Volume X - Issue IV - April 2008
Fascinating Projects
Schedule delay brings record 14 Million Pound fine Reported Miles Shepherd in London Network Rail, operators of the track and signaling for the UK rail system, has been fined a record £14 Million (US$28 Million) for an overrunning track update project that resulted in the closure of a critical junction on the West Coast Mainline route. The fine, the biggest fine in the industry's history, comes on the day that its chairman was awarded a knighthood at Buckingham Palace.  According to the BBC, the fine imposed by the rail regulator nearly double the previous highest, £7.6 million which was paid by Railtrack in August 1999. The money will go to the Treasury, The major problem was the failure of expert contractors to turn up for key parts of a major track and signaling project at Rugby in late December and January, which over-ran by four days, severing the West Coast Main Line and causing massive disruption. There was further disruption in London when late-running work at Liverpool Street station caused a closure as people tried to return to work after the Christmas break. Thousands of passengers were affected. [see PM World Today report insert link to archive article please]. The Office of Rail Regulation's investigation into the holiday shambles blamed Network Rail for poor management oversight of the projects. According to reports Bill Emery, the ORR's chief executive said "What happened over the New Year was totally unacceptable. The weakness in Network Rail's management of these projects had a serious impact on all of them and on the reputation of the railway. It is quite clear from our thorough investigation that Network Rail is failing to manage major engineering work as consistently as it should." He went on to say this was due to poor planning between the company and bad communication with train operators. The fine reflects the growing frustration at Network Rail's stewardship of the system with signalling failures and track problems embarrassingly commonplace. In an effort to recover the West Coast Mainline upgrade programme, which is due to complete by the end of the year, Network Rail has identified 13 extra weekends during the summer in addition to the already planned line closures over Easter and bank holidays. The lines will be closed between Saturday lunchtime and Sunday lunchtime. Ian Coucher, Network Rail's chief executive, said his company "will make changes in the way we plan and manage future work on the railways" and had already put "military-style" command posts in place. The Rugby project is still two weeks behind schedule despite the recovery plans. The fine has drawn heavy criticism from opposition politicians, union leaders and passenger groups, claiming the fine “hits passengers twice" according to Anthony Smith, chief executive of passenger watchdog, Passenger Focus. Norman Baker, the Liberal Democrats' transport spokesman said the fine was pointless, "All it means is Network Rail will have £14 million less to invest in railways, and the Chancellor £14 million more in his coffers.” Barker went on to claim that because Network Rail had no shareholders, the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) was effectively penalising taxpayers who funded a publicly-owned company The fine is seen in many quarters as sending a message to Network Rail on how to do its job. Despite the recovery measures the Office of Rail Regulation is concerned that Network Rail does not have a "robust" plan to guarantee this will be done. It has ordered the company to produce a revised programme plan by the end of next month. Alcatel-Lucent showcases interactive IPTV portal for Deutsche Telekom's T-City project at CeBIT 2008 in Hamburg Reported by Manfred Rieck in Wiesbaden, Germany Alcatel-Lucent is demonstrating an interactive IPTV portal that will be implemented as a field trial in the city of Friedrichshafen within Deutsche Telekom´s “T-City” project within the next months. The IPTV portal enables integration of local content, such as video and news. Additionally, the portal enables IPTV users to interact with local content, by rating videos, participating in games and receiving information by clicking on advertising banners.  The CeBIT demonstration and Friedrichshafen deployment are based on Alcatel-Lucent’s 5930 Interactive Media Manager and the Microsoft Mediaroom IPTV and multimedia platform. “This is another step towards interactive TV in Germany”, says Alf Henryk Wulf, Vice Chairman of Alcatel-Lucent in Germany. “At CeBIT, we will see a glimpse of the interactive opportunities available to IPTV users within the T-City project shortly.” The IPTV portal demonstration can be seen at Alcatel-Lucent’s stand (#B 30) in Hall 12 at CeBIT, taking place from March 4-9 in Hannover, Germany. Friedrichshafen became Germany's first T-City as the result of a competition, which Deutsche Telekom launched at CeBIT 2006. The objective of the T-City project was to increase the quality of life for the T-City citizens through implementation of IT and telecommunications projects that involve innovative technology and new applications related to all aspects of city life. The Alcatel-Lucent 5930 Interactive Media Manager (IMM) reduces the cost of creating, managing, testing and deploying interactive TV applications for multiple digital television platforms. It provides an enhanced service on all Alcatel-Lucent supported IPTV platforms and enables customers to monetize their existing infrastructure. Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) provides solutions that enable service providers, enterprise and governments worldwide, to deliver voice, data and video communication services to end-users. As a leader in fixed, mobile and converged broadband networking, IP technologies, applications and services, Alcatel-Lucent offers the end-to-end solutions that enable communications services for people at home, at work and on the move. With operations in more than 130 countries, Alcatel-Lucent is a local partner with global reach. Alcatel-Lucent achieved revenues of Euro 17.8 billion in 2007 and is incorporated in France, with executive offices located in Paris. For more information, visit Alcatel-Lucent on the Internet: http://www.alcatel-lucent.com. BHP invests $975M in South Africa coal project Reported by Jaycee Krüger in South Africa Global mining giant BHP Billiton Ltd/Plc said it plans to invest $975 million to upgrade and expand its thermal coal mines in South Africa to sustain coal exports amid soaring coal prices. BHP approved an investment plan to develop new coal reserves across its Douglas and Middleburg collieries in South Africa and build a coal processing plant with a capacity of 14 million tonnes a year, Melbourne-based BHP said in a statement on Saturday.  BHP said the new coal processing plant would replace the existing, less efficient washing plant at Douglas mine. The expansion project will enable BHP Billiton to maintain energy coal exports from its Douglas and Middleburg colleries at current levels of 9.5 million tonnes a year as well as fulfill its domestic contractual commitments. First coal from the new mining areas is expected by the middle of 2008, while the new processing plant is expected to receive coal in mid-2010, BHP said. The anticipated life of mining operations is to 2034. Prices of thermal coal, used in power generation and the manufacturing of cement, have risen over 145 percent from a year ago to about $135 a tonne, due to surging demand and supply disruptions from key exporters Australia, China and South Africa. The Douglas and Middleburg collieries are currently owned through the Douglas Tavistock Joint Venture, in which BHP has an 84 percent share and Xstrata Plc has a 16 percent share. BHP said would solely develop and own the coal expansion project and the joint venture would be restructured.
 BHP Billiton is the world's largest diversified resources company. They have some 39,000 employees working in more than 100 operations in 25 countries. They are a leading supplier of core steelmaking raw materials, world's third largest copper producer, world's second largest exporter of energy coal, world's third largest producer of nickel, one of the world's top five producers of uranium, world's sixth largest producer of primary aluminum, a significant producer of oil and gas, and also have substantial interests in diamonds, silver and titanium minerals. Visit http://www.bhp.com. Former US President Bill Clinton - Project Sponsor! Former US President Bill Clinton announced in Toronto, Canada on 1 March 2008 the first round of projects being undertaken by the Clinton Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative (CGSGI), a new initiative of the William J. Clinton Foundation that seeks to transform the way that business is done in the developing world. The announcement was made at a meeting of leaders in the Natural Resources Industry Convening in Toronto to make commitments to alleviate poverty and to invest in sustainable development. Working in partnership with governments, communities, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector, CGSGI’s first round of projects will commence in Latin America, in areas of significant need in Colombia and Peru, with a focus on sustainable, market-driven economic development that creates jobs and increases incomes, and on enabling issues such as health and education.  “In a world where the differences between rich and poor are enormous, we all share a responsibility to ensure that every community has access to education, quality health care, and economic opportunity,” President Clinton (pictured) said. “Working with a variety of partners, CGSGI is addressing poverty and social challenges in an entrepreneurial way, and these first projects will help to create jobs, increase incomes, and improve thousands of lives in many poor communities.” Launched by President Clinton and Canadian philanthropist Frank Giustra in June 2007, CGSGI is beginning its work in partnership with an industry that has a truly global reach: the natural resources sector. By increasing the scope, scale, impact, and sustainability of social and economic development efforts in communities where the natural resource industries are an important part of the economy, CGSGI hopes to develop a model for how all corporate sectors can spur sustainable social and economic development as an integral part of their operations in the developing world. To expand the number of partners in the natural resources industry, President Clinton announced the new CGSGI projects during a special event at the Westin Harbour Castle in Toronto, on the eve of the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) conference in Toronto, drawing hundreds of companies from around the world. CGSGI already has received the generous backing of Carlos Slim and Lundin for Africa, as well as financial support and endorsements from numerous companies in the natural resources and affiliated sectors. During the event, several additional business leaders in the natural resources industry will commit to advance the work and mission of CGSGI.  (photo courtesy of bbc.co.uk)“I am proud to partner with the Clinton Foundation and my fellow business leaders in the natural resources industry for such an ambitious and worthy cause,” Frank Giustra said. “Together, we will build long-term partnerships with communities to ensure that our programs can change countless lives for the better.” CGSGI is building on the successful, ongoing, and nonpartisan efforts of other Clinton Foundation efforts, including the Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative, Clinton Climate Initiative, and Clinton Global Initiative, to transform the marketplace for HIV/AIDS treatment, energy efficiency products, and philanthropy – together impacting millions of lives around the world. CGSGI will commence work with several projects in Colombia and Peru, where the natural resources industry has a significant presence, and where the disparity between rich and poor is especially large. Initial projects in Colombia will focus on expanding health services, education, and economic opportunity. These projects are long-term commitments that will develop and expand over the next several years.
Initial projects in Peru will focus on child nutrition and enterprise development.
 resident Clinton established the William J. Clinton Foundation with the mission to strengthen the capacity of people throughout the world to meet the challenges of global interdependence. To advance this mission, the Foundation works with like-minded organizations and forms partnerships with national and local governments around the world to make an immediate and measurable impact in several areas, including bringing HIV/AIDS care and treatment to underserved populations, developing sustainable economic growth in Africa and fighting global climate change. The Clinton Global Initiative brings together a community of leaders to devise and implement innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing issues. In the United States, the Foundation is working to combat the alarming rise in childhood obesity and is helping to expand economic opportunity for families and individuals. For more information, visit http://www.clintonglobalinitiative.org/. Drew Barrymore donates $1 Million to UN Anti-Hunger Programme  The United States actress Drew Barrymore announced on March 3 that she would donate $1 million to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), where she is an Ambassador Against Hunger, to help the agency feed thousands of Kenyan schoolchildren. The personal donation kicked off WFP’s ‘Fill the Cup’ challenge to the US to raise enough funds to help feed 59 million children around the world for a year. Speaking on the Oprah Winfrey Show on US television, where she announced the donation, Ms. Barrymore said she had witnessed first-hand the impact hunger has on poor children during two visits to Kenya in the past two years. (In photo, Barrymore with children in Kenya) “I have seen with my own eyes what a difference a simple cup of nutritious porridge can make in a child’s life,” she said. “It helps them learn, stay healthy and sets them on track for a bright future.”  WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran thanked Ms. Barrymore for her donation, and urged others in the United States to contribute to the Fill the Cup campaign. Ms. Sheeran noted that for only 25 cents a day, WFP can provide an entire school meal to a child in a developing country. The agency is seeking $3 billion in total so that it can feed 59 million hungry schoolchildren around the globe for the next year, often with porridge, rice or beans. Up to 70 per cent of the food used for school meals is bought from farmers in poor nations. WFP is trying to jump-start school feeding programmes in many developing countries so that local communities can then run them once they have the capacity. Ukraine starts to gear up for Euro 2012 Football Tournament Reported Miles Shepherd in London Senior Ukrainian government officials met Ukrainian and international business representatives in London on February 25 to highlight investment opportunities in Ukraine as the country prepares for the Euro-2012 football tournament it will jointly host with Poland in just four years time.  At a conference organised by Ukraine’s European Business Association and the UK’s All Party Parliamentary Group on Ukraine officials said hosting Euro 2012 was a perfect opportunity for Ukraine to attract investments both for the tournament for the sustainable infrastructure needed to support the long-term transformation of the Ukrainian economy. Government estimates put the overall infrastructure investment needed for Euro 2012 in Ukraine at $25 billion, of which $20 billion is expected to come from the private sector. In addition to the construction of stadiums, the investment will focus on requirements in the transport, municipal and tourism sectors.  Guest of honour at the conference, HRH Prince Michael of Kent (pictured) said: "England's leadership in the business of international football, and the United Kingdom's experience and knowledge of hosting major international events, provides the Ukraine, together with Poland, with an ideal potential partner to advise on the planning and execution of the 2012 Championships." Ukraine’s Vice-Prime Minister Hryhoriy Nemyrya saw long-term benefits from investing in the tournament. “Hosting the UEFA EURO 2012 football championships in Ukraine and Poland is stimulating investment in infrastructure and supports Ukraine's continued economic development. A showcase for our cities, culture and hospitality, as well as the best football talent in Europe, it will provide a legacy that will endure long after the tournament is over. The conference was hosted by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, whose President, Jean Lemierre, told delegates, “What is important now is that Ukraine attracts the sort of high quality sustainable investment that will make Euro 2012 tournament a great success and also provide the Ukrainian economy with the infrastructure it needs for the 21st century.” Malcolm Wicks MP, UK Minister of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform said: "Euro 2012 is a chance for us to celebrate the friendship and the commercial ties between our two countries. It's a unique opportunity to showcase Ukraine to the rest of Europe, and to the world. The potential gains are enormous: economic, social and cultural, as well as the obvious sporting legacy. It’s also a chance for our two countries to work on some really important projects that will help prepare Ukraine for the moment, in four years time, when millions of football fans will be watching with keen interest, myself included" EBA Executive Director Anna Derevyanko added, “The business community perceives Euro 2012 Championship as unique opportunity for boosting economic development of Ukraine and attracting sustainable investments. We believe that only with substantial support of foreign and local investors Ukraine will be ready to successfully hold this event and use the opportunity for infrastructural changes”.  In Ukraine, the tournament will be being played in six cities: Kiev, Dnipropetrovsk, Lviv, Donetsk, Kharkiv and Odessa. New arenas are being built in all of these sites. Host cities are planning airport refurbishments or expansions. A significant increase in investment is planned for the transport infrastructure, first of all roads and railways. The private sector is seen playing a key role especially in the development of the tourism sector. The European Business Association UK and Norway to dismantle Russian nuclear submarine Reported Miles Shepherd in London The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform announced in London The UK and Norway will share the £3.9 million cost to dismantle the decommissioned November Class submarine No291, which will be de-fuelled and then towed to Nerpa Shipyard for dismantling. Once dismantled to a single compartment unit (containing the de-fuelled reactor) the submarine will be transferred to Saida Bay for land-based interim storage. Project management and technical advice for the UK Government will be provided by NUKEM Ltd.  According to Energy Minister Wicks (pictured), "The nuclear legacy of the former Soviet Union still presents a serious risk. A nuclear accident in Russia or a terrorist incident using radioactive material in a dirty bomb would have global implications. International cooperation is vital to ensure these threats are addressed within an acceptable timescale and it is in our interest to help Russia dispose of its nuclear legacy and ensure risks are managed to a standard expected in the UK and Norway." This is the fourth submarine dismantling project the UK has undertaken. Through the Global Threat Reduction Programme, the UK has successfully dismantled three nuclear powered submarines: two Oscars (Zvezdochka Shipyard) and a Victor (Nerpa Shipyward) including documentation and infrastructure work at both shipyards. The contract signing ceremony between the UK and Norway took place at the Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform in London on Monday 25 February at 11.30am. The Global Threat Reduction Programme includes the UK contribution to the Global Partnership against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass The UK Government also recently announced a new collaboration between the UK and US to enable the UK to further widen the geographical scope of efforts to address nuclear and radiological security and proliferation threats. The Global Threat Reduction Programme is aimed at the non-proliferation of weapons or materials of mass destruction through the establishment of cooperative threat reduction projects with key partner nations. Significant progress by the UK for the year in relation to the Global Threat Reduction Programme included management of the stockpiles of spent nuclear fuel from decommissioned submarines in NW Russia, further progress on construction of a key chemical weapons destruction facility, redirection of former WMD scientists and the implementation of a programme on enhancements to security of nuclear materials. The UK Global Threat Reduction Programme 2007 annual report is available online at http://www.berr.gov.uk/energy/non-proliferation/global-threat-reduction/ar-english/page40802.html
 The Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) helps UK business succeed in an increasingly competitive world. It promotes business growth and a strong enterprise economy, leads the better regulation agenda and champions free and fair markets. It is the shareholder in a number of Government-owned assets and it works to secure, clean and competitively priced energy supplies. BERR is responsible for implementing the nuclear elements of the UK Government's Global Threat Reduction Programme. Source: Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform New project in India for non-edible Bio-fuel Reported Raju Rao in Chennai India, which imports more than 70 per cent of its oil and gas, is trying to launch one of the world’s biggest jatropha biofuel projects in order to bolster energy security. The country’s Ministry of Rural Development has proposed spending $375 million over five years to plant 1.2 million acres of jatropha across India and research the crop’s viability as a biofuel. This is still an experiment and if successful, the government would aim for 30 million acres of jatropha plantations and seek to commercialise cultivation. If 10 per cent of India’s estimated 60 million hectares (148 million acres) of non-arable land is cultivated for jatropha or other biofuels, the country could produce 4-5 million tonnes of biodiesel a year, or about 10 per cent of current diesel demand. Jatropha which consists of plants, shrubs and trees is native to Central America, and has become naturalized in many tropical and subtropical areas, including India, Africa, and North America. Chhattisgarh, carved out of the neighbouring state of Madhya Pradesh in 2000, hopes to generate 1,000 Mw, or a third of the state’s existing generating capacity, from alternative energy sources by next year. It is well positioned to become the India’s biodiesel hub. There are many indications in this direction. Very actively and passionately promoted by the state government ,it has gone in large scale plantation planted and according to Shailendra Shukla, director of Chhattisgarh Renewable Energy Development Authority, says that with the non-arable land available, “if all other states replicate this, it will change the economy of the country”.  (Photo: A bio-diesel plant)Unlike biofuels made from crops such as soybeans and maize, jatropha (below) is inedible, grows on non-arable land and needs little water or care. “It has good potential, no doubt about it,” according to Suhas Wani, principal scientist at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, near Hyderabad.  (In photo: Biodiesel powered cars)
Chhattisgarh state is very rich in biodiversity having 12 % of the country’s forests and is therefore well suited for such a project .Howver , such a confidence in jatropha, is still untested on a large scale. It is not surprising that all of Chhattisgarh’s official vehicles, including the chief minister’s Tata Safari jeep, are run on oil from the wrinkled black nut of a shrub-like tree called jatropha. It’s fleet of 40 or so jatropha-powered cars reflects the state’s push to develop alternative energy sources that also include solar, wind, small hydroelectric, biomass and industrial waste. Sources :Financial Times , Business Standard and Wikipedia Forestry Project in Argentina receives The World Bank has announced the approval of a US$60 million investment loan to improve the sustainable management of forest resources, conserve biodiversity in protected areas and forest landscapes in Argentina. The project will benefit small producers that integrate forestry development activities and conservation. The Sustainable Natural Resources Management Project will assist small and medium-scale farmers, land owners and producers to adopt environmentally sustainable forms of forestry and agro forestry, as well as to strengthen conservation in eleven national protected areas. It will also support the development of institutional agreements to enhance the Government’s capacity to manage natural resources in a sustainable way.  “The Bank is supporting the government’s efforts to manage natural resources and the environment in a sustainable way. Specifically, the new project aims to establish a platform for actions to address resource depletion in the ‘Bosque Chaqueño’ area, the most threatened eco-region in the country, primarily as a result of the massive industrial-scale clearing for soybean cultivation”, said Pedro Alba, (pictured) World Bank Country Director for Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay. “Deforestation in these areas is often accompanied by detrimental social impacts on the rural poor; who although having historical ties to the land, they often lack formal land titles and, therefore, are highly vulnerable to displacement”, he explained. Natural resources have long been a driving force for the Argentine economy. Yet today, the country is facing some key challenges in the areas of forestry, sustainable land use management, protected area management and biodiversity conservation. For example, 20% of Argentina’s land (60 million ha) are considered to be moderately or severely eroded, and about 1 million hectares of forests have disappeared over the last four years alone. The project has three main components:
(Photo: Camino, Parque Nacional Chaco, Chaco, Argentina – courtesy of http://www.sobolviejas.com) The Sector Investment Loan (SIL) from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) for US$60 million is fixed-spread, has a 10 year maturity and a five year grace period. The project also has US$7 million of complementary funding from the Global Environmental Facility. For more information on World Bank’s program in Argentina please visit: http://www.bancomundial.org.ar. Endeavor returns safely from International Space Station Space shuttle Endeavour and its crew landed at 8:39 p.m. EDT Wednesday at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida after completing a 16-day journey of nearly 6.6 million miles in space. The first landing attempt at Kennedy was bypassed due to low clouds in the area.  Endeavour's flight was the longest shuttle mission to the International Space Station and included a record five spacewalks. The shuttle's seven astronauts worked with the three-member station crew and ground teams around the world to install the first section of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory and the Canadian Space Agency's two-armed robotic system, known as Dextre. "The success of this mission makes the International Space Station truly international," said NASA Associate Administrator for Space Operations Bill Gerstenmaier. "Japan is now a full-time participant, controlling the Kibo module from its center near Tokyo. We have teams working around the clock in the United States, Russia, Germany and Japan overseeing the crew's work and various elements of station.” “With the ATV scheduled to dock next week, Dextre ready to go, our partners' modules operating, and the next Soyuz preparing to launch, it's an exciting time to be in the space business,” he added.  Dominic Gorie commanded the STS-123 flight and was joined by Pilot Gregory H. Johnson, Mission Specialists Robert L. Behnken, Mike Foreman, Rick Linnehan, Garrett Reisman and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Takao Doi. Reisman remained aboard the space station, replacing Expedition 16 Flight Engineer Leopold Eyharts, who returned to Earth on Endeavour after living on the outpost since early February. Reisman will return on shuttle Discovery's STS-124 mission, targeted to launch May 25. (In photo: From left front row - Pilot Gregory Johnson and Commander Dominic Gorie. From left back row - mission specialists Richard Linnehan, Robert Behnken, Garrett Reisman, Michael Foreman and Takao Doi: photo courtesy of NASA) With Endeavour and its crew safely home, the stage is set for the next phase of station assembly. The STS-124 mission is the second of three flights that will launch components to complete the Japanese Kibo laboratory. Shuttle Discovery will deliver Kibo's large pressurized module and robotics system to the station. The European Space Agency's Automated Transfer Vehicle, or ATV, is scheduled to dock with the space station on April 3. Russia's Soyuz TMA-12 will launch the Expedition 17 crew to the station on April 8. STS-123 was the 122nd space shuttle flight, the 21st flight for shuttle Endeavour and the 25th shuttle flight to the station. For more about the STS-123 mission and the upcoming STS-124 mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle.
 Created in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is America’s focal point for research, development and exploration of outer space. In 2005, the US President and Congress committed the United States to exploring the solar system and beyond: completing assembly of the International Space Station, flying the new Crew Exploration Vehicle no later than 2014, returning astronauts to the moon by the end of the next decade, and sending human missions to Mars and beyond. For over 50 years, NASA has been leading the world in the development and usage of advanced program and project management. Additional information about NASA can be found at www.nasa.gov.
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