CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Police say a man was killed in Cedar Rapidsafter another man struck him in the head with pipe and apparentlyfled by bicycle.

The victim, who has not been identified, was taken to St. Luke'sHospital on Tuesday after the alleged assault.

Police say they're looking for a man who was seen leaving the areaon a mountain/BMX-style bicycle. The man was described as being ofmedium height and build, in his late 20s to early 30s, wearing adark shirt and shorts.

A crowd of neighborhood residents milled around the area whereassault occurred, with a street blocked off with crime scene tape,and a yellow tag marked where the pipe was thrown near the curb.

From http://www.new-energy-supply.com/

Partners in Public Education has been awarded a $300,000 grant from

The Assisi Foundation of Memphis, with the potential of an additional $700,000 if the organizationraises $1.2 million by May 2009.

PIPE provides leadership development for principals, teachers andadministrators, and other programs targeting community engagementand accountability. It recently took an advisory role in

Memphis City Schools’ search for a new superintendent.

“We are proud of our accomplishments, and with this funding,we will be able to intensify our efforts to help create a districtthat underscores classroom learning, student performance, and whoseoperations are known for innovation and success,” said EtheleHilliard, PIPE’s president, in a statement.

“PIPE’s leadership as an independent local educationfund is crucial as our new superintendent and our community work tocreate the kind of schools and learning environment that ourstudents deserve,” Jan Young, executive director of theAssisi Foundation, said in a statement.

Larry Brown, PIPE’s board chairman, said the organizationwill look for community support to meet the goals set in thechallenge grant.

PIPE is a member of the Public Education Network, a nationalnetwork of more than 80 local education funds leading schoolimprovement efforts in their cities. PEN’s members representmore than 12 million students in 32 states, the District ofColumbia and Puerto Rico.

From http://www.new-energy-supply.com/

Government egged over irrigation pipe plan

Wednesday, 27/08/2008

Northern Victorian farmers remain divided over a plan to modernisethe region's irrigation system and pipe some of the water saved toMelbourne.

The State Government project was celebrated with a dinner inShepparton last night, but around 70 people lined up outsideprotesting against the plan.

Victorian Water Minister Tim Holding was hit by an egg during theprotest.

Premier John Brumby told the dinner other great projects have facedsimilar opposition and it shouldn't deter the plans.

"If you asked Australians what's the greatest ever nation buildingproject in Australia They'd tell you it's the Snowy Hydro Scheme,"he says.

"There were many people who opposed that project. Many people saidit would be a white elephant.

"Fact is, now it's one of the ten great engineering wonders of theworld and this project in its own way is the same.

"It's a nation-building project."

From http://www.new-energy-supply.com/

Two men are recovering Wednesday morning after a late nightconstruction accident in Henderson.

Henderson firefighters were called out to Sunset and BoulderHighway and found two men at the bottom of an open trench.

Witnesses say the workers were hit by a large pipe that was beingmoved into the trench.

One victim was airlifted to UMC.

The other was taken by ambulance.

There is no information on what caused the accident.

Keep it tuned to Channel 13 Action News for the latest.

From http://www.new-energy-supply.com/

Cynthia Vaughn came Tuesday night to the street where her brother,Jerry Hurt, was attacked that afternoon, hoping to find the man whokilled him.

"I wanted to ask him why he had to hit Jerry over the head withthat pole," she said, tears welling in her eyes. "I wanted to seewhat kind of heart this man has that would do this to my brotherfor the dollar that was in his pocket."

Hurt, 46, of 1507 Washington Ave. SE, was walking on 14th Street SEtoward Second Avenue about 3:15 p.m. when a man on a bicycle cameup to him, police said. The man got off the bike, picked up a pieceof pipe from the street and hit him in the head with it. Then herode away.

Hurt was taken to St. Luke's Hospital, where he later died.

Vaughn, of Cedar Rapids, said witnesses told her the name of theman who attacked him. She said her brother had a "beef" with theman, who was an acquaintance of Hurt's through other friends, andthat the man punched Hurt last week and stole his money. No onereported that assault, Vaughn said, because her brother didn't wantto.

Tuesday afternoon, a chalk drawing outlined where Hurt fell, with asmall pool of blood inside the round circle indicating his head. Acrowd of neighborhood residents milled around the block as policeconducted their investigation. Fourteenth Street was blocked offwith crime scene tape, and a yellow tag marked where the pipe wasthrown near the curb.

Later that night, Hurt's nieces and nephews gathered on the streetwith Vaughn and another sister, Annie Mullinex of Cedar Rapids, toconsole each other and remember their relative through laughter andtears. Hurt's mother, Daisy Hurt, was at home nearby still in shockover the news, they said.

From http://www.new-energy-supply.com/

Michael Lamar Adams II, 26, of Dundee, was charged with grandtheft, dealing in stolen property, and defrauding a second-handmetal dealer, the Polk County Sheriff Office said.

Agriculture deputies, who were investigating the theft and sale ofirrigation piping from orange groves, interviewed Adams, who hadrecently sold some piping to two scrap dealers in the county,officials said.

Adams told deputies that he did not steal the piping from orangegroves, but had taken pipe from the DOF, investigators said. The4-inch aluminum pipes that Adams is accused of stealing are used byDOF to fight forest fires, reports said.

Adams took 15 pipes to two scrap dealers and sold them for morethan $300, reports said.

From http://www.new-energy-supply.com/

(In U.S. dollars, unless noted)

TORONTO, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Vale Inco (VALE5.SA: ), the nickel wing of the Brazilian mining giant, has fallenfurther behind schedule in its efforts to begin installation of awaste pipe at its massive Goro project in New Caledonia, but saidthe mine is still on budget and on target.

Company spokesman Cory McPhee said the mine was still targeted forcommissioning in late October or early November with a developmentbudget of $3.2 billion.

The company halted work on the waste pipe earlier this yearfollowing opposition from environmentalists and locals. It hadhoped to resume work in July, but McPhee said the company has notbeen able to do so yet. (Reporting by Cameron French; editing byRob Wilson)

From http://www.new-energy-supply.com/

Last updated August 27, 2008 12:58 p.m. PT

Broken pipe causes water outage in Seattle

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SEATTLE -- The Seattle Public Utilities department is asking 460water customers in the Beacon Hill neighborhood to boil tapwater asa precaution because of a broken pipe.

The construction accident Wednesday cut off water in a 30-blockarea. Even after repair, the department says, there's a chance ofdirt or contamination in the water.

The department is advising residents not to drink or use the waterfor cooking. If no other water is available, it should be boiled.

The department also is preparing to distribute bottled water in thearea. It's bounded by Bennett Street on the north, 16th Avenue onthe east, 13th Avenue on the West and Graham Street on the south.

From http://www.new-energy-supply.com/

By combining gasification with high-tech nanoscale porouscatalysts, they hope to create ethanol from a wide range ofbiomass, including distiller ’ s grain left over from ethanolproduction, corn stover from the field, grass, wood pulp, animalwaste, and garbage.

    Gasification is a process that turns carbon-based feedstocks underhigh temperature and pressure in an oxygen-controlled atmosphereinto synthesis gas, or syngas.  Syngas is made up primarily ofcarbon monoxide and hydrogen (more than 85 percent by volume) andsmaller quantities of carbon dioxide and methane.

    It’s basically the same technique that was used to extractthe gas from coal that fueled gas light fixtures prior to theadvent of the electric light bulb.  The advantage of gasificationcompared to fermentation technologies is that it can be used in avariety of applications, including process heat, electric powergeneration, and synthesis of commodity chemicals and fuels.

    “There was some interest in converting syngas into ethanolduring the first oil crisis back in the 70s,” said Ames Labchemist and Chemical and Biological Science Program Director VictorLin.  “The problem was that catalysis technology at that timedidn’t allow selectivity in the byproducts.  They couldproduce ethanol, but you’d also get methane, aldehydes and anumber of other undesirable products.”

    A catalyst is a material that facilitates and speeds up a chemicalreaction without chemically changing the catalyst itself.  Instudying the chemical reactions in syngas conversion, Lin foundthat the carbon monoxide molecules that yielded ethanol could be“activated” in the presence of a catalyst with a uniquestructural feature.

    “If we can increase this ‘activated’ COadsorption on the surface of the catalyst, it improves theopportunity for the formation of ethanol molecules,” Linsaid.  “And if we can increase the amount of surface area forthe catalyst, we can increase the amount of ethanolproduced.”

    Lin’s group looked at using a metal alloy as the catalyst. To increase the surface area, they used nano-scale catalystparticles dispersed widely within the structure of mesoporousnanospheres, tiny sponge-like balls with thousands of channelsrunning through them.  The total surface area of these dispersedcatalyst nanoparticles is roughly 100 times greater than thesurface area you’d get with the same quantity of catalystmaterial in larger, macro-scale particles.

    It is also important to control the chemical makeup of the syngas. Researchers at ISU's Center for Sustainable EnvironmentalTechnologies , or CSET, have spent several years developingfluidized bed gasifiers to provide reliable operation andhigh-quality syngas for applications ranging from replacing naturalgas in grain ethanol plants to providing hydrogen for fuel cells.

    “Gasification to ethanol has received increasing attention asan attractive approach to reaching the Federal Renewable FuelStandard of 36 billion gallons of biofuel,” said RobertBrown, CSET director.

    “The great thing about using syngas to produce ethanol isthat it expands the kinds of materials that can be converted intofuels,” Lin said.  “You can use the waste product fromthe distilling process or any number of other sources of biomass,such as switchgrass or wood pulp. Basically any carbon-basedmaterial can be converted into syngas.  And once we have syngas, wecan turn that into ethanol.”

    The research is funded by the DOE’s Offices of Basic EnergySciences and Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

http://www.chemical-suppliers-china.com/

HTF orbital floor sander from Hiretech is a well balanced orbital floor sander used for sanding and refinishing all types of wood flooring, including pre-finished parquets, planks and laminate flooring systems. Orbital floor sanders are also suitable for screen and recoating of stained floors and manufactured lacquered floors.

HTF Orbital Floor Sander from Hiretech is specifically designed to give a swirl free sanding performance and runs effortlessly over any surface. Simple operation and safety are one of the highlights of the orbital floor sander. The efficient vacuum system picks up fine dust created in orbital sanding and collects them in a disposable paper dust bag.

HTW steam team wallpaper stripper from Hiretech is particularly designed for the hire and rental, contractor and professional decorating markets. Wallpaper strippers are safe and easy to use and feature a unique anti-scald system and steam tank. HTW steam team wallpaper stripper is capable of removing vinyl, foil, flock, woodchip, multi-layered papers and painted-over wallpapers. Wallpaper strippers are designed to produce steam at the right pressure and temperature, which provide quick and easy stripping with minimum condensation. Hiretech also offer an extensive range of spare parts for its products.

The Gazette sent Staff Writer Bradford Pearson to the county fair to write about his experiences as a first-time fairgoer. Here's what he saw, smelled and tasted.

The sugary scent of cotton candy is the first thing that hits the nose upon entering the gates at the Montgomery County fairgrounds. The aromatic residue of the spun floss punches you in the teeth, leaving your bicuspids with an instant urge to see a dentist.

But before the food, came the pigs.

Clarksburg resident Victoria Aghamalian, 7, explained her love of "Charlotte's Web," and how pigs were smart animals. She counted the 10 piglets and talked about her love of pigs, turtles, fish, horses and cows, in no particular order.

Victoria was a great guide. After all, she had been coming to the fair since she was 6, she said.

She pointed me next to the pig races, which I had circled in the program as a "must-see event."

But it was only 1 p.m., and the fair didn't open until 3 p.m., leaving hours to get the lay of the land.

My plan to get the full fair experience was simple: become part of the honeybee demonstration, use a chainsaw to sculpt a bear out of a log, throw some money down in a back alley bet on the pig races, and eat.

Ultimately, I ate.

The beekeeping demonstration never happened Friday afternoon. The chainsaw proprietor wasn't keen on a reporter using his chainsaw, and the pig races were for children instead of men.

Mike Epperson, who was in charge of the blacksmithing demonstrations, didn't want spectators too close to the 2,300-degree mild steel he was slamming onto his 100-year-old anvil.

"We generally like to make sure people stay behind the fence," the 32-year-old Rockville resident said.

But there was one group who could never say no to a 23-year-old man: the Marines.

The chin-up bar at the United States Marine Corps tent beckoned. A free T-shirt was offered for 20 pull-ups.

"C'mon man, 20 pull-ups that's it," said Cpl. Isaiah Riley of Germantown. "You can do it."

The first six, no problem. Then the arms started to shake. I made it to 10, and was rewarded with a Marine Corps lanyard.

Next, it was back to fair favorites: Angel the sheep was sheared, David Booth and his wife Miss Debbie made peanut butter fudge, too much funnel cake was consumed, and I saw toilets decorated with eyes and ears.

Finally, the "must see" event. Pig races. Five hours after Victoria pointed me to the races, I lined up along the fences, waiting for No. 24 "Piggy Gordon" and No. 8 "Squiling Earnhardt Jr."

Before the races, Dennis Cook, the owner of Hogway Speedway Racing Pigs, a North Carolina man with the fire of a Baptist preacher, explained the sport.

"Well, sir, this here's pig racing," he said. "It's all about the kids having fun, watching the little guys go around the track."

The little guys were nine-week-old Hampshire/Yorkshire-cross piglets, he said, and they raced for a pile of cheese doodles at the finish line.

Fans packed the 120-foot-around track five and six people deep, hoping to catch a glimpse of greatness.

As the race went off, four 30-pound pigs rounded the oval, their pink bellies scraping along the wood-chip track. Nearly 200 people cheered them on.

No. 6 "Rudder Martin" took the early lead, with Piggy Gordon on his hooves. By the final turn, Gordon held off No. 88 "Hoggy Jarrett" to take the cheese doodle, only to do it all again at the 8 p.m. show.

http://www.building-materials-china.com/

The award-winning, woodchip-fuelled project was scheduled to start last September but it encountered delays and, eventually, Wick councillor Graeme Smith, chairman of the company behind the scheme, Caithness Heat and Power (CHaP), gave up making predictions.

Yesterday (Tuesday) he welcomed the takeover by the council which, he said, was certain to "finish the job".

His confidence was shared by Wick member Katrina MacNab, one of six Highland councillors appointed to the new board of the power company and charged with the task of getting it back on track. She said that the council had the necessary resources and expertise. It is thought, however, that the authority might involve the private sector in the scheme.

The decision to step in and take over the running of the innovative scheme, which is aimed at delivering cheap power to 500 homes in Pulteneytown, was taken by the council at a private meeting at the authority's headquarters in Glenurquhart Road, Inverness, on Friday.

The new cross-party board will be supported by senior council officials. It will replace the three-man board, chaired by Mr Smith.

His fellow directors were David Dunnet, representing Pulteneytown People's Project, and Derek Sinclair, a senior executive with Inver House Distillers Ltd. The heating plant is based at the Pulteney Distillery.

The plant's mission was to reduce domestic bills by supplying hot water and central heating to the Pulteneytown homes through a system which heated woodchips in a gasifier and fed the resulting gas into a generator to make electricity, some of which would be fed into the national grid.

In a statement after Friday's meeting, the Highland Council said that its intervention had been "necessary because of delays in commissioning the plant" which could, with the authority's support, now be "re-energised". Another factor, not mentioned in the statement, was that continuing delays could have resulted in a £4.4m guarantee given by the council being called in. The authority has already committed £1.6m to the scheme and, to date, 240 local homes benefit from cheap heat and hot water, using oil.

Council convener Sandy Park said that the decision to take over CHaP had been a unanimous one. He underlined the authority's commitment to the scheme and made it clear that its role would go further than assuming responsibility.

Mr Park said: "It will require the council to provide operational and development funding. Clearly, a priority is to ensure that we maintain a supply of heat and hot water to the neighbouring homes."

The convener said that everyone concerned had been consulted and agreed that the takeover was "the best way forward". He added: "The council is obviously keen to support sustainable approaches to energy production in the Highlands, particularly in areas vulnerable to fuel poverty."

Mr Smith, who has chaired CHaP since it was formed in December 2004, endorsed the decision taken – and not just because the council had decided it could no longer continue to be guarantor with the bank for further extensions of the company's overdraft.

He said: "My board felt that the council would be able to monitor things more closely and be more flexible with situations as they arose. The timing was appropriate as we had, despite technical difficulties, proved that the innovative scheme was capable of generating electricity, through woodchip-fuelled trials. We had built up some liability and were running well behind schedule so we are content to step aside and let others take the scheme forward."

Mr Smith said that his board had taken it as far as it could but "a fresh pair of eyes" was now needed to move the scheme forward to completion.

He went on: "I am disappointed that we fell behind schedule but very proud that we were able, with fairly minimal resources, to take the project to the point of generating electricity from wood fuel and pleased that the council is to take up the baton."

Mr Smith said that his board had budgeted for a four-month slippage in the schedule, not a 14-month one, and admitted: "In retrospect, I was slightly naive in some of my dealings with various people". However, he declined to give details.

He suggested that there might be an opening for the private sector to become involved – depending on the profitability of selling electricity to the national grid.

Wick councillor Katrina MacNab said it was clear that there were issues with the project that the old board was not going to resolve and this was putting the scheme under threat.

She said that cash-flow problems experienced by the board had been caused by the slide in its schedule and went on: "They had anticipated being in a position where they were to have been receiving income from the sale of electricity from the system, whereas it was continuing to run on oil."

Mrs MacNab said: "We can finish the job, not because there is any question of the new board being better than the old one, but because the council is a big organisation with the necessary expertise to carry it through."

She declined to give a personal prediction of when that might be in advance of a briefing on the up-to-date position at the first meeting of the new board in Wick on Friday.

Its directors, in addition to Mrs MacNab, are fellow councillors Jimmy Gray, provost of Inverness and leader of the Labour group; Jean Urquhart (SNP), chairwoman of the audit and scrutiny committee; David Henderson (Lib Dem), Inverness; John Laing (ind) Eilean a Cheo, chairman of the TEC services committee; and Ian Ross (Lib Dem), East Sutherland and Edderton, chairman of the planning, environment and development committee. The new board has yet to appoint a chairman.

When the ambitious, trailblazing scheme was first launched, it was reckoned that it had the potential for development to play a secondary role in cutting the fuel bills of big consumers, such as Caithness General Hospital and the Assembly Rooms.

When phase one of the project was inaugurated at the Pulteney Distillery two years ago – the switching-on of a boiler unit – Mr Smith predicted, it would "grow and grow" and as funding became available, enhance CHaP's goal to provide cheap heat for "as much of Wick as possible".

It was claimed that water and central heating would cost the Pulteneytown residents between £8.50 and £9.50 a week, depending on the size of their homes, and it was estimated their bills would rise by no more than the retail price index over the next five years when utility charges were expected to increase by 40 per cent.

http://www.building-materials-china.com/

Now into its third year of harvesting, around 120,000 tonnes oflogs are being cut from these forests each year, on a 15 yearcycle. This is expected to double before 2011.

    All are presently being processed by Southwood Export Ltd, NewZealand’s largest Eucalyptus wood producer, into woodchip byits chip mill at Awarua in Invercargill, and exported from itsfacility at Bluff.

    That equates to six shipments a year to Japan, and is expected togrow.

    Local forestry company SouthWood Export Ltd had encouraged OjiPaper to reinvest in forestry in Southland and in 1992 theSouthland Plantation Forest Company of NZ Ltd (SPFL) was formed,with Oji the majority shareholder, alongside Fuji Xerox OfficeSupplies and Office Equipment, and the Itochu Corporation.

    SPFL plantings added to that of Southwood Export Ltd’sinitial eucalyptus forest establishment in 1987. Together with athird company Hardwood Forests Ltd, they combined have a resourceof over 12,000 hectares of eucalypt forests in Southland.

    Eucalyptus fibre is shorter than other New Zealand forest treespecies, and its pulp is therefore well-suited for turning intofiner high quality writing and printing papers.

    And because Eucalyptus is a sustainable hardwood, it’spredicted global interest will grow in these renewable andecologically acceptable plantations in Southland, as the supply ofhardwood timbers from natural forests reduce, particularly thetropical timbers.

    This is good news for Southland, given it’s a particularlygood part of the world for growing this species of tree, withfertile, free-draining soils, few health problems, and a climatethat encourages vigorous growth.

    Southwood General Manager Graeme Manley also predicts other futureopportunities in bio energy to arise from the global drive forenvironmental sustainability.

    “Together, this equates to a substantial and on-goingcontribution to the Southland economy.”

    While all of the wood continues to be exported as woodchip,alternative markets are always being examined. Eucalyptus logs havebeen trialled as veneer, and some have also been exported assawlogs to Korea.

    Almost half of New Zealand’s eucalyptus tree plantations arein Southland. Total plantings are estimated at 13 600 hectares,around six percent of all the plantation trees grow in Otago andSouthland.

    These forests are small and scattered across the lower foothills ofSouthland, rather than only one locality, so as not to impact onexisting rural infrastructure in any particular area.

    These areas are being re-established into forest after harvesting,currently at around 300 hectares a year, which makes it asustainable resource. The planting rate is 900 stems per hectare.

    All the Eucalyptus Nitens seedlings are grown in local nurseriesfrom improved seed sourced from SPFL’s own seed orchard.

    Harvesting and log cartage are all by local contractors.

    About Southwood Export Ltd

    Southwood started as Wood Export Tokanui in 1989, originallychipping and exporting beech and kamahi. Eucalyptus was chosen as areplacement species for long-term sustainability, given ForestService species trials had demonstrated it had proven growthperformance in Southland. Annual Eucalyptus plantings started 21years ago, initially with joint ventures with Maori owners andprivate land owners.

    Southwood Export Ltd was actively encouraging private investment inEucalypt Forestry and in 1991 floated a public unlisted companyHardwood Forests Ltd to give private investors an opportunity toinvest in a short rotation (15 years) forestry crop.

    Today it is the biggest Eucalyptus producer in New Zealand,harvesting and exporting year round.

    About Oji paper

    Oji Paper was founded in 1873, and operates more than 20 millsthroughout Japan that produce a variety of paper products,including printing and writing papers and corrugated board andboxboard. The company also makes paper-based containers, plastics,thermal papers, and disposable diapers. Oji Paper also has forestryand real estate operations with more than 120 subsidiaries andaffiliates worldwide, including operations in the Americas, theAsia/Pacific region, and Europe.

    The Southern Wood Council Inc was set up in 2001 to promote,encourage and coordinate the sustainable economic development ofthe forest products industry in Otago and Southland. One of a fewtruly independent groups of its type in New Zealand, i_t includesall the major forest owners within the region (ownership ormanagement of over 140,000 hectares of production forests with anannual harvest of over 1.2 million m³ of wood), the largerwood processing and manufacturing companies, the port authoritiesand each of the three economic development agencies from localcouncils. http://www.southernwoodcouncil.co.nz

http://www.building-materials-china.com/

Wood Resources International

    Internet:

    hekstrom@wri-ltd.com

    Higher 2008 Australian Wood Chip Export Prices As Pacific Rim WoodSupply Tightens, Reports Wood Resource Quarterly

    Export prices for pine and Eucalyptus wood chips have gone upsubstantially in 2008 in Australia as a result of increased demandin Japan and a tighter supply of wood chips throughout the PacificRim region, according to the Wood Resource Quarterly.

    For Immediate Release

    BOTHELL, Wash./EWORLDWIRE/July 15, 2008 --- Export prices for bothpine and Eucalyptus wood chips have gone up substantially in 2008in Australia as a result of increased demand in Japan and a tightersupply of wood chips throughout the Pacific Rim region, accordingto the Wood Resource Quarterly.

    Australia has become the world's largest exporter of wood chips,shipping a record of over 6 million oven-dry metric tons (odmt) in2007, with 2008 promising to be another strong year. Eucalyptuschip, most of which is still from native forests, is by far themost common species exported, accounting for approximately 70percent of the total exports in 2007. The remaining 30 percent ispredominantly residual chips from sawmills using plantation-basedradiata pine.

    Japan has been the major destination for Australian chips, withoccasional vessels going to South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia andChina. The country has been the top supplier of both softwood andhardwood chips to the Japanese pulp industry since the 1990’s andwill most likely continue to be so for many years to come.

    Australian Eucalyptus chip export prices have more than doubled thepast six years and are currently US$167/odmt FOB vessel in Tasmaniafor native species and about US$187/odmt for plantation wood chips.Australia, which is the major supplier of hardwood chips to Japan,currently supplies 34 percent of the Japanese total import volume.The two other large Eucalyptus chip suppliers, Chile and SouthAfrica, have also substantially increased their prices since early2000. Just since last year, prices have increased 19 percent inChile and 14 percent in South Africa.

    For the first half of 2008, Australian export prices for soft woodchips to Japan ranged between US$147-151/odmt. These prices are 45percent higher than in late 2006, and almost a doubling since 2003.This upward price trend has been slower than in the US, which isthe second largest chip supplier to Japan. Since Japanese pulpcompanies have a limited number of suppliers to choose from, it islikely that they will have to get used to high wood fiber costs in2008 and 2009.

    The increasing costs for Australian wood chips, which are perceivedto be of lower quality than North American species by some pulpcompanies in Japan, have resulted in a reduction of market sharefor Australian suppliers from 46 percent to 41 percent between4Q/06 and 4Q/07. U.S. suppliers, on the other hand, increased theirmarket presence from 25 percent to 32 percent of the total importsduring the same time period. Despite the preference for Douglas-firchips from the U.S., Japanese pulp manufacturers may be forced touse more chips from Australia, New Zealand and Canada asavailability is limited in the U.S.

    Global pulpwood and sawlog market updates are included in the50-page publication Wood Resource Quarterly. The report,established in 1988 and with readers in over 20 countries, trackswood prices in most regions around the world and also includesregular updates of international pulp, lumber and biomass markets.

    Contact:

    Wood Resources International

    Hakan Ekstrom

    Seattle, USA

    info@wri-ltd.com

    http://www.woodprices.com

     HTML:

http://www.eworldwire.com/pressreleases/18765

     MOBILE:

http://e4mobile.com/view_release.phpid=18765

     PDF:

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    CONTACT:

    Hakan Ekstrom

    Wood Resources International

    10654 NE 204th Pl

    Bothell, WA 98011

    PHONE. 425-402-8809

    EMAIL: hekstrom@wri-ltd.com

    http://www.woodprices.com

    KEYWORDS:

 Pulpwood costs, pulpwood prices, wood chip export price, wood chipprices, wood costs, pulplog prices, global pulpwood prices,softwood chip prices, hardwood fiber prices, wood market report,wood market reporting, global pulpwood markets, forest industry

    SOURCE:

 Wood Resources International

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Futuris Chief Executive Les Wozniczka said that the key factors inthe movement in

    underlying profit to shareholders compared with the previous yearwere a $16.9 million

    increase in interest expense, a $9.3 million reduction in profitafter tax contributed by AAco

    and the absence of the $21.5 million contribution made to the 2007result by the divested

    property operations.

    "Although higher interest and lower income from AACo impacted ouroverall result, the year

    featured strong performances from our Elders Rural Services, EldersRural Bank and

    Automotive operations.

    "Elders Rural Services recorded the greatest improvement, achievingits best ever result in

    lifting underlying EBIT from $49.1 million to $60.7 million.

    "Elders' strong result was driven by its core traditional networkoperations. The Elders

    network and its associated joint ventures had an outstanding year,lifting its EBIT by 43%,

    after a lower, drought affected first half.

    "With strong grain markets our agency operations have performedwell, with particularly good

    results from the sale of merchandise, chemicals, our initiatives ingrain and the HiFert

    fertiliser business."

    This momentum was also reflected in higher distribution fee incomefrom financial services

    and real estate activities.

    "Elders has responded to the new management and initiativesintroduced during the year

    and we know Elders has the capacity to deliver further gains as itprogresses through the

    change program now well underway" he said.

    Changes made to date within Elders Rural Services include the movefrom a state office

    based structure to a more focussed regionally based managementstructure, the scaling

    back of greasy wool trading to indent trading and the decision toexit fruit packing operations.

    The growth in earnings generation by the Elders network was offsetby lower income from its

    Agribusiness interests as livestock and wool processing operationswere affected by lower

    volumes brought by tough drought conditions during calendar 2007.

    "Earnings contribution from Elders Financial Services was in linewith our expectations with

    excellent banking results offsetting softer insurance markets andthe return of claims ratios to

    customary levels.

    "Elders Rural Bank showed the soundness of its business despite theyear's volatile financial

    markets. The Bank's profit after tax rose by 14 % and creditquality improved as net non-

    performing loans fell to 0.33% from 0.36% the previous year. Retaildeposits continued to

    grow, which is impressive given the challenges in global creditmarkets." Mr Wozniczka said.

    Underlying EBIT generated by ITC of $61.3 million was broadly inline with the 2007 result of

    $61.6 million despite significantly lower MIS sales. ITC was ableto largely overcome the

    impact of the reduction in MIS sales through earnings incrementsgenerated across the

    balance of its operations including higher woodchip prices, growthin harvest and accrued

    income, increases to the value of plantation land holdings andimproved results from timber

    processing.

    ITC's 2008 financial results include estimates of its equityaccounted earnings from Forest

    Enterprises Australia (FEA) of $11.2 million ($11.0 million in2007). Subsequent to the

    closing of Futuris' 2008 accounts FEA announced unaudited financialresults which suggest

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Councillor David Henderson, who represents the Inverness Ness-sideward, was speaking after a board meeting in Wick on Friday whichwas held following a visit to the innovative heat and power plantin Pulteneytown.

    The Liberal Democrat representative was unanimously elected aschairman and is one of six Highland councillors on the new board ofdirectors that also includes Wick member Katrina MacNab.

    The local authority took control of the project after itencountered technical and funding problems which led to delays inthe switch-over from the oil-fired system to one producingelectricity from woodchip and could have resulted in a £4.5million guarantee given by the council being called in.

    The authority has already committed £1.6 million to thescheme which has provided 240 local homes with cheap heat andwater.

    The new plant was due to start last September last year.

    Mr Henderson, who is a consultant in business and regionaldevelopment and previously was the head of industrial developmentat Highlands and Islands Enterprise, said: "The Highland Councilhas been a major funder of the company since it was set up inDecember 2004 and has taken control in an attempt to ensure asustainable future for the operation. There are many challengesahead but we have a good team in place, who are prepared to workhard to bring this enterprise on stream. The potential long-termbenefits are considerable."

    Mrs MacNab said: "We strongly support sustainable approaches toenergy production in the Highlands, particularly in areasvulnerable to fuel poverty, and all the directors are determined tosee CHaP succeed. We have a strong team of support staff in placeto help take this exciting project forward."

    She said cash-flow problems experienced by the previous board hadbeen caused by the slide in its schedule, and went on: "They hadanticipated being in a position where they were to have beenreceiving income from the sale of electricity from the system,whereas it was continuing to run on oil.

    "We can finish the job not because there is any question of the newboard being better than the old one, but because the council is abig organisation with the necessary expertise to carry it through."

    The other members of the board are: Eilean a Cheo independentcouncillor, John Laing, who is the chairman of transport,environmental and community services; East Sutherland and EddertonLiberal Democrat councillor Ian Ross, who is chairman of planning,environment and development; Jimmy Gray, the provost of Invernessand leader of the Labour group; and SNP councillor for Wester Ross,Strathpeffer and Lochalsh Jean Urquhart, the chairman of audit andstandards.

    The Highland Council has already invested £1.6 million in theproject and has provided a maximum guarantee of £3 million inrespect of the lease finance facilities provided by the bank toChaP.

    The guarantee is for a period of 10 years. The local authority hasalso agreed an overdraft facility made available to CHaP by thebank up to a maximum of £1.9 million with £1.55 millionreleased to date.

    At its meeting on August 1, it also agreed to release operationaland development funding towards the project.

    The decision by the Highland Council to take over the running ofthe scheme was taken at a private meeting at the authority'sheadquarters in Glenurquhart Road, Inverness, at the beginning ofthe month.

    The new cross-party board will be supported by senior councilofficials and will replace the three-man board which was chaired byWick councillor Graeme Smith and comprised fellow directors DavidDunnett, representing Pulteneytown People's Project, and DerekSinclair, a senior executive with Inver House Distillers Ltd. Theheating plant is based at Pulteney Distillery.

    Mr Smith, who chaired CHaP since it was formed almost four yearsago, endorsed the decision taken by the council.

    As reported in Friday's John O'Groat Journal, he said: "My boardfelt that the council would be able to monitor things more closelyand be more flexible with situations as they arose. The timing wasappropriate as we had, despite technical difficulties, proved thatthe innovative scheme was capable of generating electricity,through woodchip-fuelled trials.

    "We had built up some liability and were running well behindschedule so we are content to step aside and let others take thescheme forward."

    * There were concerns at one point as to whether Wick's troubledheat and power scheme would survive, the former chairman revealed.

    Highland councillor Graeme Smith explained the situation to theRoyal Burgh of Wick Community Council at last week's meeting.

    He outlined the dramatic development which involved the CHaP boardstepping down and being replaced by a new Highland Council board ofsix members, supported by senior officials.

    Mr Smith said that the authority's intervention would "certainlysafeguard the heating scheme" and added: "It is good news that thefuture of the scheme is secure and has been given a new lease oflife. There had been some doubt about that for a few months."

    He added that the new board would consider how best to progress thescheme which had run out of money through falling behind scheduleand had failed to reach the point of selling electricity to thenational grid, the aspect he described as the "money-maker",identified in the original plan.

    Mr Smith commented: "Because it is green energy, it commands a verygood price."

    g.calder@nosn.co.uk

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TOKYO , Aug 11 (Reuters) - Tokyo Gas Co (9531.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said on Monday it had acquired a stake in a Japanesebiomass-derived electricity wholesaler, as Japan's largest city gascompany looks for cleaner power sources.

    Japan, the world's fifth-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, hasbeen trying to cut carbon dioxide emissions, blamed for globalwarming, by shifting away from fossil fuels for power generation.

    The utility has also signed a 15-year contract to operate from 2010a 13,600 kilowatt woodchip-burning thermal power plant that thewholesaler, Agatsuma Bio Power Co, will start building this monthin Gunma prefecture, north of Tokyo.

    Tokyo Gas acquired a 4.44 percent stake in Agatsuma Bio Power, therest of which is owned by Japan's largest general leasing company,Orix Corp (8591.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

    Japan is under pressure to meet its target under the Kyoto Protocolon climate change, which obligates 37 developed nations to cutemissions by an average 5 percent below 1990 levels by 2008-2012.(Reporting by James Topham; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

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However, its major findings remain unchanged.

    These are that two of the proposed five sites mooted for thepossible construction of South Africa's next conventional nuclearpower station should be dropped from consideration at this stage(the Brazil and Schulpfontein sites, both on the West Coast in theNorthern Cape province), while the other three sites - Koeberg(Duynefontein), Bantamsklip (near Pearly Beach) and Thyspunt (nearCape St Francis) should be further investigated.

    The anti-nuclear power lobby has long taken issue with claims byproponents of nuclear power that it is an essentially cleantechnology that produces very few greenhouse gas emissions, whichare the main cause of human-induced climate change.

    The anti-nukes argue that, if the full nuclear energy cycle istaken into account - from mining the uranium all the way through tothe disposal of nuclear waste - it cannot be considered clean.

    However, the final scoping report now states otherwise.

    Its executive summary includes this additional text: "Over the fulllife cycle - from mining of the uranium, iron ore and otherminerals, manufacture of the components and construction of thepower station, operation and maintenance of the power stationthrough to decommissioning of the station and the management anddisposal of waste - nuclear power emits less than 11 grams ofcarbon equivalent per kilowatt hour.

    "This is the same order of magnitude as wind and solar power,including construction and component manufacturing, and two ordersof magnitude below (i.e. one hundredth of) the average for Coal,oil and natural gas.

    "Nuclear power thus has the potential to make a substantialcontribution to sustainable development and a significantcontribution to reducing South Africa's greenhouse gas emissions.

    "Due to South Africa's rich resources of uranium, it makes sensefor Eskom to utilise this energy source."

    The scoping summary also discourages the reliance on coal-firedpower stations saying this would not help in reducing greenhousegases, nor meet the vast electricity needs of the country,especially in the coastal areas.

    "Renewable forms of energy are also under investigation and arelikely to be constructed."

    It then continues with the original wording of the draft report:"At present, however, the identified renewable forms of energy -for example, wind and solar - are inadequately developed to providelarge-scale power generation facilities that can supply a reliablebase-load and easily integrate into the existing power network inSouth Africa."

    The final report is available at many public libraries, includingthe main Cape Town library (re-opening on September 1), Milnerton,Table View, Atlantis, Hermanus and Gansbaai, as well as from theCape Town offices of Arcus Gibb at 14 Kloof Street, and online atwww.eskom.co.za/eia under the "Nuclear 1" link.

    Interested and affected parties can submit comments at any stage ofthe EIA process.

    This article was originally published on page 7 of Cape Argus on August 12, 2008

MILAN (Thomson Financial) - Enel SpA has bought a stake of about 10percent in Indonesian Coal producer Bayan Resources in a move aimedat securing coal supply contracts, the daily Il Corriere della Serareported.

    The Italian power company bought the stake in an initial publicoffering and paid 150 million euros, the newspaper said, citingrumours circulated on the Indonesian market.

    Indonesia is Enel's largest coal supplier and it is followed bySouth Africa, Colombia, Russia, and Australia.

    danilo.masoni@thomsonreuters.com

    dm/jlw

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Singapore 's armed forces say they are keen to continue militaryexercises at Shoalwater Bay, in central Queensland, and are notconcerned about a proposed Coal port.

    Rockhampton Mayor Bard Carter has returned from a trip toSingapore, where the Government expressed a desire to renew anagreement that is due to expire next year.

    Councillor Carter says Singapore's armed forces are confident thata coal project can be developed without affecting their militarytraining activities at Showalwater Bay.

    He says the exercises in central Queensland are very important toSingapore.

    "Shoalwater Bay is actually the second largest training activityafter Taiwan," he said.

    "Because of the importance Singapore places on national defence andsecurity, they are very, very keen to continue with their exercisesin Shoalwater Bay.

    "One of the things that impresses them is the wonderful trainingfacilities that they have access to and the very warm receptionthat they get fr