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14 PANORAMA OMANDAILYOBSERVER SATURDAY l FEBRUARY 18 l 2017 London to tax old cars to combat air pollution THE JUMBO JUNGLE: An elephant family arrives to drink from a water hole at the Sarova salt-lick lodge in Kenya. — AFP DONATE YOUR BRAINS, SCIENTISTS APPEAL TO PEOPLE NEW YORK: Scientists are appealing for more people to donate their brains for research after they die, a media report said on Friday. They say they are lacking the brains of people with disorders such as depression and posttraumatic stress disorder for their study due to lack of knowledge among people, who do not attach much importance to these problems. The researchers aim to develop new treatments for mental and neurological disorders, the BBC reported. In recent years, researchers have made links between the shape of the brain and mental and neurological disorders. More than 3,000 brains are stored at the Harvard Brain Tissue Resource Centre at McLean Hospital just outside Boston. It is one of the largest brain banks in the world. Most of their specimens are from people with mental or neurological disorders. Samples are requested by scientists to find new treatments for Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and a whole host of psychiatric disorders. Scientists at McLean Hospital and at brain banks across the world do not have enough specimens for the research community. There is a shortage of brains from people with disorders that are incorrectly seen as psychological — rather than neurological in origin. — IANS ANCIENT LIGHT: Officials light a torch on a replica of an ancient Axum obelisk during its unveiling in the northern town of Axum in Ethiopia. — Reuters Polluted lake catches fire NEW DELHI: Parts of Bellandur Lake in India’s information technology hub Bangalore caught fire because of the waste dumped in and around it, a fire official said on Friday. Parts of the lake, including dry weeds and garbage on its banks,caught fire and smoke billowed out over the area for more than three hours until firemen managed to bring it under control late on Thursday night. “People from surrounding areas dump waste and toxic stuff... we have had fires on two earlier occasions,” fire department official R Basavanna said. Bangalore residents have also complained of a toxic froth from Bellandur Lake spilling on to nearby roads and drains in 2015. Thousands of dead fish washed up on the banks of Ulsoor, another lake, in March, 2016. Experts say the froth is produced by the untreated sewage that flows into the lakes and the fires are caused by chemical reactions. — dpa LONDON: Motorists in London who own old polluting vehicles are to be hit with a new charge from October, Mayor Sadiq Khan said on Friday, two days after the EU ordered Britain to cut air pollution. “The context is this: Over 9,000 Londoners die each year because of low quality air,” Khan told the BBC after announcing the new “Toxic Charge”. The new £10 ($12.5, 11.7 euros) “T-Charge” will apply to motorists who own vehicles that do not meet European standards and come on top of the congestion charge for the city centre. All vehicles entering central London already pay a daily £11.50 congestion charge, introduced in 2003 to ease pressure on the city’s roads. The new policy was unveiled two days after the European Union issued a warning to five member states including Britain, urging them to take action on car pollution or risk being sent to the European Court of Justice. The European Commission said that “persistently high” levels of nitrogen dioxide caused 70,000 premature deaths in Europe in 2013. Heavy smog has enveloped much of Europe this winter prompting emergency measures in several big cities including London, Paris and Berlin. In January, London authorities issued a “black” alert for very high levels of particulates as a cloud of freezing smog forced the cancellation of around 100 flights. — AFP Traffic queues in central London. Motorists in London who own old polluting vehicles are to be hit with a new charge from October, Mayor Sadiq Khan said on Friday, two days after the EU ordered Britain to cut air pollution. — AFP CRAZY AUNTIE! Bangladesh’s lone female rickshaw puller Mosammat Jasmine poses on her battery-run rickshaw in Chittagong city on Friday. — AFP RACE OF SHIPS: Thai and US landing craft participate in the Cobra Gold military exercise. — AFP
SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 18, 2017 | JUMADA AL ULA 21, 1438 AH business follow us @oman_biz www.omanobserver.om editor@omanobserver.om ASIAN SHARES RISE AS US RATES EASE P16 ALLIANZ WARNS YEAR AHEAD UNCERTAIN AFTER STRONG 2016 P16 ESSENTRA FY PROFIT FALLS 26PC ON INTEGRATION WOES16 Oman awards first-ever contract extension to private power plant FRESH LEASE OF LIFE: Al Kamil Power receives 4-year contract extension CONRAD PRABHU MUSCAT, FEB. 17 Oman Power and Water Procurement Company (OPWP), the nation’s principal procurement of new electricity generation and water desalination capacity, has inked a deal that formally allows Al Kamil Power — one of Oman’s earliest Independent Power Projects (IPP) — to remain in operation for a further four years beyond its existing contract which expires this year. Under the terms of an extended Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) signed late last week, Al Kamil Power Company SAOG, which operates a 280 megawatt (MW) gas-powered plant in South Al Sharqiyah Governorate, will continue to be in service up to December 31, 2021. It follows the successful completion of negotiations with OPWP, a subsidiary of the wholly governmentowned Nama Group, leading to a contract extension with revised terms and conditions, the company said in a filing to the Capital Market Authority (CMA) on Thursday. Significantly, the extended PPA is the first of a number of similar pacts planned by OPWP that will allow for some of Oman’s oldest privately owned power plants to stay in operation well beyond the expiry of their current contracts. This, alongside options to procure new capacity, is key to the procurer’s strategy to ensure adequate capacity to meet galloping electricity demand growth “Extensions are being negotiated only on a guaranteed capacity basis at economic commercial terms, and all plants have completed independent technical evaluations to confirm the capacity on offer,” The extended PPA is the first of a number of similar pacts planned by OPWP that will allow for some of Oman’s oldest privately owned power plants to stay in operation well beyond the expiry of their current contracts the procurer said in its 7-Year Outlook Statement for the 2016-2022 timeframe. Also expected to receive a contract extension is Barka-1 Independent Power Project, which is co-located with a water desalination plant. With the existing Power & Water Purchase Agreement (PWPA) due to expire next year, OPWP has already initiated negotiations with the plant owner, ACWA Power Barka, for a contract extension up to December 31, 2021. An extended contract will see Barka-1 offering 388 MW of capacity during normal operation in Combined Cycle Generation Turbine (CCGT) mode without water production from the multi-stage flash (MSF) component of its desalination capacity. However, if water capacity has to be operationalised in the event of a contingency, then Barka-1 will offer up to 435MW of generation capacity, according to OPWP. However, for Manah Power — the Sultanate’s first Independent Power Project — ownership of the plant transfers to the government upon the expiry of the current Power Purchase Agreement in December 2020. OPWP says it is weighing a number of options for the continued operation of the 264 MW capacity plant, including a competitive tender for the sale of the asset, backed by a multi-year Power Purchase Agreement. While the Al Kamil Power contract extension is the first for privately owned plants, older state-owned generation assets in Al Ghubra (Muscat Governorate) and Wadi Jizzi (Buraimi Governorate) have already received new leases of life — for part of their capacity at least. Contracts for several gas turbine units of Al Ghubra, offering up to 405 MW of capacity, have been extended up to September 30, 2018, when the plant will be fully retired. Similar extensions have also been granted to a number of gas turbine units at Wadi Jizzi, enabling 326 MW of capacity to be available until September 30, 2018, when the plant is also planned for retirement. Importantly, future contract extensions for Al Kamil, Barka-1 and other plants nearing the end of their contract, are possible under a new capacity procurement strategy that OPWP plans to unveil later this year. The strategy, which is aimed at liberalizing the electricity sector and opening it up for competition for the first time, will enable existing power plants with expiring contracts to compete directly with new project bidders for long-term contracts. “The first capacity procurement to use this new methodology is expected to be for contract terms beginning in 2022,” said OPWP. Samsung chief Lee arrested as S Korean graft probe deepens SEOUL: Samsung Group Chief Jay Y Lee was arrested on Friday over his alleged role in a corruption scandal rocking the highest levels of power in South Korea, dealing a fresh blow to the technology giant and standard-bearer for Asia’s fourth-largest economy. The special prosecutor’s office accuses Lee of bribing a close friend of President Park Geun-Hye to gain government favours related to leadership succession at the conglomerate. It said on Friday it will indict him on charges including bribery, embezzlement, hiding assets overseas and perjury. The 48-year-old Lee, scion of the country’s richest family, was taken into custody at the Seoul Detention Centre early on Friday after waiting there overnight for the decision. He was being held in a single cell with a TV and desk, a jail official said. Lee is a suspect in an influence-peddling scandal that led parliament to impeach Park in December, a decision that if upheld by the Constitutional Court would make her the country’s first democratically elected leader forced from office. Samsung and Lee have denied wrongdoing in the case. Prosecutors have up to 10 days to indict Lee, Samsung’s thirdgeneration leader, although they can seek an extension. After indictment, a court would be required to make its first ruling within three months. Prosecutors plan to question Lee again on Saturday. No decision had been made on whether Lee’s arrest would be contested or whether bail would be sought, a spokeswoman for Samsung Group said. Samsung Group Chief, Jay Y Lee, is surrounded by media upon his arrival to the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul. — Reuters “We will do our best to ensure that the truth is revealed in future court proceedings,” the Samsung Group said in a brief statement after Lee’s arrest. The same court had rejected a request last month to arrest Lee, but prosecutors this week brought additional accusations against him. “We acknowledge the cause and necessity of the arrest,” a judge said in his ruling. The judge rejected the prosecution’s request to also arrest Samsung Electronics president Park Sang-Jin. Shares in Samsung Electronics ended on Friday down 0.42 per cent in a flat wider market. Ratings agencies did not expect any impact on the flagship firm’s credit ratings, and said Lee’s arrest would accelerate improvements in management transparency and corporate governance. — Reuters US housing starts drop; permits rise to one-year high WASHINGTON: US homebuilding fell in January as the construction of multi-family housing projects dropped, but upward revisions to the prior month’s data and a jump in permits to a one-year high suggested the housing recovery remained on track. Other data on Thursday showed only a modest increase in the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits last week, a sign that the labour market was continuing to tighten. Housing starts fell 2.6 per cent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.25 million units last month, the Commerce Department said. December’s starts were revised up to a rate of 1.28 million units from the previously reported 1.23 million pace. Homebuilding was up 10.5 per cent compared to January 2016. Permits for future construction jumped 4.6 per cent in January to a rate of 1.29 million units, the highest level since November 2015. Building permits in the South, where most homebuilding occurs, hit their highest level since July 2007. With overall permits now outpacing starts, homebuilding is likely to rebound in the coming months. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast ground breaking activity slipping to a rate of 1.22 million units last month and building permits rising to a 1.23 million pace. Prices of US Treasuries slid and US stock index futures trimmed losses after the data. The dollar pared losses against a basket of currencies. The housing recovery is being driven by a strong labour market, which is boosting employment opportunities for young people and supporting household formation. In a separate report, the Labour Department said initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 5,000 to A house under construction has a sold sign out front in the Candelas development in the northwest Denver suburb of Arvada, Colorado. — Reuters a seasonally adjusted 239,000 for the week ended February 11. Claims have been below 300,000, a threshold associated with a strong job market, for 102 consecutive weeks. That is the longest stretch since 1970, when the labour market was much smaller. The labour market is at or close to full employment, with the unemployment rate at 4.8 per cent. Economists had forecast firsttime applications for jobless benefits rising to 245,000 in the latest week. While the labour market is expected * Housing starts fall 2.6 per cent in Jan * Building permits increase 4.6 per cent * Weekly jobless claims rise by 5,000 to continue to underpin the housing market, higher mortgage rates could slow demand for housing. A survey on Wednesday showed homebuilders’ confidence slipped in February but remained at levels consistent with a growing housing market. Builders anticipated a slowdown in buyer traffic and continued to grapple with shortages of developed lots and skilled labour. January’s starts were above the fourth-quarter average, suggesting housing will again contribute to gross domestic product in the first three months of this year. Homebuilding last month surged 55.4 per cent in the Northeast region of the country. It jumped 20.0 per cent in the South to the highest level since August 2007. Starts fell 41.3 per cent in the West, likely due to the impact of unusually wet weather. Last month, single-family homebuilding, which accounts for the largest share of the residential housing market, climbed 1.9 per cent to a pace of 823,000 units. Starts for the volatile multi-family housing segment tumbled 10.2 per cent to a rate of 423,000 units. Single-family permits slipped 2.7 per cent last month after increasing for five consecutive months. Single-family starts in the South rose to their highest level since August 2007. Building permits for multi-family units soared 19.8 per cent. — Reuters
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