It is also trying to get permission to trial the use of petcoke, known as “dirty fuel”, at one of its units, which would again increase its sulphur emissions.Sulphur emissions contribute to acid rain. But Drax points out that although it is the cleanest station in the UK, it is not compensated for its higher costs.UK Coal will report its financial results for 2002 next week and is expected to show a loss of £65m, according to analyst Charles Kernot at the investment bank BNP Paribas This is primarily due to the cost of closing the Selby pit. Last week the UK coal industry was given a £60m aid package from the Government, too late to save Selby.”The release of the Energy White Paper is good news for UK Coal as it shows the Government is interested in the long-term viability of a domestic coal industry,” said research from BNP Paribas.The draft legislation also blocked proposals to build new nuclear power stations in the wake of the problems at the nuclear operator British Energy, which is financially stressed. But to meet targets to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide – emitted by coal and oil but not produced by nuclear power – the Government will back renewable sources of energy such as solar and wind power.Drax, owned by the American company AES, is currently negotiating with its bankers for its survival, as a £1bn debt mountain and low electricity prices put financial pressure on the company.Drax was unavailable for comment. However, a spokes-person for UK Coal said that if the power station were not allowed to increase its sulphur quota, “it would be able to burn a fair amount [of British coal] but not as much as they are currently doing”.. Metronet, the consortium poised to take over most of the London Underground, will tomorrow take a major step towards completing the controversial public-private partnership, by issuing £1bn worth of bonds. The bonds will have a top credit rating, as Metronet has paid an insurance company to guarantee them.There has been constant speculation that the banks may struggle to sell the bonds after the train crash at Chancery Lane station on the Central Line.

However, Metronet is protected against any costs associated with the crash.Metronet’s shareholders are Balfour Beatty, WS Atkins, Bombardier, Thames Water and Seeboard Each company has pledged £70m to the PPP. Metronet has also secured a £600m loan from the European Investment Bank. The final piece in the jigsaw will be a £1.1bn loan from a group led by Deutsche Bank.Metronet’s £12bn 15-year deal with London Underground is scheduled for completion next month. Its immediate task will then be to give stations and trains a “deep clean”, followed by the introduction of CCTV cameras and a new public address system. The second phase will see 60 stations modernised, 37km of track replaced and trains refurbished New trains will be introduced by 2008.. Name changes are 10 a penny Royal Mail to Consignia and back again Bowater to Rexam. Department of Social Security to Department for Work and Pensions

Name changes are 10 a penny Royal Mail to Consignia and back again Bowater to Rexam.

That is what is happening to the Legacies Management Authority, the new £50bn government body charged with cleaning up the mess created by 50 years of nuclear power, nuclear weapons and nuclear submarines.The Bill creating it does not come before Parliament until June, yet the LMA has already become the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA).The original name was chosen by civil servants at the Department of Trade and Indus- try, who hadn’t wanted to use the word “nuclear” because of the bad publicity surrounding British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL).However, after publishing a White Paper on the LMA last year, the officials had a change of heart. Nuclear was OK, even though it seems to have been snubbed in last week’s Energy White Paper.Still, the civil servants behind the LMA have not entirely given up. The NDA will be run though a group called the Legacies Management Unit or LMU.. Britain’s largest shareholder group is urging members to reject Six Continents’ executive share option schemes, potentially threatening the company’s plans to demerge its hotels and pubs business. Mr Osmond is expected to table a formal offer early this week. Mainly in shares, the bid will be made through his company, Capital Management & Investment, and will value Six Continents at around £5.7bn.The offer and the “no” vote from the NAPF will put pressure on Six Continents’ chairman, Sir Ian Prosser, to adjourn the EGM and buy more time to see off Mr Osmond.Six Continents’ executives plan a new round of shareholder meetings once Mr Osmond has made his bid.

If three-quarters of them express an interest in Mr Osmond’s offer, then Sir Ian will almost certainly cancel the EGM.A spokesman for Six Continents refused to comment on a possible offer. On the share option schemes, he said: “We believe they are fair and contain sufficient performance criteria to stretch and incentivise employees to grow the business.”. The recovery in BT’s fortunes is being threatened by a loss of customers to rival operators, which last year topped nearly 700,000, according to unpublished figures. This allows domestic and business users to switch from BT without any changes to their telephone lines. The figures show that CPS saw a 3,390 per cent increase in under a year.The revelation casts a shadow over BT’s advertising claims that customers are returning to BT. A spokesman said that last year the company won back 500,000 accounts.BT today faces further competition from Carphone Warehouse, which has launched its own CPS fixed-line telecoms service.