least 11 people were killed and 89 hurt Saturday when a Chinese bullet train lost power after being struck by lightning and was hit from behind by another train, knocking two of its carriages off a bridge, state media reported.
The official Xinhua New Agency said four cars on the second train also derailed, but it did not say how serious that was.
The first train was traveling from the Zhejiang provincial capital of Hangzhou when the accident happened in Wenzhou city at about 8:30 p.m. (1230 GMT), Xinhua said.
It said one carriage from the first train fell about 65 to 100 feet (20 to 30 meters). Pictures on the Internet showed the second car was standing on its end and leaning against the bridge.
Xinhua quoted an unidentified witness as saying "rescuers have dragged many passengers out of the coach that fell on the ground."
The trains involved are "D" trains, the first generation bullet train with an average speed of about 95 miles (150 kilometers) per hour and not as fast at the Beijing-Shanghai line that opened June 30.
Xinhua said the train hit by lightning was "D3115." The other train was "D301," which was traveling from Beijing to Shanghai.
China has spent billions and plans more massive spending to link the country with a high-speed rail network. Recently, power outages and other malfunctions have plagued the showcase new high-speed line between Beijing and Shanghai since it opened last month.
Official plans call for China's bullet train network to expand to 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers) of track this year and 10,000 miles (16,000 kilometers) by 2020.
The huge spending connected with the rail expansion also has been blamed for corruption, and Railways Minister Liu Zhijun was dismissed this spring amid an investigation into unspecified corruption allegations.
No details have been released about the allegations against him, but news reports say they include kickbacks, bribes, illegal contracts and sexual liaisons.
==
Signal system designer apologizes for train crash
Updated: 2011-07-28 15:03
(Xinhua)
Comments(0) Print Mail Large Medium Small
0
BEIJING - A signal system design company apologized on Thursday for a design flaw in one of its products that allegedly caused Saturday's deadly high-speed train collision.
The Beijing National Railway Research and Design Institute of Signals and Communication posted an apology letter on its website on Thursday, expressing its condolences and regret to the victims of the accident and their families.
"We feel very sorry" for the deadly train accident that caused so much loss of life, the letter said.
The company promised to cooperate in investigations, take responsibility and shoulder any due punishments that may result from the investigations, the letter said.
Design flaws in railway signal equipment led to Saturday's fatal train collision near the city of Wenzhou in East China's Zhejiang province, the Shanghai Railway Bureau said earlier on Thursday.
After being struck by lightning, the signal system at the Wenzhou South Railway Station failed to turn one of its green lights to red, which caused the rear-end collision, said An Lusheng, head of the Shanghai Railway Bureau, at an investigatory meeting held by the State Council, or China's cabinet, in Wenzhou.
The signal equipment was designed by a Beijing-based research and design institute and was put into use on Sept 28, 2009, An said.
The accident has revealed the railway sector's vulnerabilities in safety infrastructure and management, An said.
The accident has left at least 39 people dead and 192 others injured so far.
The State Council has set up an investigatory panel to work at the site of the crash, the Ministry of Railways (MOR) said in a statement on Tuesday.
==
Wen: Crash probe result to 'stand test of history'
Updated: 2011-07-28 13:37
(Xinhua)
Comments(17) Print Mail Large Medium Small
5
WENZHOU - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao promised the investigation into the fatal train crash will offer a result that could "stand the test of history".
Wen made the remarks while speaking to press at the site of the deadly train crash near Wenzhou of eastern Zhejiang Province.
The State Council has set up an independent investigation panel, which includes authorities from the security, supervision and judiciary departments, Wen said.
He said the investigation will be "open, transparent" and "under public supervision."
"We shall carefully listen to public opinions and reach a responsible result," Wen said.
China will severely punish those who are responsible for the fatal train collision, Premier Wen said. "We will severely punish those who are responsible for the accident and those who hold responsibilities of leadership in accordance with the country's laws," Wen told the press.
He stressed that the government's top priority is to "protect people's life."
"The country's development is for the people, so the most important thing is people's life."
The premier pledged to offer timely and accurate information on follow-up situations to the public after Saturday's fatal train collision.
Only by disclosing the truth to the public could the accident be handled successfully, he said.
He also urged the Ministry of Railways (MOR) to give an "honest answer" to the people on the way it had handled the aftermath of a fatal train crash.
"I called the minister of railways soon after the crash happened, and what I said to him was just two words -- 'save people'," said Wen after mourning victims and expressing condolences to the relatives of the dead.
"I believe the top principle in handling accidents is to save the victims by all means," said Wen.
"The Ministry of Railways should give an honest answer to the people as to whether it has conformed with this principle in dealing with the collision," said Wen.
Wen said that safety is a top priority in China's high-speed railway technology export.
"The high-speed railway construction of China should integrate speed, quality, efficiency and safety. And safety should be put in the first place," said Wen.
Wen noted that scientific planning, reasonable designing and orderly development are principles for the country's future railway construction.
The construction should not put sole emphasis on the speed, but should integrate it with quality, efficiency and safety, with the safety always the first priority, Wen said.
Wen urged nation to work harder to develop technologies that are "more secure and reliable."
The nation should brace up to develop technological brands with China's own intellectual property rights and products with international competitiveness.
He said that was "a lesson to be learned" from the accident that left 39 people dead and 192 others injured last Saturday.
Wen said he was "confident in the China's future, no matter in its development, construction, technology or education."
===
Probe finds China train crash "avoidable"
Posted: 12 August 2011 1347 hrs
Workers clearing wreckage of mangled carriages after the train accident. (AFP PHOTO)
Photos 1 of 1
Workers clearing wreckage of mangled carriages after the train accident. (AFP PHOTO)
Related News
• Chinese manufacturer pulls bullet trains over "flaws"
Share
BEIJING: Investigators have found that a high-speed rail crash that killed 40 people in China and provoked public outrage was "completely avoidable," the official China Daily newspaper reported on Friday.
The accident "should not have happened," the paper quoted government minister for work safety Luo Lin, who is heading the investigation team, as saying.
The initial conclusions come after investigators into the July 23 collision of two high-speed trains performed a simulation of the events leading up to the disaster, in which 40 people were killed and nearly 200 injured.
Describing the accident as "completely avoidable", Luo told the paper the probe had found design defects that were likely to have caused equipment failures, and that emergency plans were also deficient, but did not elaborate.
The disaster on the outskirts of the eastern city of Wenzhou was a major embarrassment to the Chinese government, which had made the construction of the world's biggest high-speed rail network a key political goal.
Luo's comments came a day after the government said it was suspending approval of new railway construction projects and ordered that the maximum speed of trains on the newly-built lines be lowered by as much as 20 percent.
On Friday, a state-owned manufacturing company said it was recalling 54 bullet trains on the newly opened high-speed link between Beijing and Shanghai for safety checks.
China's government has also said it will reduce its train fares by five percent in a move believed to be aimed at attracting commuters back to the country's beleaguered rail system.
Iran to Set Up New Petrochemical Complex in Masjed Soleiman
[23.07.2011 16:43]
Iran to Set Up New Petrochemical Complex in Masjed Soleiman
Iran on Saturday started construction of a petrochemical complex in Masjed Soleiman city in the Southwestern Khuzestan province in a ceremony attended by First Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi, Fars News Agency reported.
The urea production project carried out on 400 hectares (1000 acres) of land near the city of Masjed Soleiman and Zilayee gas field is comprised of four phases, the first phase of which was launched today.
The plant is due to produce ammonia from the gas extracted from Zilayee gas field and will then produce urea from the ammonia.
Iran, the world's fifth largest oil producer, exported around 14mln tons of petrochemical products worth more than $12bln in 2010.
The country inaugurated a number of giant petrochemical projects in Khuzestan province in Southwestern Iran in February in the presence of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
One of the projects was Amir Kabir Light Petrochemical Polyethylene worth $310 million with a production capacity of 300,000 tons a year.
In May, Rahimi stressed that Iran plans to double the volume of its petrochemical products by building dozens of production units across the country.
"The capacity of annual petrochemical production in Iran stands at 51mln tons and we are going to double this capacity by creating 66 different units to add 65mln tons to the current figure," Rahimi said, addressing the 9th International Petrochemical Forum here in Tehran.
===
17:25
European market through Iraq and Syria
SpikeyDT this user is in your favourites list
Islamic gas pipeline contract to export and deliver gas through Iraq and Syria to be signed –
http://www.irandailybrief.com/?p=3259
On July 25, an agreement will be signed between Iran, Iraq and Syria to deliver Iranian gas through the two other countries. The agreement will be signed in the presence of the head of Iran’s Ministry of Petroleum and the Ministers of Petroleum of Syria and Iraq. With the signing of the agreement, natural gas produced from the South Pars gas field in Iran will be delivered to the European market through Iraq and Syria. (Sabad News)
50% increase in oil exports to China in first half of 2011 – China’s customs organization announced that in the first half of 2011, China will import 2,654,411 tons of crude oil from Iran, up by more than 50% over the corresponding period the previous year. (Fars)
===
Reuters
China oil barter system(To trade goods or services without the exchange of money.)won't solve Iran's woes
(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own)
By Una Galani
DUBAI, July 26 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Iran may not have much choice, but selling oil under a barter system won't solve the country's woes. International sanctions make it increasingly difficult for buyers of Iranian oil to finance their imports. A payment dispute recently led to a suspension of Iranian oil sales to India. Now Teheran and Beijing are exploring ways to barter oil for Chinese goods. But even if China sends machinery instead of money to circumvent U.S. sanctions that are increasingly hampering payments, Iran's economy will remain vulnerable without hard currency.
The oil-for-something system is tried and tested, although it is more common among poorer countries. Venezuela, for example, provides around 100,000 barrels of discounted oil to Cuba, accounting for around half of the island country's total consumption. In return, Cuba acts as a contractor, sending sends teachers and doctors to Venezuela. The arrangement helps Cuba to get oil it could not afford otherwise.
Similarly, China manufactures goods that Iran needs -- machinery accounts for around 15 percent of the Persian Gulf country's imports. With bilateral trade already at around $30 billion last year and growing, it wouldn't be too hard to offset the oil trade estimated at around $10 billion, or 540,000 barrels per day, in the first half of this year. That is equivalent to about 20 percent of Iran's total oil exports.
Iranians are accustomed to bartering their way around international sanctions. Speedboats zip daily across the Strait of Hormuz to the Musandam Peninsula in Northern Oman carrying sheep or goats. Vessels make the return journey loaded with electronics and cigarettes that U.S. manufacturers are prevented from exporting to the country. But sanctions are also making it harder to get things like spare parts for airplanes.
A barter system could preserve Iran's valuable relationship with China, which extends beyond oil and into areas like transport and aluminium. However it would still leave Iran searching for the steady supply of foreign funds it relies on to stabilise its own currency, which was devalued last month and remains under pressure amid inflation fears. It is unclear how much of Iran's forecast $122 billion reserves have been spent addressing the problem. But as sanctions bite into key trade relationships, Iranians aren't inclined to trust their own currency.
CONTEXT NEWS
-- Iran and China are discussing using a barter system to exchange Iranian oil for Chinese goods and services, as U.S. sanctions have blocked China from paying at least $20 billion for oil, the Financial Times said on July 25.
-- The paper, citing people familiar with the problem, said U.S. financial sanctions against Iran meant China might owe the oil-rich country as much as $30 billion.
-- The people said the unpaid oil bills had built up in the past two years and the governments, which are in early-stage talks, were looking at how to "offset" the debt, the FT reported.
-- The paper said some Iranian officials were growing increasingly angry about the inability of the country's biggest oil customers such as China and India to pay cash, which has contributed to a shortage of hard currency for the country.
-- However, Chinese officials told Reuters that the payments for oil were ongoing and that were no pending debts between the two countries, as China has regularly paid in euros. Sources added that the idea of settling some of the trade in yuan was still on the table.
-- Top exporter Saudi Arabia approved sales of 3 million barrels of extra crude to India for August to make up for a loss of shipments from Iran due to a payment dispute, sources with direct knowledge of the sale told Reuters.
((una.galani@thomsonreuters.com))
(Editing by Pierre Briançon and David Evans)
Iran to Set Up New Petrochemical Complex in Masjed Soleiman
Iran on Saturday started construction of a petrochemical complex in Masjed Soleiman city in the Southwestern Khuzestan province in a ceremony attended by First Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi, Fars News Agency reported.
The urea production project carried out on 400 hectares (1000 acres) of land near the city of Masjed Soleiman and Zilayee gas field is comprised of four phases, the first phase of which was launched today.
The plant is due to produce ammonia from the gas extracted from Zilayee gas field and will then produce urea from the ammonia.
Iran, the world's fifth largest oil producer, exported around 14mln tons of petrochemical products worth more than $12bln in 2010.
The country inaugurated a number of giant petrochemical projects in Khuzestan province in Southwestern Iran in February in the presence of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
One of the projects was Amir Kabir Light Petrochemical Polyethylene worth $310 million with a production capacity of 300,000 tons a year.
In May, Rahimi stressed that Iran plans to double the volume of its petrochemical products by building dozens of production units across the country.
"The capacity of annual petrochemical production in Iran stands at 51mln tons and we are going to double this capacity by creating 66 different units to add 65mln tons to the current figure," Rahimi said, addressing the 9th International Petrochemical Forum here in Tehran.
===
17:25
European market through Iraq and Syria
SpikeyDT this user is in your favourites list
Islamic gas pipeline contract to export and deliver gas through Iraq and Syria to be signed –
http://www.irandailybrief.com/?p=3259
On July 25, an agreement will be signed between Iran, Iraq and Syria to deliver Iranian gas through the two other countries. The agreement will be signed in the presence of the head of Iran’s Ministry of Petroleum and the Ministers of Petroleum of Syria and Iraq. With the signing of the agreement, natural gas produced from the South Pars gas field in Iran will be delivered to the European market through Iraq and Syria. (Sabad News)
50% increase in oil exports to China in first half of 2011 – China’s customs organization announced that in the first half of 2011, China will import 2,654,411 tons of crude oil from Iran, up by more than 50% over the corresponding period the previous year. (Fars)
===
Reuters
China oil barter system(To trade goods or services without the exchange of money.)won't solve Iran's woes
(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own)
By Una Galani
DUBAI, July 26 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Iran may not have much choice, but selling oil under a barter system won't solve the country's woes. International sanctions make it increasingly difficult for buyers of Iranian oil to finance their imports. A payment dispute recently led to a suspension of Iranian oil sales to India. Now Teheran and Beijing are exploring ways to barter oil for Chinese goods. But even if China sends machinery instead of money to circumvent U.S. sanctions that are increasingly hampering payments, Iran's economy will remain vulnerable without hard currency.
The oil-for-something system is tried and tested, although it is more common among poorer countries. Venezuela, for example, provides around 100,000 barrels of discounted oil to Cuba, accounting for around half of the island country's total consumption. In return, Cuba acts as a contractor, sending sends teachers and doctors to Venezuela. The arrangement helps Cuba to get oil it could not afford otherwise.
Similarly, China manufactures goods that Iran needs -- machinery accounts for around 15 percent of the Persian Gulf country's imports. With bilateral trade already at around $30 billion last year and growing, it wouldn't be too hard to offset the oil trade estimated at around $10 billion, or 540,000 barrels per day, in the first half of this year. That is equivalent to about 20 percent of Iran's total oil exports.
Iranians are accustomed to bartering their way around international sanctions. Speedboats zip daily across the Strait of Hormuz to the Musandam Peninsula in Northern Oman carrying sheep or goats. Vessels make the return journey loaded with electronics and cigarettes that U.S. manufacturers are prevented from exporting to the country. But sanctions are also making it harder to get things like spare parts for airplanes.
A barter system could preserve Iran's valuable relationship with China, which extends beyond oil and into areas like transport and aluminium. However it would still leave Iran searching for the steady supply of foreign funds it relies on to stabilise its own currency, which was devalued last month and remains under pressure amid inflation fears. It is unclear how much of Iran's forecast $122 billion reserves have been spent addressing the problem. But as sanctions bite into key trade relationships, Iranians aren't inclined to trust their own currency.
CONTEXT NEWS
-- Iran and China are discussing using a barter system to exchange Iranian oil for Chinese goods and services, as U.S. sanctions have blocked China from paying at least $20 billion for oil, the Financial Times said on July 25.
-- The paper, citing people familiar with the problem, said U.S. financial sanctions against Iran meant China might owe the oil-rich country as much as $30 billion.
-- The people said the unpaid oil bills had built up in the past two years and the governments, which are in early-stage talks, were looking at how to "offset" the debt, the FT reported.
-- The paper said some Iranian officials were growing increasingly angry about the inability of the country's biggest oil customers such as China and India to pay cash, which has contributed to a shortage of hard currency for the country.
-- However, Chinese officials told Reuters that the payments for oil were ongoing and that were no pending debts between the two countries, as China has regularly paid in euros. Sources added that the idea of settling some of the trade in yuan was still on the table.
-- Top exporter Saudi Arabia approved sales of 3 million barrels of extra crude to India for August to make up for a loss of shipments from Iran due to a payment dispute, sources with direct knowledge of the sale told Reuters.
((una.galani@thomsonreuters.com))
(Editing by Pierre Briançon and David Evans)
Iranian nuclear scientist killed in Tehran-report
23 Jul 2011 14:48
Source: reuters // Reuters
TEHRAN, July 23 (Reuters) - An Iranian nuclear scientist was killed in the Iranian capital Tehran on Saturday, Iran's student news agency ISNA reported without giving his name.
"An Iranian nuclear scientist was assassinated in front of his house today ... and his wife was also wounded," it said. No other details were immediately available.
(Reporting by Parisa Hafezi, Writing by Maria Golovnina)
Source: reuters // Reuters
TEHRAN, July 23 (Reuters) - An Iranian nuclear scientist was killed in the Iranian capital Tehran on Saturday, Iran's student news agency ISNA reported without giving his name.
"An Iranian nuclear scientist was assassinated in front of his house today ... and his wife was also wounded," it said. No other details were immediately available.
(Reporting by Parisa Hafezi, Writing by Maria Golovnina)
Friday, July 22, 2011
UK Consultants Win £31m Iraqi Oil Refinery Deal
Posted on 20 July 2011. Tags: 'Your Country' - United Kingdom, Grimley Smith Associates, GSA, South Refinery Company
UK Consultants Win £31m Iraqi Oil Refinery Deal
A £31 million contract – the biggest agreed in nearly two decades of operations – has been landed by consultant process engineers Grimley Smith Associates (GSA), according to the Grimsby Telegraph.
The Brigg-based company has been awarded a two-year project to upgrade facilities at an oil refinery in Basra, Iraq.
It is with the South Refineries Company of Iraq, part of the Iraqi Ministry Of Oil, and will involve the engineering, procurement and construction of site utilities.
Dr Andrew Grimley, executive chairman of GSA, said: “This is a major milestone in our history, signing our biggest contract to date.
“Reaching an agreement on the deliverables with the client and Ministry Of Oil in Iraq has now been achieved, so we are now in the process of ironing out the detail.”
The company has received signed copies of the contract and has accepted a letter of credit. Initial meetings have also been held.
Michael Grimley, project manager at GSA, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded such a large project in Iraq.
“With an operable letter of credit and all other contractual requirements met, we are confident in starting the engineering.”
GSA has taken on the role as turnkey contractor and will undertake all aspects of the design, procurement and project management while working with an Iraqi construction company to deliver the project at site.
The project will involve over 27,000 man hours of design over a two-year period. The current construction period is anticipated to be six months. GSA will be developing the designs from GSA House in Brigg Market Place, using consultants and suppliers local to North Lincolnshire wherever possible.
(Source: Grimsby Telegraph)
UK Consultants Win £31m Iraqi Oil Refinery Deal
A £31 million contract – the biggest agreed in nearly two decades of operations – has been landed by consultant process engineers Grimley Smith Associates (GSA), according to the Grimsby Telegraph.
The Brigg-based company has been awarded a two-year project to upgrade facilities at an oil refinery in Basra, Iraq.
It is with the South Refineries Company of Iraq, part of the Iraqi Ministry Of Oil, and will involve the engineering, procurement and construction of site utilities.
Dr Andrew Grimley, executive chairman of GSA, said: “This is a major milestone in our history, signing our biggest contract to date.
“Reaching an agreement on the deliverables with the client and Ministry Of Oil in Iraq has now been achieved, so we are now in the process of ironing out the detail.”
The company has received signed copies of the contract and has accepted a letter of credit. Initial meetings have also been held.
Michael Grimley, project manager at GSA, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded such a large project in Iraq.
“With an operable letter of credit and all other contractual requirements met, we are confident in starting the engineering.”
GSA has taken on the role as turnkey contractor and will undertake all aspects of the design, procurement and project management while working with an Iraqi construction company to deliver the project at site.
The project will involve over 27,000 man hours of design over a two-year period. The current construction period is anticipated to be six months. GSA will be developing the designs from GSA House in Brigg Market Place, using consultants and suppliers local to North Lincolnshire wherever possible.
(Source: Grimsby Telegraph)
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
