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France’s EDF in race to convert Cordemais plant from coal to biomass

The logo of EDF is seen on the French state-controlled utility EDF's headquarters in Paris
FILE PHOTO: The logo of EDF (Electricite de France) is seen on the French state-controlled utility EDF's headquarters in Paris, France, February 15, 2019. REUTERS/Charles Platiau

March 22, 2019

By Bate Felix

CORDEMAIS, France (Reuters) – French utility EDF aims to convert its 1,200-megawatt (MW) Cordemais coal-fired power plant by spring 2022 into one that burns pellet fuel made from discarded wood, giving the unit a new lease of life.

If successful, the process – known as Ecocombust – could be exported and adapted to other coal plants, saving jobs, while Cordemais would boost France’s security of supply in winter.

But EDF must convince the government by autumn that the project is financially and environmentally viable. French grid operator RTE is also expected to determine by April whether the plant is surplus to requirements.

In its long-term energy plan, France has laid out moves to phase out electricity generation from coal by 2022, with the goal of decarbonizing energy production by 2050.

The decision sounded the death knell for the five remaining coal-fired generators in France, with an installed capacity of around 3,000 MW. Three of the generators – Cordemais 4 and 5, and Havre 4 – are operated by state-controlled EDF.

Cordemais in western France was overhauled two years ago to meet new emissions and safety standards at a cost of several million euros, and could keep operating until 2035, EDF says.

France’s two other coal generators, Emile Huchet 6 and Provence 5, with a combined installed capacity of 1,200 MW, are operated by German utility Uniper.

EDF executives said the Ecocombust project, already in an advanced test phase, would burn pellets made from discarded “class B” wood and garden waste, for large-scale power generation. The project is the first of its kind, they say.

Although pellets from wood chips and sawdust are widely used for heating, Eric Bret, EDF’s head of thermal power generation, said the process was different because the company would not cut down any trees.

“The pellets are made from … everyday objects such as beams, doors, window frames and furniture, which until now are mostly recycled or buried in landfill,” he said.

SOURCED LOCALLY

Lionel Olivier, director of the Cordemais and Havre power plants, said the pellets would be 70 percent “class B” wood and 30 percent residue from grass, tree branches and garden waste, all sourced within a radius of 150 km (93 miles).

He said EDF was setting up a supply chain that included municipal waste authorities and companies, but would need state aid.

EDF declined to say what the conversion would cost and how much it had invested in the process.

At capacity, it aims to replace around 1.3 million to 2 million tonnes of coal imported annually from Poland, Australia and the United States, with about 700,000 tonnes of biomass.

Tests carried out in August with 80 percent pellet fuel and 20 percent coal to generate electricity for over four hours were successful, Olivier said.

The pellets have 20 percent less energy or caloric value than coal, which could reduce each generator’s output capacity to 530 MW from 600 MW currently, he added.

Cordemais’ production would focus on periods of peak power demand in winter. After the conversion, output would be reduced to 800 hours annually from 4,000 hours, he said.

“Runtime would be five times less than the current production using coal but it will focus on a period when power prices are higher and more profitable,” Olivier said.

He added that the plant would also use five times less coal and emit five times less carbon dioxide.

(Reporting by Bate Felix; Editing by Dale Hudson)

Source: OANN

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Oregon judge to block Trump administration abortion rule

A federal judge in Oregon said Tuesday that he intends to grant a preliminary injunction against rule changes by the Trump administration that could cut federal funding from clinics that refer patients to abortion providers.

U.S. District Judge Michael McShane made the comments after more than three hours of arguments in a lawsuit brought by 20 states and the District of Columbia, The Oregonian reported. The states said the rule change, which takes effect May 3, is an attack on Planned Parenthood and a violation of the Affordable Care Act.

Under the Trump administration's new policy, health care providers that receive federal funding would be barred from referring patients for an abortion. Programs that receive the money would also have to be in a separate physical space from facilities where abortion is performed.

Andrew M. Bernie, a U.S. Justice Department lawyer, said there was nothing in the administrative record to suggest the change was politically motivated. But the judge was not swayed. McShane suggested it would be “insane” for a man to go to his doctor seeking a vasectomy, only to be referred to a fertility clinic.

PREGNANT BRIDESMAID CLAIMS BRIDE ASKED HER TO HAVE AN ABORTION BEFORE BIG DAY: REPORT

Several other lawsuits have also challenged the new policy. California and Washington have sued separately; arguments in the latter case are scheduled for Thursday in U.S. District Court in Yakima.

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McShane said he needs more time to decide whether he will issue a national injunction or a more limited one blocking the policy from taking effect. The judge said he’s reluctant to set national health care policy and would issue a written opinion soon.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Playboy model, 25, arrested in death of California psychiatrist, 71, found in trunk of car

A 25-year-old Las Vegas woman has been arrested in California, charged in the murder of a 71-year-old child psychiatrist who was found bludgeoned to death in the trunk of a car in Nevada earlier this month, authorities said Thursday.

Kelsey Turner was taken into custody March 21 in Stockton in connection with the death of Dr. Thomas Burchard, of Salinas, Calif., Las Vegas Metropolitan Police said.

CALIFORNIA PSYCHIATRIST'S BODY FOUND IN TRUNK OF CAR, DIED OF BLUNT-FORCE INJURY, POLICE SAY

Turner was arrested by Las Vegas detectives and the Stockton FBI task force, FOX5 Las Vegas reported. Further details on her arrest or how police identified Turner as a suspect in Burchard’s death weren’t immediately available.

Her name and photo matched those that appeared on a Facebook profile that described the woman as a model who posed for racy photos, including some posted on Playboy's Italian-language website, the Californian of Salinas reported.

Kelsey Turner, 25, was arrested in California for the murder of Thomas Burchard, a 71-year-old psychiatrist, whose body was found bludgeoned to death earlier this month in the trunk of a car in Nevada, authorities said Thursday.

Kelsey Turner, 25, was arrested in California for the murder of Thomas Burchard, a 71-year-old psychiatrist, whose body was found bludgeoned to death earlier this month in the trunk of a car in Nevada, authorities said Thursday. (Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department)

Social media profiles for a Kelsey Turner identify her as a model living in Las Vegas, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. But property records obtained by the paper indicate Turner also had addresses in Arizona and California, including Salinas, about 130 miles from Stockton.

Burchard’s body was discovered March 7 in a desert area near the entrance to the Lake Mead National Recreational Area. His body was found after a passerby noticed a rock had been thrown through one of the vehicle's windows, police said. It was not immediately clear who owned the car.

5 CHARGED AFTER PREGNANT CALIFORNIA SCHOOL TEACHER REPEATEDLY STABBED, CARJACKED

Authorities determined Burchard died from blunt force injury to the head. His death was ruled a homicide.

Burchard, who chose not to retire at 65 because he couldn’t bear to leave his patients, had worked nearly four decades in the behavioral health program with Montage Health, the Review-Journal reported.

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"Dr. Burchard was a psychiatrist in our behavioral health program for almost 40 years and was very helpful to many patients," Montage Health spokeswoman Mary Barker said. "It’s a very sad situation and our hearts go out to his family, friends, patients, and colleagues. We are notifying his patients and providing grief counseling for staff."

Turner was being held in the San Joaquin County Jail without bail as she awaits extradition to face a murder charge in Las Vegas.

Source: Fox News National

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Texas Senate votes to raise smoking age to 21, exempting active military members

The Texas Senate voted in favor of Bill 21 Tuesday that would raise the state’s legal age to buy and use tobacco products from 18 to 21 after an amendment was added to exempt active military members from the new age restriction.

The bill’s sponsor Sen. Joan Huffman (R-Houston) amended her own legislation to exempt active military members after receiving pushback from some Republicans who argued the law denied young adults who enlist in the military the freedom to choose to use tobacco products, The Dallas Morning News reported.

Active U.S. military or state military force members between the ages of 18 and 20 will be permitted to purchase tobacco products if they present valid military identification, according to the revised bill.

PUSH TO RAISE SMOKING AGE TO 21 CATCHES FIRE AT STATE LEVEL

The amendment allowed Huffman to secure more than the 19 votes required in the 31-member body to approve the proposed legislation. The revised version of Bill 21 passed the state Senate 20-11 without debate and will be sent to the House for approval.

"I want to thank Sen. Huffman for passing this important legislation for the children of Texas. Senate Bill 21 will save lives and is an investment in Texas' future,” Texas’ Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said in a statement. "Increasing the age to purchase tobacco products in Texas to 21 will not only improve public health and save countless lives, it will save Texans billions of dollars in health care costs."

Texas 21, a coalition of groups that supports raising the legal age for tobacco products to 21, opposed the military service member amendment to Bill 21.

“Texas 21 will be working with legislators to help them understand the importance of including the military in tobacco 21 legislation,” Claudia Rodas of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids told The Dallas Morning News. “Our goal is a tobacco 21 law that protects all young Texans, including those who are willing to die to protect our country.”

Huffman recognized the coalition’s concern but said the law would be impractical for military members who have to move across state lines. The state senator recognized the importance of the legislation to protect young Texans from developing deadly smoking habits.

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"While I understand it's still an issue in the military, these individuals are often required to move across state lines," Huffman told WFAA, adding she wanted to avoid any confusion.

"Ninety-five percent, 95 percent of adult smokers, begin smoking before they turn 21," Huffman told WFAA. "Even more astounding is that three-quarters of adult smokers tried their first cigarette before the age of 18."

Source: Fox News Politics

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Journalist Jorge Ramos' equipment seized at Maduro interview

A team of American journalists led by Univision's Jorge Ramos had their equipment and phones seized at Venezuela's presidential palace after Nicolas Maduro abruptly ended an interview.

Ramos is one of the most influential Spanish-speaking journalists in the U.S. He told The Associated Press on Monday night that Maduro cut short the interview after 17 minutes when Ramos showed him on his iPad footage shot a day earlier of young Venezuelans eating food scraps out of the back of a garbage truck.

The Univision team left after two hours without having their equipment returned.

Venezuela's government denies Ramos' account and accuses him of trying to stage an international incident after senior State Department officials and Sen. Marco Rubio relayed reports on social media of what they called Ramos' detention.

Source: Fox News World

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IEA sees U.S. leading global oil supply growth to 2024

FILE PHOTO: An oil pump is seen operating in the Permian Basin near Midland
FILE PHOTO: An oil pump is seen operating in the Permian Basin near Midland, Texas, U.S. on May 3, 2017. REUTERS/Ernest Scheyder/File Photo

March 11, 2019

By Dmitry Zhdannikov and Alex Lawler

LONDON (Reuters) – The United States will drive global oil supply growth over the next five years, adding another 4 million barrels per day to the country’s already booming output, the International Energy Agency said on Monday.

U.S. oil output, including natural gas liquids (NGLs) and other hydrocarbons, will climb to 19.6 million bpd by 2024 from 15.5 million last year, the Paris-based agency said. Gross crude exports will double, leading to greater competition especially in the Asian market.

Crude output in the United States will rise nearly 2.8 million bpd, growing to 13.7 million bpd in 2024 from just under 11 million bpd in 2018, the IEA said.

The outlook points to pressure on demand for crude from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries as the United States and other rivals expand supplies. However, in a boost for the producers, the IEA does not see a peak in global demand yet.

“The United States is increasingly leading the expansion in global oil supplies, with significant growth also seen among other non-OPEC producers, including Brazil, Norway and new producer Guyana,” the IEA, an adviser to the United States and other industrialized countries, said in its five-year outlook.

A boom in U.S. oil supply due to shale oil has countered efforts by OPEC and its partners led by Russia to restrain supplies. The so-called OPEC+ group began a new round of oil supply cuts in 2019 to support prices.

U.S. crude exports will surpass shipments from Russia and nearly catches up to Saudi Arabia by 2024, diversifying global supplies, the IEA said.

“The United States emerges as a significant oil exporter,” said Fatih Birol, IEA executive director, during a press conference at an industry summit in Houston. “The second wave of shale production growth is coming.”

Global oil demand growth is set to ease as China slows, but will still rise by an annual average of 1.2 million bpd to 2024 when it will reach 106.4 million bpd.

Even so, the IEA does not expect moves such as greater adoption of electric cars to put a cap on demand growth yet. Goldman Sachs has said oil demand could peak by 2024 under some circumstances.

“The IEA continues to see no peak in oil demand, as petrochemicals and jet fuel remain the key drivers of growth, particularly in the United States and Asia, more than offsetting a slowdown in gasoline due to efficiency gains and electric cars,” the IEA said.

Demand for OPEC crude will rise but given the growth expected from the United States and other non-OPEC producers, Saudi Arabia and its allies will probably have to maintain efforts to withhold supplies.

“Market management by producers is likely to remain necessary for some time given the outlook for the call on OPEC crude,” the report said.

The IEA forecasts demand for OPEC crude will drop in 2020 and then rise to average 31.3 million bpd in 2023. The 2023 figure is up by just 600,000 bpd from this year and less than the previous forecast.

Iraq, the IEA said, would reinforce its position as a top producer, becoming the world’s third-largest source of new supply and driving growth within OPEC.

“The increase will have to compensate for steep losses from Iran and Venezuela, as well as a still-fragile situation in Libya,” the IEA said.

(Reporting by Dmitry Zhdannikov; Editing by Dale Hudson and Marguerita Choy)

Source: OANN

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No. 1 Duke slips past Virginia Tech without Reddish

NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament-East Regional-Virginia Tech vs Duke
Mar 29, 2019; Washington, DC, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Zion Williamson (1) shoots the ball during the first half against the Virginia Tech Hokies in the semifinals of the east regional of the 2019 NCAA Tournament at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

March 30, 2019

Zion Williamson scored 23 points and Tre Jones hit five 3-point baskets on the way to 22 points as top-seeded Duke beat fourth-seeded Virginia Tech 75-73 Friday in a wild NCAA Tournament East Region semifinal at Washington.

Virginia Tech missed three shots in the final 10 seconds, including a pair of 3-point attempts.

RJ Barrett scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half and also finished with 11 assists as the Blue Devils returned to a regional final for the second year in a row.

Duke (32-5) next has a Sunday meeting with second-seeded Michigan State (31-6), an 80-63 winner against third-seeded LSU in the first regional semifinal Friday. The Blue Devils-Spartans victor will advance to the Final Four in Minneapolis.

Blue Devils freshman Cam Reddish didn’t play, apparently due to a sore knee, a team spokesman said.

Jones’ fifth 3-pointer made it 71-66 before Williamson added a dunk with three minutes to play — and suddenly Duke fans were drowning out the noise created by rowdy Virginia Tech supporters.

Justin Robinson, though, sank a pair of foul shots with 29.6 seconds left, pulling the Hokies within 75-73.

Jones missed the front end of a one-and-one and Virginia Tech’s Ahmed Hill grabbed the rebound. He then ariballed a 3-point attempt, but the Hokies rebounded and called timeout with 5.8 seconds to go. Ty Outlaw hit only backboard on a 3-point try but Virginia Tech got a rebound and one last chance.

On another inbounds pass with 1.1 seconds left, Hill’s running catch-and-shoot from the lane bounced off.

Kerry Blackshear Jr. posted 18 points for Virginia Tech (26-9). Hill poured in 13 of his 15 points in the first half, Robinson tallied 14, and Wabissa Bede had 10.

Duke started the second half strong with Barrett posting 13 points in less than eight minutes. By the time the Blue Devils finished a fastbreak with a Williamson dunk, it was 58-52, and the Hokies called timeout at the 10:23 mark.

Duke had its 60-52 lead trimmed to 64-61 with less than six minutes to go, but Williamson blocked a shot, leading to Jones’ jumper in transition.

Virginia Tech led 38-34 at halftime, making seven of its first 13 attempts from 3-point range. Duke shot 51.9 percent from the field in the opening half.

Jones, a freshman guard, made two 3-pointers in the opening 10 minutes. He had more than one trey in only two other games this season, both in November.

With Reddish sidelined, Alex O’Connell, a sophomore guard who didn’t play Sunday in the Blue Devils’ victory against Central Florida, made his seventh career start and scored four points.

Reddish has started all 35 games in which he has played.

–Field Level Media

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO - Otto Frederick Warmbier is taken to North Korea's top court in Pyongyang North Korea
FILE PHOTO – Otto Frederick Warmbier (C), a University of Virginia student who was detained in North Korea since early January, is taken to North Korea’s top court in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this photo released by Kyodo March 16, 2016. Mandatory credit REUTERS/Kyodo/File Photo

April 26, 2019

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday said the United States did not pay any money to North Korea as it sought the release of comatose American student Otto Warmbier.

The Washington Post reported on Thursday that Trump had approved payment of a $2 million bill from North Korea to cover its care of the college student, who died shortly after he was returned to the United States after 17 months in a North Korean prison.

(Reporting by Makini Brice and Susan Heavey)

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Members of The Cranberries, bassist Mike Hogan, drummer Fergal Lawler and guitarist Noel Hogan speak to Reuters during an interview in London
Members of The Cranberries, bassist Mike Hogan, drummer Fergal Lawler and guitarist Noel Hogan speak to Reuters during an interview in London, Britain, April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Gerhard Mey

April 26, 2019

By Hanna Rantala

LONDON (Reuters) – Irish rockers The Cranberries are saying goodbye with their final album released on Friday, a poignant tribute to lead singer Dolores O’Riordan who died last year.

“In the End” is the eighth studio album from the band that rose to fame in the early 1990s with hits likes “Zombie” and “Linger”, and includes the final recordings by O’Riordan, who drowned in a London hotel bath in January 2018 due to alcohol intoxication.

Work on the album began during a 2017 tour and by that winter, O’Riordan and guitarist Neil Hogan had penned and demoed 11 tracks.

With O’Riordan’s vocals recorded, Hogan, bassist Mike Hogan and drummer Fergal Lawler completed the album in tribute to her.

“When we realized how strong the songs were, that was the deciding factor really… There was no point… trying to ruin the legacy of the band,” Noel Hogan said in an interview.

“It was obvious that Dolores wanted this album done because when you hear the album, you hear the songs and how strong they are, and she was very, very excited to get in and record this.”

The Cranberries formed in Limerick in 1989 with another singer. O’Riordan replaced him a year later and the group went on to become Ireland’s best-selling rock band after U2, selling more than 40 million records.

O’Riordan, known for her strong distinctive voice singing about relationships or political violence, was 46 when she died.

“She was actually in quite a good place mentally. She was feeling quite content and strong and looking forward to a new phase of her life,” Lawler said.

“A lot of the lyrics in this album are about things ending… people might read into it differently but it was a phase of her personal life that she was talking about.”

The group previously announced their intention to split after the release of “In The End”.

“We are absolutely gutted we can’t play (the songs) live because that’s something that’s been a massive part of this band from day one,” Noel Hogan said.

“A few people have said to us about maybe even doing a one off where you have different vocalists… as kind of guests of ours. A year ago that’s definitely something we weren’t going to entertain but I don’t know, I think it’s something we need to go away and take time off for the summer and have a think about.”

Critics have generally given positive reviews of the album; NME described it as “(seeing) the band’s career go full-circle” while the Irish Times called it “an unexpected late career high and a remarkable swan song for O’Riordan”.

Their early songs still play on the radio. This week, “Dreams” was performed at the funeral of journalist Lyra McKee, who was shot dead in Londonderry last week as she watched Irish nationalist youths attack police following a raid.

“We wrote them as kids, as a hobby and 30 years later they are on radio and on TV, like all the time… That’s far more than any of us ever thought we would have,” Noel Hogan said.

“That would make Dolores really happy because she was very precious about those songs. Her babies, she called them and to have that hopefully long after we’re gone… that’s all any band can wish for.”

(Reporting by Hanna Rantala; additoinal reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Writing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Susan Fenton)

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2020 Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren participates in the She the People Presidential Forum in Houston
2020 Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren participates in the She the People Presidential Forum in Houston, Texas, U.S. April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Loren Elliott

April 26, 2019

By Joshua Schneyer and M.B. Pell

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Senator Elizabeth Warren will introduce a bill Friday that offers new protections for U.S. military families facing unsafe housing, following a series of Reuters reports revealing squalid conditions in privately managed base homes.

The Reuters reports and later Congressional hearings detailed widespread hazards including lead paint exposure, vermin infestations, collapsing ceilings, mold and maintenance lapses in privatized base housing communities that serve some 700,000 U.S. military family members.

(View Warren’s military housing bill here. https://tmsnrt.rs/2Dy5aht)

(Read Reuters’ Ambushed at Home series on military housing here. https://www.reuters.com/investigates/section/usa-military)

The Massachusetts Democrat’s bill would mandate both regular and unannounced spot inspections of base homes by certified, independent inspectors, holding landlords accountable for quickly fixing hazards. The military’s privatization program for years allowed real estate firms to operate base housing with scant oversight, Reuters found, leaving some tenants in unsafe homes with little recourse against landlords.

The bill would also require the Department of Defense and its private housing operators to publish reports annually detailing housing conditions, tenant complaints, maintenance response times and the financial incentives companies receive at each base. The provisions aim to enhance transparency of housing deals whose finances and operations the military had allowed to remain largely confidential under a privatization program since the late 1990s.

The measure would also require private landlords to cover moving costs for at-risk families, and healthcare costs for people with medical conditions resulting from unsafe base housing, ensuring they receive continuing coverage even after they leave the homes or the military.

“This bill will eliminate the kind of corner-cutting and neglect the Defense Department should never have let these private housing partners get away with in the first place,” Warren said in a statement Friday.

The proposed legislation comes after February Senate hearings where Warren, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee who is seeking the Democratic nomination for the 2020 U.S. presidential election, slammed private real estate firms for endangering service families, and sought answers about why military branches weren’t providing more oversight.

Her legislation would direct the Defense Department to allow local housing code enforcers onto federal bases, following concerns they were sometimes denied access. Warren’s office said a companion bill in the House of Representatives would be introduced by Rep. Deb Haaland, Democrat of New Mexico.

In response to the housing crisis, military branches are developing a tenant bill of rights and hiring hundreds of new housing staff. The branches recently dispatched commanders to survey base housing worldwide for safety hazards, resulting in thousands of work orders and hundreds of tenants being moved. The Defense Department has pledged to renegotiate its 50-year contracts with private real estate firms.

Congress has been quick to take its own measures. Earlier legislation proposed by senators Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris of California, along with Mark Warner and Tim Kaine of Virginia, would compel base commanders to withhold rent payments and incentive fees from the private ventures if they allow home hazards to persist.

(Editing by Ronnie Greene)

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FILE PHOTO: Offices of Deloitte are seen in London
FILE PHOTO: Offices of Deloitte are seen in London, Britain, September 25, 2017. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Noor Zainab Hussain and Tanishaa Nadkar

(Reuters) – Deloitte quit as Ferrexpo’s auditor on Friday, knocking its shares by more than 20 percent, days after saying it was unable to conclude whether the iron ore miner’s CEO controlled a charity being investigated over its use of company donations.

Blooming Land, which coordinates Ferrexpo’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program, came under scrutiny after auditors found holes in the charity’s statements.

Ferrexpo on Tuesday said findings of an ongoing independent investigation launched in February indicated some Blooming Land funds could have been “misappropriated”. It did not provide any details or publish its findings.

Shares in Ferrexpo, the third largest exporter of pellets to the global steel industry, were 23.4 percent lower at 206.1 pence at 1022 GMT following news of Deloitte’s resignation.

“Ferrexpo’s shares are deeply discounted vs peers … following the resignation of Deloitte, we expect downside risks to dominate Ferrexpo’s shares near term.” JP Morgan analyst Dominic O’Kane said in a note on Friday.

Swiss-headquartered Ferrexpo did not provide a reason for the resignation of Deloitte, which declined to comment, while Blooming Land did not respond to a request for comment.

Funding for Blooming Land’s CSR activities is provided by one of Ferrexpo’s units in Ukraine and Khimreaktiv LLC, an entity ultimately controlled by Ferrexpo’s CEO and majority owner Kostyantin Zhevago, Ferrexpo said on Tuesday.

Ferrexpo’s board has found that Zhevago did not have significant influence or control over the charity, but Deloitte said it was unable reach a conclusion on this.

Reuters was not immediately able to contact Zhevago.

In a qualified opinion, a statement addressing an incomplete audit, Deloitte said it had been unable to conclude whether $33.5 million of CSR donations to Blooming Land between 2017 and 2018 was used for “legitimate business payments for charitable purposes”.

Deloitte said on Tuesday that total CSR payments made to Blooming Land by Ferrexpo since 2013 total about $110 million.

Ferrexpo, whose major mines are in Ukraine, has said that the investigation was ongoing and new evidence pointed to potential discrepancies.

Zhevago, 45, who ranked 1,511 on Forbes magazine’s list of billionaires for 2019 with a net worth of $1.4 billion, owns the FC Vorskla soccer club and has been a member of Ukraine’s parliament since 1998.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain and Tanishaa Nadkar in Bengaluru and additional reporting by Pavel Polityuk in Kiev; editing by Gopakumar Warrier, Bernard Orr)

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Children walk past a damaged building in the aftermath of the Cyclone Kenneth in Pemba
Children walk past a damaged building in the aftermath of the Cyclone Kenneth in Pemba, Mozambique April 26, 2019 in this still image obtained from social media. SolidarMed via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES

April 26, 2019

By Emma Rumney and Stephen Eisenhammer

JOHANNESBURG/LUANDA (Reuters) – Cyclone Kenneth killed at least one person and left a trail of destruction in northern Mozambique, destroying houses, ripping up trees and knocking out power, authorities said on Friday.

The cyclone brought storm surges and wind gusts of up to 280 km per hour (174 mph) when it made landfall on Thursday evening, after killing three people in the island nation of Comoros.

It was the most powerful storm on record to hit Mozambique’s northern coast and came just six weeks after Cyclone Idai battered the impoverished nation, causing devastating floods and killing more than 1,000 people across a swathe of southern Africa.

The World Food Programme warned that Kenneth could dump as much as 600 millimeters of rain on the region over the next 10 days – twice that brought by Cyclone Idai.

One woman in the port town of Pemba died after being hit by a falling tree, the Emergency Operations Committee for Cabo Delgado (COE) said in a statement, while another person was injured.

In rural areas outside Pemba, many homes are made of mud. In the main town on the island of Ibo, 90 percent of the houses were destroyed, officials said. Around 15,000 people were out in the open or in “overcrowded” shelters and there was a need for tents, food and water, they said.

There were also reports of a large number of homes and some infrastructure destroyed in Macomia district, a mainland district adjacent to Ibo.

A local group, the Friends of Pemba Association, had earlier reported that they could not reach people in Muidumbe, a district further inland.

Mark Lowcock, United Nations under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, warned the storm could require another major humanitarian operation in Mozambique.

“Cyclone Kenneth marks the first time two cyclones have made landfall in Mozambique during the same season, further stressing the government’s limited resources,” he said in a statement.

FLOOD WARNINGS

Shaquila Alberto, owner of the beach-front Messano Flower Lodge in Macomia, said there were many fallen trees there, and in rural areas people’s homes had been damaged. Some areas of nearby Pemba had no power.

“Even my workers, they said the roof and all the things fell down,” she said by phone.

Further south, in Pemba, Elton Ernesto, a receptionist at Raphael’s Hotel, said there were fallen trees but not too much damage. The hotel had power and water, he said, while phones rang in the background. “The rain has stopped,” he added.

However Michael Charles, an official for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), said heavy rains over the next few days were likely to bring a “second wave of destruction” in the form of flooding.

“The houses are not all solid, and the topography is very sandy,” Charles said.

In the days after Cyclone Idai, heavy inland rains prompted rivers to burst their banks, submerging entire villages, cutting areas off from aid and ruining crops. There were concerns the same could happen again in northern Mozambique.

Before Kenneth hit, the government and aid workers moved around 30,000 people to safer buildings such as schools, however authorities said that around 680,000 people were in the path of the storm.

(Reporting by Emma Rumney and Stephen Eisenhammer; Writing by Emma Rumney; Editing by Janet Lawrence and Alexandra Zavis)

Source: OANN

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