World

Ford Motor Company's joint-ventures and wholly-owned entities in China delivered record sales of 119,338 units in the third quarter, an increase of 79 percent from a year ago

SHANGHAI, Oct. 13, 2009 – Ford Motor Company continued its record growth in China in the third quarter, with sales of its joint-ventures and wholly-owned entities increasing 79 percent over the same period last year, to 119,338 units. Through the first nine months of the year, its sales rose 32 percent to 316,639 units.    » read more »

Bulk and Specialty Gases, Equipment and Engineering Set for New China PV Plant

LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa. (October 13, 2009) – Air Products (NYSE:APD) today announced it has signed a turnkey gas supply contract to provide its SunSource™ Solutions liquid bulk and specialty gases, related gas distribution equipment, and engineering services to DuPont Apollo (Shenzhen) Limited at its new amorphous silicon thin-film photovoltaic (PV) facility in GuangMing New District, Shenzhen, China.    » read more »

Urges Ankara and Yerevan to Ratify the Protocols and Normalize Relations as Quickly as Possible

October 10, 2009 -- (Washington, DC) Today, Congressman Robert Wexler, Chairman of the Europe Subcommittee, a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and the Co-Chairman of the Congressional Turkey Caucus, praised the governments of Armenia and Turkey for signing two historic protocols in Zurich, Switzerland that will lead to the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations. Wexler also urged both the Armenian and Turkish governments to send the protocols to their respective parliaments for ratification.    » read more »

NEW YORK -- Oct. 12, 2009 -- American International Group, Inc. (AIG) today announced an agreement to sell its 97.57% share of Nan Shan Life Insurance Company, Ltd. (Nan Shan) to a consortium comprising Primus Financial Holdings Limited, the Hong Kong-based financial services firm, and China Strategic Holdings Limited, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed investment company, for approximately US$2.15 billion.

“We are pleased to have found a buyer who shares our confidence in Nan Shan’s bright future, and who has pledged to continue Nan Shan’s commitment to its policyholders, agents, and employees, as well as to the people of Taiwan,” said Robert Benmosche, AIG Chief Executive Officer.    » read more »

October 9, 2009 -- Washington, DC – Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) today called on the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to complete ongoing tests and evaluations concerning Chinese-imported drywall “without further delay.” The Senator wrote, “Every day that the results of these tests are delayed means more families pushed into bankruptcy and financial ruin.”    » read more »

October 7, 2009 -- Washington, DC -- Congresswoman Betty McCollum (MN-04) has introduced H.R. 3701, the More Books for Africa Act of 2009. The bill establishes the More Books for Africa Program to facilitate the donation, processing, shipping, and distribution of text and library books to African schools, libraries, community centers, and other centers of learning in partnership with United States-based entities.

“Ensuring access to and availability of textbooks and library books in countries on the continent of Africa is a critical component of our nation’s public diplomacy. The More Books for Africa Program will be a powerful cross cultural initiative to help create a more educated global community,” Congresswoman McCollum said.    » read more »

October 7, 2009 -- (Washington, DC) - U.S. Congressman Gary Ackerman (D-NY), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia, tonight issued the following statement:

“I’ve noted with concern the recent debate in Pakistan concerning the legislation recently passed by the U.S. Congress to strengthen our partnership with Pakistan and to aid that country with some of its most pressing domestic and security concerns.    » read more »

Oct. 06, 09 -- Total announces the signature of a Heads of Agreement (HOA) establishing the principles of a partnership with KazMunaiGas (KMG) for the development of the Khvalynskoye field, located offshore in the Caspian Sea on the border between Kazakhstan and Russia.

Khvalynskoye is a conventional gas condensate field located in water depths of 25 metres which will be developed by Lukoil (50%, operator). The gas produced from this field will be transported to Russia.

Under the terms of the HOA, Total and GdF-Suez will acquire a participation of 25% (Total 17%, GdF-Suez 8%) from the initial 50% stake held by KMG.    » read more »

Oct. 07, 09 -- Total (37.75%), Sonatrach (51%) and Cepsa (11.25%) today announce that the Algerian National Oil and Gas Development Agency (ALNAFT) has approved the development plan for the Timimoun natural gas project, located between Timimoun and Adrar in southwestern Algeria.

This project milestone is the outcome of an exploration and appraisal program begun in 2003, during which six wells were drilled.

Development work should begin in the fourth quarter of the year, with first gas scheduled for 2013. Timimoun is expected to commercially produce around 1.6 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year (160 millions cubic feet per day) at plateau.    » read more »

GE’s Jenbacher CHP Units to Support European Union Energy Efficiency Goals, Help Eliminate up to 40 Percent of a Plant’s Annual CO2 Emissions

PLOIESTI, Romania--Wednesday, October 07, 2009-- In line with a major initiative by the European Union (EU) to reduce emissions, GE Energy, the Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company S.A. and the energy development company ContourGlobal today celebrated the opening of a new cogeneration plant at Coca-Cola Hellenic’s Ploiesti bottling facility near Bucharest.

The Romania natural gas-fueled cogeneration plant represents the first of a planned group of 15 combined heat and power (CHP) plants that will be installed at Coca-Cola Hellenic’s facilities in 12 European countries.    » read more »

U.S. and African leaders highlighted economic impediments facing women in Africa and strategies to unleash their economic potential.

WASHINGTON -- Oct. 5, 2009 -- A summit meeting on U.S.-Africa business opportunities drew government, private sector, and civil society leaders from around the world last week to discuss ways to improve women’s economic opportunities. The event included ExxonMobil executive Sara Ortwein, who praised The Corporate Council on Africa for its focus on women and led a roundtable discussion on strategies to promote women's economic development.    » read more »

October 7, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Arlen Specter and Bob Casey applauded Senate passage of the concurrent resolution encouraging the Government of Iran to grant consular access by the Government of Switzerland to the three American citizens that have been held in Iran since July 31, 2009 when they were detained after reportedly crossing into Iranian territory while hiking in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The resolution also encourages the Government of Iran to allow the three young people to communicate by telephone with their families in the United States.    » read more »

For the Congressional Record

October 5, 2009 -- "I held a hearing last week of the Subcommittee on African Affairs to explore U.S. policy options toward Zimbabwe’s transition. The hearing confirmed that far too little progress has been made in implementing the Global Political Agreement signed last year and that abuses continue at an alarming rate. The transition remains incomplete and far from irreversible.    » read more »

October 1, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. House of Representative today approved a measure that bars companies that sell or ship gasoline to Iran from receiving funds to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. U.S. Senators Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine), who authored the measure, applauded today’s action and noted the message sent by Congress on the day the Obama Administration begins its engagement with the Iranians in Geneva, Switzerland.    » read more »

10/01/2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) authored the following op-ed in today’s Financial Times titled “Time for Diplomacy to End the Stand-off With Iran.”

The full text of the op-ed is below:

Time for diplomacy to end the stand-off with Iran
By John Kerry
October 1, 2009

Today the Obama administration begins the most important American diplomatic engagement with Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The public revelation of the Qom enrichment facility and Iran’s provocative ballistic missile test on Monday demonstrate what is at stake. Iran has increased its low-enriched uranium 20-fold since 2007, enough to produce, eventually, at least one nuclear weapon after further enrichment.    » read more »