First six months of 2010: Linde continues upward trend and expects operating profit to exceed record year 2008
Munich, 2 August 2010 - Capitalising on the general economic upturn, the technology group The Linde Group has continued the positive trend seen in the first quarter into Q2. In the first half of 2010, the Group achieved significant growth in sales and operating profit. "The upward trend is continuing. In the course of the second quarter, we have increasingly seen a rise in demand worldwide," said Professor Dr Wolfgang Reitzle, Chief Executive Officer of Linde AG. "Once again we have improved our profitability and we look with confidence to the months ahead.
We reaffirm our objective, which is to reach a higher level of Group sales and Group operating profit in the 2010 financial year than in 2009. We are well on the way to achieving a faster rate of growth in Group operating profit than in Group sales and exceeding the Group operating profit of record year 2008."
Iceland set up technician training program for geothermal power plants
Due to the constant technical training needed to cope with the ongoing progressions of geothermal power plants, a new technician program has been introduced in Iceland. The Geothermal Power Plant Technician course at the Keilir Institute of Technology is set to address the growing need for skilled geothermal power plant technicians as well as health, safety and environmental issues.
The Geothermal Power Plant Technician course at Keilir is split into two separate programs, which are then spread across two years.
Icelandic bank releases 3rd annual U.S. Geothermal Energy Market Report
The Icelandic bank, Islandsbanki (formerly Glitnir) has issued its third annual U.S. Geothermal Energy Market Report in continuation of its research activities in geothermal energy. The report provides an updated overview on geothermal energy development in the United States, highlighting not only the increasing amount of activity in the sector, but also the elements that have helped spur the development.
In the U.S today there are around 144 geothermal energy projects in development with a combined capacity of up to 6,400 MW, which is an increase of about 60 percent compared to last year.
Nordic countries taking the lead in renewable energy for transport
Electricity and biofuels are quickly changing the way people power their cars while also having a positive effect on people’s finances and the environment. The leadership role of the Nordic countries of Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Finland in this field are highlighted at the upcoming Driving Sustainability conference in Reykjavík in September.
In Norway, over three thousand electric cars are on the road. Government policy dictates that charging their batteries is free of charge, zero emissions EVs get free parking, can drive on bus lanes in the city, get free rides on state run ferries (there are a lot of them in Norway) and there is no VAT on electric cars in Norway, so they’re reasonably priced. ‘Think’ is the leading producer of competitive electric city cars in the world. In addition, Norway produces the tiny Buddy EV electric car.
Marorka brings marine energy saving know-how to Nordic Climate Solutions
Marorka is one of the world’s leading companies working to lower the global impact of shipping on the environment while saving the industry money with better efficiency. Marorka is one of several innovative Icelandic companies taking part in the Nordic Climate Solutions 2009 conference in Copenhagen this September.
Marorka is an Iceland-based technology company with strong representation elsewhere in Europe and Canada. The company creates cutting edge energy management systems for the international shipping industry to help save money by using less fuel and emitting less harmful greenhouse gases.