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Gaza Fighting Intensifies as Cease-Fire Falls Apart

By JODI RUDOREN and ISABEL KERSHNER August 1, 2014 JERUSALEM — Palestinian militants sprang from the ground and confronted Israeli soldiers Friday morning, as they have repeatedly in recent days. This time, Israeli officials said, one exploded a suicide belt while another unleashed machine-gun fire. This time, two Israeli soldiers were killed and the militants apparently escaped with a third. The attack, at the start of what was supposed to be […]

Report estimates Iran’s oil reserves

Iran holds the world’s fourth largest proved crude oil reserves and the world’s second largest natural gas reserves, according to a report produced by US Energy Information Administration. Despite the country’s abundant reserves, Iran’s oil production has substantially declined over the past few years, and natural gas production growth has slowed. International sanctions have profoundly affected Iran’s energy sector. Sanctions have prompted a number of cancellations or […]

Saudis occupy 35% of all Dubai hotels

Dubai is once again proving to be the choicest destination for Saudis this summer, with hotels in the city showing 35 percent occupancy by them during the Eid Al-Fitr holidays, Al-Riyadh daily reported. The more than one-third occupancy of rooms by Saudis during the holidays complements the statistics revealed by Dubai tourism authorities that more than 2 million Saudis visited the city during the past six months, […]

Israelis and Palestinians Clash Despite Cease-Fire

By ISABEL KERSHNER and FARES AKRAM August 1, 2014 JERUSALEM — Heavy exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants in the southern Gaza Strip on Friday morning threatened to shatter a newly agreed 72-hour cease-fire. Gaza health officials said that 27 Palestinians were killed and more than 100 injured. Palestinian witnesses said by telephone that Israeli tank shells hit as residents returned to inspect homes that they had evacuated […]

POOLED PRICES, SUBSIDIES TO REVIVE GAS-BASED POWER

NEW DELHI: The government is formulating a policy package aimed at infusing life into 26,489 MW of gas-starved power plants. The plan includes partially revisiting the gas pooling proposal, which the UPA government conceptualised but later turned wary about, given the huge subsidy cost it entailed.

As per the new plan, some 10,382 MW of administered price gas-based installed power capacity, running at a very low plant load factor (PLF) for want of the fuel right now, would get pooled gas — at a price higher than the APM gas price — with an assurance that the cost of power from these plants above a threshold of R5.50 per unit will be subsidised.

As for the balance gas-based capacity, sources said, some 7,000 MW bas

US WANTS TO LINK POWER PACTS WITH CLIMATE CHANGE AGREEMENT

NEW DELHI: A visiting US team has told Indian negotiators it would link pacts on the power sector to the agreement the two countries draw on climate change and one would not happen without the other.

This message was conveyed by the US team to India in a meeting held with the power ministry on Wednesday. Power Minister Piyush Goyal and other ministry officials attended the meeting.

The US team, headed by Todd Stern, the US special envoy on climate change, also called on Environment, Forests and Climate Change Minister Prakash Javadekar in its bid to stitch an agreement on various climate change issues.

Sources said the meeting with the environment ministry focused on areas where the two countries

PETROL GETS CHEAPER BY RS 1.09 PER LITRE, DIESEL PRICES UP BY 56 PAISE

NEW DELHI: Petrol became cheaper by Rs 1.09 per litre in Delhi from Friday after state oil companies slashed the price of the fuel for the first time since mid-April because benchmark gasoline rates in the international market dropped.

Companies, however, raised the price of diesel by 56 paise in Delhi, helping to reduce the gap between pump and market rates by about Rs 1.50 per litre and increasing the prospects of deregulating the fuel soon.

If the trend continues, diesel pricing could be freed from state control in three months, government and industry officials said. Prices of diesel sold to bulk consumers such as the railways and state transport companies at market rates have been reduced, IOCsaid in a statement.

Cease-Fire in Gaza Conflict Takes Effect as Talks Are Set

Family members mourned on Thursday in Tel Aviv at the grave of Staff Sgt. Guy Algranati, 20, who was killed on Wednesday. By MICHAEL R. GORDON and MARK LANDLER July 31, 2014 NEW DELHI — A 72-hour humanitarian cease-fire in the Gaza conflict negotiated by the United States and the United Nations took effect Friday morning, a diplomatic bolt-from-the-blue that will suspend the bloody 24-day military campaign and set the stage for […]

New bubble build-up over Dubai

|By K Raveendran| The Dubai real estate scene today has several similarities with the pre-crisis situation of 2008, which ultimately led to the emirate’s property bubble. Conflicting signals, including a series of big ticket announcements, entry of new developers and growing concern about overheating in the market, are making it a thoroughly confusing proposition. The announcement of the Mall of the World, a domed, climate-controlled city more […]

IMF Gives a Blunt Appraisal of Lebanon’s Economy

The International Monetary Fund has delivered a stark assessment of Lebanon’s economy: Growth is subdued, fiscal imbalances are widening, and public debt is rising. The Lebanese economy expanded by 2.5 percent in 2012 and slowed to just 1.5 percent in 2013, according to the IMF. The country’s traditional pillars of growth — real estate-related activity, construction and tourism — have wilted in the face of increasing political […]

Netanyahu Says Tunnel-Clearing Operation Will Continue

By ISABEL KERSHNER and FARES AKRAM July 31, 2014 JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said on Thursday that he would not agree to any cease-fire proposal that does not allow the Israeli military to complete its mission of destroying Hamas’s tunnel network in Gaza. “So far we have neutralized tens of terror tunnels,” Mr. Netanyahu said in televised remarks at the start of a government meeting at military […]

Is it all over for the album?

Even the best albums contained the occasional dud – did anyone ever look forward to hearing the obligatory Ringo song on a Beatles album? . Photo: AFP/Getty Images My home is full of vinyl. It’s there in the living-room, the study, the spare bedroom – all my yesterdays, the good, the bad the ugly, filed in batches of 30 in sturdy black plastic boxes (they weigh a ton!), […]

In high-octane Britain, the robotic car is a non-starter

A Toyota Prius modified to be a Google self-driving car Photo: EPA Driverless cars have been knocking around for decades. Newsweek magazine carried a wonderful advert featuring a self-driven bubble-top back in 1956. The occupants, a wholesome all-American family of mom, pop, boy and girl, were shown playing a board game around a table while their car followed a central painted line down the highway, with the tag […]

Quest for Demilitarization of Gaza Is Seen Getting Netanyahu Only So Far

Video | Behind the Escalations in Gaza A look at why Israel and Hamas have repeatedly chosen to intensify the violence at every stage of the continuing conflict. By JODI RUDOREN July 30, 2014 JERUSALEM — After years in which Israel’s prevailing approach to the Gaza Strip was a simple “quiet for quiet” demand, there is growing momentum around a new formula, “reconstruction for demilitarization.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu […]

Arab Leaders, Viewing Hamas as Worse Than Israel, Stay Silent

A cease-fire proposal by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt met most of Israel’s demands; Hamas immediately rejected it. By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK July 30, 2014 CAIRO — Battling Palestinian militants in Gaza two years ago, Israel found itself pressed from all sides by unfriendly Arab neighbors to end the fighting. Not this time. After the military ouster of the Islamist government in Cairo last year, Egypt has led a […]

World Briefing: Libya: Benghazi March Protests Militias

World Briefing By KAREEM FAHIM July 30, 2014 Residents of the eastern city of Benghazi marched Wednesday in protest against Islamist militias, the city’s dominant force for years, in a burst of public fury a day after the Islamist fighters seized a local special forces base. Residents marched to a hospital, temporarily routing fighters from the extremist militia Ansar al-Shariah, who had been providing security for the hospital. But […]

Dubai second-most expensive city to stay in, report says

DUBAI // Dubai has been ranked the world’s second-most expensive city in which to stay, and industry experts say tourists are travelling to nearby emirates to avoid the rising costs of hotels. In a list compiled by Bloomberg, Geneva was the most expensive city, and Kuwait and Zurich were third and fourth. The average cost of a room in Geneva is US$308 (Dh1,131), followed by Dubai at […]

GAUTAM ADANI PLANS A 5000 MW PUSH INTO POWER SECTOR

NEW DELHI: Gautam Adani plans to acquire power plants with a total capacity of 5,000 mw, but he will avoid aggressive bids to ensure good returns, a source close to the tycoon said a day after Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group outbid him to buy 1,800 mw hydro power capacity from Jaypee Group.

Gautam Adani is directly involved in evaluating offers and negotiations, something he left to company executives in the past, the source said. The company is in talks with several power sector players, including GMR, Lanco, Indiabulls, Avantha Power and Athena, the source said.

Another person in the Adani Group said there are many sellers in the market, offering projects with a combined capacity of nearly 50,000 mw.

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HPCL TO GO SOLO ON ITS RS 700-CR LPG FACILITY

Mumbai: State-run Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited may go solo on its plans to build its second underground liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage facility in Mangalore.

The company which was planning to rope in Total SA of France, to build the cavern jointly, said Total is not interested at present and may join the company at a later stage.

“We see merit in the project and have decided to go ahead. We will commission the detailed feasibility report shortly and then call for tenders in the next four-six months,” said a senior HPCL official.

The cavern, will cost HPCL Rs 700 crore and will store 60,000 tonnes of LPG. HPCL and Total, through their equal joint venture, South Asi

DEFENCE PSUs LIKELY TO BE MAJOR DRAW AT ELECTRONICS SUMMIT

Bangalore: Electronics production in the country’s Defence sector touched Rs. 13,800 crore during 2013-14 and is expected to grow over 15 per cent this year, said Electronic Industries Association of India (ELCINA) President Subhash Goyal.

The production of strategic electronics stood at Rs. 12,000 crore in 2012-13 and has been growing steadily from Rs. 5,700 crore in 2007-08 to Rs. 9,000 crore during 2010-11.

ELCINA has been holding the strategic electronics summit (SES) since 2010. This year it is being held in Bangalore on July 30 and 31.

The SES brings all stakeholders together on one platform to enable a better understanding of Defence requirements. The summit also aims to facilitate

Lawmakers Voice Skepticism on Iran Nuclear Deal

By DAVID E. SANGER July 29, 2014 WASHINGTON — The Obama administration officials engaged in nuclear negotiations with Iran ran into a wall of skepticism at two congressional hearings on Tuesday, with members of both parties insisting on a vote on any final agreement with the Tehran government and administration officials strongly hinting that they have little intention of complying. The disagreements surfaced after Wendy R. Sherman, the under secretary […]

World Briefing: Syria: Rebels Explode Tunnels Under Aleppo

World Briefing By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS July 29, 2014 Insurgents fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad detonated bomb-packed tunnels under buildings in the contested northern city of Aleppo on Tuesday, killing at least 13 soldiers and pro-government militiamen, said opposition activists at the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in Britain. The explosives were in two tunnels dug under the city’s ancient quarter, they said. This entry passed through the […]

World Briefing: Libya: Militants Overrun Base in Benghazi

World Briefing By REUTERS July 29, 2014 Militant fighters overran a Libyan special forces base in the eastern city of Benghazi on Tuesday after a battle that killed at least 30 people. An officer with the special forces, which are allied with a renegade general, Khalifa Hifter, said they had to abandon their main camp in the southeast of Benghazi under attack from Islamist fighters and former rebel […]

Israel Destroys Home of a Top Political Leader for Hamas

A Palestinian displays a portrait of the deputy chief of the Hamas movement, Ismail Haniya, in the rubble of his home in Gaza. By BEN HUBBARD and JODI RUDOREN July 29, 2014 GAZA CITY — Israeli airstrikes flattened the four-story home of Hamas’s top political leader in the Gaza Strip and destroyed offices of the movement’s radio and television station early Tuesday, suggesting a slight operational shift as the battle entered its 22nd […]