INDUSTRYFears for 500 jobs as MoD seeks cuts to curb aircraft carrier costs
HUNDREDS of jobs at the Clyde shipyards were put at risk last night after it emerged the Royal Navy's new aircraft carriers are running £1 billion over bu
dget (
Scotsman). Leaked memos from the consortium building the two carriers warned they faced a "very real fight" for survival. The Ministry of Defence admitted it was currently re-costing the carrier programme, work on which was due to get under way on the Clyde next week. The memorandum by the board of the carrier consortium – which includes BAE Systems and the VT Group – warns of "substantial redundancies" of between 400 and 500 jobs to cut costs.
Read all today's industry news from scotsman.comENERGY & UTILITIES
ScottishPower sees revenue soarHigh energy prices in the UK helped ScottishPower record a big increase in revenues last year paving the way for the firm to pay £400m dividends to a company owned by the group's Spanish owner (
Herald). However, bad debts increased as some customers struggled to pay their energy bills amid the recession. Accounts for ScottishPower UK plc filed at Companies House show the company recorded revenue from sales of energy to external customers of £4.8bn in the year to December, compared with £2.8bn in the previous accounting period. That covered the nine months following the £11.6bn acquisition of ScottishPower by Iberdrola in April 2007. On an annualised basis energy sales revenues increased by 29%.
Read all today's energy and utilities news from scotsman.comRETAILRising sales lift profits at HMV Music, games and books retailer HMV has reported an 18% rise in annual profits, helped by rising sales at its High Street stores and cost savings. For the year to 25 April, HMV reported a pre-tax profit of £61.3m, up from £52m the year before (
BBC). Sales its its HMV shops in the UK and Republic of Ireland rose 1.9% on a like-for-like basis, which strips out the impact of new store openings. However, same-store sales were down 3.8% at its Waterstone's book shops.
Carpetright sees slump in profits Carpetright has reported a 72% slump in annual profits, saying it has been hit by both the weakness in the housing market and the wider recession (
BBC). The carpet and floor coverings retailer made a pre-tax profit of £16.7m in the 12 months to 2 May, down from £59.5m for the same period a year earlier. Annual revenues at the firm declined 7.4% from a year ago to £482.8m. Carpetright said it did not expect to see trading conditions improve for at least another 12 months.
Read all today's retail news from scotsman.comTECHNOLOGY£1m investment fires Pyreos towards commercial rolePYREOS, the infrared technology company, has secured £1 million from investors, allowing it to move towards commercialisation. The Edinburgh-based firm has developed an infrared sensor aimed at the security and petrochemical sectors, claiming its product will facilitate improved gas and flame detection (
Scotsman). Yesterday, the company said the fund raising would allow it to move into operational supply after announcing long-term supply contracts and £8m in initial orders in May. Founder Jeff Wright, who previously set up microscreen maker MicroEmissive Displays, welcomed the faith shown by investors.
Read all today's technology news from scotsman.comTRANSPORTFirst bid for National Express is on track despite debt fearsFIRSTGROUP last night promised to press ahead with its audacious bid for rival National Express despite warnings that the deal could increase the Aberdeen company's debt and force it to ask shareholders for cash (
Scotsman). National Express yesterday rebuffed First's surprise move, describing it in a statement to the Stock Exchange as a "highly preliminary approach" and saying that it did not consider negotiations on a deal "appropriate".
Read all today's transport news from scotsman.comScotsman Business ClubGet to the heart of the issues affecting Scottish business at
www.scotsman.com/businessclub. Features include blogs from The Scotsman's formidable team of business writers - including Bill Jamieson, Martin Flanagan, Peter MacMahon and Scott Reid, a diary of forthcoming company announcements and networking events and video interviews with leading business experts covering a wide range of useful topics."
