NEWS IN BRIEF.
Peso closes at P51.955 The peso closed at P51.955 to the US dollar yesterday at the Philippine Dealing System of the Bankers Association of the Philippines from P51.935 last Friday. The weighted average rate appreciated to P51.956 from P51.961. Total volume amounted to $66.1 million. ...

Trade gap narrows down in May as imports slowed.
Byline: EDU H. LOPEZ The countrys trade deficit fell sharply in May to $18 million from $504 million a year earlier, the government said yesterday, as imports failed to keep pace with a pick-up in exports. Merchandise imports fell 1.6 percent to $3.277 billion from...

NPC considers long-term contracts for coal supply.
The National Power Corporation (NPC) is seriously considering long-term contracts for its coal supply, to avoid duplication of a recent incident when the country's power supply nearly faced shortage because of the delay in the government's approval of its coal contracts. NPC president Jesus N. Alcordo said...

Domestic manufacturers improve productivity.
Domestic manufacturers are improving their productivity to offset the adverse impact of soaring coal and fuel prices which are threatening the operations of most industries. Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry executive vice president Donald Dee said the problem of rising cost of coal and fuel is...

Cabinet to act fast on coal supply to Napocor.
The Cabinet members, who also comprised the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) board, will fasttrack the review of the $15 million worth of coal supply contracts of the National Power Corporation (NPC) to avoid placing at least three of its coal-fired generation facilities in a forced shutdown. ...

Napocor board awards P1-B coal supply contracts.
The National Power Corporation (NPC) board has already given its go-signal for the award of some P1.08 billion (approximately $20.8 million) worth of coal contracts to be delivered to the Sual and Masinloc power plants. The coal supply contract for the Sual facility will be awarded to...

Erap bares ?midnight? IPP contracts.
Byline: BRENDA PIQUERO TUAZON Former President Estrada, stung by his predecessor's public attacks blaming him for high power rates, disclosed yesterday on television that former President Fidel Ramos talked to him and asked him not to question the $452-million power contracts signed during the Ramos administration eight...

Good king coal.
IN JUST over two centuries coal has descended from being the lifeblood of the Industrial Revolution to the environmental movement's foremost bugbear. But the world's cheapest and most abundant fossil fuel should not be allowed to come under the guns of carbon taxation without a little representation beforehand. ...

Cash for Carbon.
Greenhouse Gas Reduction Has Become a Seller's Market Can clean money be exchanged for dirty air? That's the premise of an emerging trade in carbon credits, which hold out the tantalizing promise of allowing industries to insulate themselves from greenhouse gas regulations by voluntarily agreeing to pay...

When Strikes Make Sense - And Why: Lessons from Third Republic French Coal Miners.
Losing strikes--the more the better--benefits workers. To present and defend this conundrum the historical sociologist Samuel Cohn has produced a creative and thought-provoking analysis of the outcomes of coal miners' strikes in France between 1890 and 1935. Cohn was attracted to this study by the extensive data available on miners'...