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PIEDRA FINA, Ecuador: Aerial view of a sinkhole and the oil spill in Piedra Fina, Amazonian province of Napo, Ecuador on January 31, 2022.

Oil spill in Ecuador pollutes nature reserve in Amazon

QUITO: An oil spill in eastern Ecuador has reached a nature reserve and polluted a river that supplies water to indigenous communities, according to the country’s environmental ministry. Nearly two hectares (five acres) of a protected area of the Cayambe-Coca national park have been contaminated, as well as the Coca River, the ministry said in a statement on Monday. The park of around 400,000 hectares is home to a wide variety of protected...

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Unemployment hits historic low in Eurozone

BRUSSELS: The eurozone’s unemployment rate fell to a historic low in December, official figures showed yesterday, as hiring in Europe rode a solid recovery and shrugged off the explosive spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant. The seasonally adjusted jobless rate stood at seven percent in December, the lowest level since the official Eurostat statistics agency began compiling data in April 1998.In the 27-member European Union, which includes...

Upstream development costs at Lake Albert are estimated at $10 billion and would require a 1,443km electrically heated pipeline.

Chinese, French giants seal $10bn deal for Uganda oil project

KAMPALA: Chinese and French oil giants finally sealed a $10-billion deal yesterday to unlock Uganda’s energy resources and build a vast regional oil pipeline, a mega-project that has incensed environmental groups. The so-called Final Investment Decision should pave the way for the export of millions of barrels of black gold that was first discovered in 2006 in Uganda, one of the world’s most biodiverse regions.The decision gives the final...

Europe has paid for some 30 seats aboard US and Russian spacecraft over the years.— AFP

In space race, Europe faces choice: Passenger or pilot

PARIS: As the race to send people to the Moon and beyond heats up, Europe faces calls to make a choice: Keep paying for seats on spacecraft or finally fly its own manned vehicle. Imagine if Christopher Columbus did not have a ship to sail to the Americas, the head of the European Space Agency said recently, lamenting that the continent lacked a vessel to “explore the next frontier”. “We will be on the Moon and we believe we will be living...

SYDNEY: Australia’s central bank moved to end multi-billion-dollar pandemic stimulus yesterday, but kept interest rates at a record low despite rising inflation.

Australia to end stimulus but holds rates

MELBOURNE: Australia’s central bank moved to end multi-billion-dollar pandemic stimulus yesterday, but kept interest rates at a record low despite rising inflation. As the economy shows signs of recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, the Reserve Bank of Australia said it would wind up its unprecedented Aus$350 billion (US$250 billion) bond-buying program on February 10. But it did not fully slam the breaks on stimulus, holding off on an interest...

GlobalWafers makes tiny wafers used in semiconductors, like these manufactured by Bosch. — AFP

Taiwan chip firm’s bid to buy German rival collapses

TAIPEI: A Taiwanese semiconductor technology company’s $4.5 billion deal to acquire a German rival collapsed yesterday after a deadline for Berlin to approve the bid passed without a decision. The demise of GlobalWafers’ attempt to buy Siltronic was welcomed by German politicians, who said the country had to protect its security interests. The Taiwanese firm makes wafers, one-millimeter-thick sheets of silicon necessary for the manufacturing...

Members of staff at the traditional sweet manufacturer Edward Grays of Dudley gather freshly-made Grays Herbal Tablets.

Traditional UK sweet factory enjoys global sugar rush

Edward Gray sweet factory in central England evokes a bygone age where brass cauldrons steam with molten sugar and workers wrestle with huge chunks of gooey treacle, but its handmade produce now enjoys a global demand. The company-also known as “Teddy Grays”-dates back to 1826 when John Gray went house-to-house in a horse and cart buying homemade sweets, before selling them to retailers. But it was his son Edward, an entrepreneur in the mold...

Lebanese people sit with their laptops at a cafe in Beirut on January 14, 2022. - The music is often hushed and the atmosphere studious -- for the patrons filling Beirut's cafes these days, the most important things are good lighting and stable wi-fi. That's because they now serve as substitute workplaces for people grappling with drastic electricity shortages and internet cuts stemming from Lebanon's unrelenting economic crisis. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP)

Lebanon power cuts turn cafes into co-working spaces

The music is often hushed and the atmosphere studious-for the patrons filling Beirut’s cafes these days, the most important things are good lighting and stable wi-fi. That’s because they now serve as substitute workplaces for people grappling with drastic electricity shortages and internet cuts stemming from Lebanon’s unrelenting economic crisis. Aaliya’s Books, in the heart of the capital’s once-fabled nightlife spot of Gemmayzeh, is...

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More than 9,000 tree species still undiscovered

Researchers estimate there are significantly more species of trees on Earth than currently known, with more than 9,000 species yet to be discovered, according to a study published Monday. “Estimating the number of tree species is essential to inform, optimize, and prioritize forest conservation efforts across the globe,” said the study, which was published in the US National Academy of Sciences journal PNAS and involved dozens of scientists....

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Tiger breeding, exports flourish in S Africa

South Africa’s legal lion breeding has spawned a tiger farming industry for commercial exports, potentially posing a threat to the species already in decline, an animal welfare group warned yesterday. Breeding lions for commercial hunting and for bone exports towards Asia is legal in South Africa, but in recent years tiger breeding for similar purposes has become more common. A report by global animal rights charity, Four Paws, showed that 359...

This photo shows a ‘shop cat’ at a dried seafood shop in the Sheung Wan area of Hong Kong - a city where nearly 10 percent of all households have a cat or dog. — AFP photos

Pet owners go private to jet ‘fur babies’ out of Hong Kong

Bags packed and ready to go, Hong Kong house cats Teddy and Newman were all set for leaving on a private jet plane-an expensive last resort for their owners as the city piles on pandemic restrictions. China remains one of the few places left in the world pursuing a strict “zero-COVID” policy, transforming Hong Kong, a one-time aviation hub, into a city where thwarted travel plans and cancelled flights are the norm. The emergence of the highly...

LONDON: Transport for London (TfL), which runs the British capital’s underground “Tube” network and buses, has received billions of pounds from central government in the last two years to stay afloat. —AFP

‘Mind the (funding) gap!’ London’s ‘Tube’ seeks post-pandemic cash

LONDON: The pandemic, which left London’s transport system deserted for months on end, has decimated revenues and sparked an ongoing feud between the city’s mayor and the UK government over funding current shortfalls. Transport for London (TfL), which runs the British capital’s underground “Tube” network and buses, has received billions of pounds from central government in the last two years to stay afloat. That followed passenger...

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Minister of Municipal Affairs Dr Noura Al-Mashaan and Head of the Municipal Council Abdullah Al-Mahari inspect the Darwazat Abdulrazzaq project. – KUNA photos

Darwaza Abdulrazzaq project set to reopen

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Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman

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