text:
• Cyprus rescue in chaos as bank levy rejected
• Bail-out tantamount to 'blackmail', says former bank governor
• Anastasiades predicts defeat in parliamentary vote
• Cyprus governments bins levy up to €20,000 in draft bill
• Eurogroup urges Cyprus to protect small depositors
• British Service personnel facing loss of savings
• Cyprus banks to stay closed until next Tuesday - reports
22.45 That's where we leave our Live Blog for today. Thanks for reading.
21.40 The EuroGroup has released a statement in which is says it "stands ready" to assist Cyprus.
21.32 Schauble has now said that two large Cypriot banks are essentially insolvent without aid.
He really isn't helping.
21.12 Farage's view is backed up by Open Europe:
The vote leaves Cyprus' place in the eurozone hanging in the balance and threatens the escalation of the crisis to a new level.
21.11 Meanwhile, UKIP leader Nigel Farage believes Cyprus' rejection of the bank levy sets up major problems for the eurozone:
Now I know that Cyprus is small, and it's only a country with about 800,000 people, but the Cypriot Parliament effectively said, 'We are leaving the euro.' There is a very real risk that this knocks-on, and brings about a crash, not just in the euro, but in several banks across the European Union. So we are at a very, very critical juncture."
21.01 Schauble adds that no one except Cyprus is to blame for its current situation.
We acknowledge and regret the decision.... For a rescue plan to exist we need a credible way to know how Cyprus will regain access to financial markets. For now the debt is too high ... it must be reduced."
20.55 Wolfgang Schauble, Germany's Finance Minister, has said his country regrets Cyprus' decision, and creditors have to be involved when there is an insolvency. Adds that Cyprus' business model doesn't work.
Meanwhile, there are reports emerging that Cypriot banks will remain closed until Tuesday, March 26.
20.01 Austrian Finance Minister Maria Fekter says a Cypriot bankruptcy will be a bigger catastrophe than the tax on savings.
19.57 Luxembourg Finance Minister Luc Frieden has called for a EuroGroup meeting on Cyprus amid a need to guarantee stability.
Luc Frieden, left, with Germany's Otto Schily
19.43 Amid all the goings-on in Cyprus, Fitch has affirmed its top "AAA" credit rating for the European Union, judging financial support by member countries as providing a strong backstop to its limited borrowing.
19.24 Greece is backing its Mediterranean neighbour. In a statement, Greek government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou said it "supported and supports Cyprus's choices".
19.20 Meanwhile, the European Central Bank has said that it is willing to provide liquidity to Cyprus, as long as it's within the rules.
In a statement, the ECB said:
The ECB takes note of the decision of the Cypriot parliament and is in contact with its Troika partners. The ECB reaffirms its commitment to provide liquidity as needed within the existing rules.
19.14 While Mats Persson at think-tank Open Europe has outlined four possible scenarios for the "what now?" dilemma in his latest blog:
Cyprus blinks: After some face-saving tweaks, but with a depositor levy of some sort remaining in place, another parliamentary vote is held and Cyprus approves the deal. The stakes are simply too high.
The eurozone blinks: Amid fears that a Cypriot exit from the euro will trigger widespread contagion, Germany and other Northern members might give Cyprus more flexible terms. But as German parties have said they won't vote on the deal until the Cypriots have passed it, will the Bundestag and the Finnish Parliament approve such an agreement? After all, the German government is reasonable in its basic demand: that German taxpayers shouldn't prop up a bloated financial sector dominated by Russian interests. Furthermore, will the ECB, which has been the most hawkish over Cyprus, withdraw liquidity for Cypriot banks as it has threatened?
Cyprus pursues 'other plans': President Anastasiades suggested today that his government is making 'other plans'. It's not clear what those are, but as we have long noted, additional rescue cash from Russia remains one option. Other options include a financial transaction tax or plans to convert deposits into deposit certificates with fixed long term maturities. But there are numerous problems with these options.
Cyprus goes down: No compromise can be found and Cyprus runs out of cash. The two largest Cypriot banks would go without recapitalisation and could see their liquidity assistance (sanctioned by the ECB via the Bank of Cyprus) cut off, leading to insolvency and collapse. In turn, this would put the €30bn of insured deposits at risk, since the government would not be able to guarantee such a figure. Combined, this would bring down the Cypriot financial system. With the financial sector close to or in the process of collapsing, and no support to be had from the eurozone or ECB, Cyprus could even be forced to ditch the euro and begin printing its own new currency. This currency would have little international trust and could lead to a spiral of hyperinflation and further political and economic chaos.
19.11 So should we panic, stuff more money under the mattress and run for the hills? Not yet, writes Kathleen Brooks at Forex.com:
All is not lost, there are a few last ditch attempts that could pull the island-nation back from the brink of bankruptcy:
1. The EU could re-negotiate a bailout with less onerous terms, which would then stand a better chance of being passed by the Cypriot government. The bank levy would have to be dropped, however it was only ever going to raise EUR 5 billion, small potatoes in Eurozone bailout terms…
2, The Cypriot finance minister has travelled to Russia (amid rumours of his resignation, since denied) accompanied by the country's energy minister. This could be to strike a deal with Moscow to receive cash in return for Russian access to Cypriot gas reserves. Apparently, Russian gas giant Rosneft has even declared its interest in funding Cyprus in return for licences to its gas fields.
While Russian money could help Cyprus to avoid bankruptcy, it could be the nail in the coffin for Nicosia's relationship with the rest of the EU. The next few days are unchartered territory for the currency bloc – a potential bailout funded by a foreign country, especially Russia, throws the whole currency bloc into jeopardy. What next – Brazil bails out Spain, New York chips in to save Italy?
19.01 Meanwhile, Germany has repeated its message of no levy, no bail-out.
Michael Meister, deputy parliamentary leader of Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union party, told Bloomberg that Cyprus's rejection of the bank levy was its "own decision" and that it would not support a programme if conditions were not met.
18.55 Talks will resume tomorrow. Here's a bit of reaction from the business Twitterati:
18.23 Apparently they voted with a show of hands.
18.16 So they voted after all. And surprise surprise, the bank levy bill has been defeated. There were 36 votes against, and 19 abstentions. One MP didn't even show up. Cyprus's parliament has 56 seats.
18.04 Michalis Sarris, Cyprus's finance minister, is definitely staying put. He's just sent Bloomberg a text message to say just that, the newswire reports.
17.52 More protest pics from Cyprus, courtesy of @A8anasios_S on Twitter:
17.43 Oh dear, I guess Mrs Merkel won't be booking that holiday to Paphos in a hurry:
17.39 Cyprus's finance minister has told Reuters that there is "not truth" to reports of his resignation.
16.29 More from AFP, which now says that although the Cypriot parliament has opened a session to vote, it is unclear whether any voting will take place as all parties - including the ruling party of President Anastasiades - have threatened to abstain.
16.18 The bailout vote is going ahead, even though it is doomed to fail (16.15). According to French news agency AFP, debate in the Cypriot parliament has just opened.
16.15 The party of Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades will abstain from taking part in a parliamentary vote on an EU bailout due to be held on Tuesday, a party member said.
The DISY party had unanimously decided not to take part in the vote because "it will strengthen the bargaining position of the Republic of Cyprus," Nicos Tornaritis told Sigma television.
The broadcaster also said that all other parties in the Cypriot parliament would abstain from voting for the bill meant to approve the controversial bailout deal that includes a levy on bank accounts.
15.58 The Telegraph's James Kirkup has just reported that the UK's Ministry of Defence has sent a plane carrying €1m in cash to Cyprus for British troops:
You can read his full story here.
15.54 Rumours are surfacing that the finance minister of Cyprus has resigned.
15.46 This picture has been tweeted by Theodora Oikonomides (@IrateGreek) showing Cyrpus police outside of the parliament.
15.30 Earlier (11.41) we reported that Nicos Anastasiades, Cypriot president, spoke to German chancellor Angela Merkel last night, when she urged him to negotiate only with the EU-IMF troika of lenders (by which we read not the Russians). Now a government spokesman has confirmed the pair will be revisiting talks this evening.
Meanwhile Mr Anastasiades' finance minister Michalis Sarris is on his way to Moscow to seek an extension to an existing €2.5bn loan from the former Soviet state, a top official told French news agency AFP. But could Mr Sarris be about to lose his job?
15.20 Protests have flared up in Nicosia again. The BBC's Mark Lowen tweeted a picture from the scene:
Source: Twitter
15.05 Former governor of the Cypriot central bank, Anthanasios Orphanides has launched an powerful rebuke towards Cyprus's European creditors, branding their actions tantamount to blackmail. Speaking to Bloomberg TV, he said:
We are witnessing historic times. What we're witnessing is the slow death of the European project. We are in a situation where some European governments are essentially taking actions that are telling citizens of other member states they are not equal under the law.
What we have seen for the last few days is a very serious blunder by European governments that essentially are blackmailing the government of Cyprus to confiscate the money that belongs rightfully to depositors in the banking sector in Cyprus.
The way the strongest governments of Europe have blackmailed the Cypriot government to confiscate deposits is essentially sending a message that no-one with deposits in a small country like Luxembourg should feel safe about their deposits. No-one with deposits in a weak country, like Spain, should feel safe about deposits.
Decisions like this, much like the decision to haircut Greek debt in October 2011, actually benefit some countries. For example as we've seen from markets yesterday a decision like this reduces the financing costs for the German government so the German government can now borrow at negative rates as a result while it inflicts pain on other countries. Not everybody is equal under the law the way European governments are behaving these days.
This is why I worry about the future of Europe.
Watch him here:
14.35 While we weren't looking, the legisation around the ECB's "single supervisory mechanism" - its direct supervision of the 200-or-so largest EU banks and the right to intervene at the first sign of trouble in the other 6,000 - reached a milestone.
Ireland, current chair of the European Council, struck a provisional agreement with the European Parliament in a deal that will pave the way towards full banking union in the bloc. It now goes to individual member states for minor tweaks before it gains the final stamp of approval.
However, a senior eurozone diplomat told Reuters earlier that the timing is somwhat unfortunate, with Cyprus complicating the future of the project.
Cyprus is only going to make it more complicated.
It raises a whole new set of issues. A loss for depositors is not just a hypothetical question any more.
The ECB in Frankfurt, which is set to massively expand its supervisory reach from mid-2014
14.10 Eurozone officials have repeatedly come out to say the situation in Cyprus is unique, and that other nations have nothing to fear from similar treatment. Now Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the Dutch finance minister who heads Eurogroup, has added his voice to the chorus. Addressing the Dutch parilament, he said:
It is absolutely out of the question, there is no need for a one-off levy in other countries on assets.
13.58 US markets have opened up this afternoon. The Dow Jones cilmbed 0.37pc in early trading, while the S&P 500 edged up 0.17pc and the Nasdaq rose 0.34pc. Meanwhile the FTSE 100 has returned to positive territory, up 0.11pc this afternoon, although other European stocks remain subdued.
13.22 Stories are flying around the Greek and Cypriot media that the vote could be further postponed. Greek news website ekathimerini reports that Mr Anastasiades will now meet with party leaders on Wednesday morning to thrash out new plans on the bank levy, abandoning attempts to pass it through parliament on Tuesday afternoon, citing Greek TV networks NET and Mega.
12.55 Our diplomatic correspondent Alex Spillius argues that Angela Merkel may have unwittingly played into Russia's hands.
In an election year, Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, was determined to impose the bank levy to avoid her taxpayers bailing out Russians who used Cyprus as a safe haven for their allegedly ill-gotten gains.
It could prove a major miscalculation. The Germans and the European Central Bank could yet be forced to back down and cancel the levy altogether, rather than merely reduce the onus on smaller deposit holders.
Some analysts have raised the intriguing and alarming prospect that Russia could threaten Germany's gas supply if the bailout is not dramatically reshaped. Moscow has form here. Gazprom reduced gas supplies to Europe in 2009 during a dispute with an Ukrainian energy company. Europe relies on Russia for 36 percent of its gas supply, a dependency we may hear more about in the coming days.
Read his whole piece here.
12.45 What will happen if parliament blocks the bill on bank levies? Think tank Open Europe predicts that the island's membership of the eurozone could be thrown into doubt. Here is its analysis (emphasis ours):
The eurozone would likely give Cyprus a few days either to change its mind or come up with an alternative way of financing the €5.8bn. Another parliamentary vote could be held (the EU of course has form when it comes to demanding the 'correct' vote).
The ECB has already reportedly warned that rejecting a levy would have dire consequences. Specifically, the two largest Cypriot banks would go without recapitalisation and could see their liquidity from the ELA (sanctioned by the ECB via the Bank of Cyprus) cut off, leading to them becoming insolvent and collapsing – putting their €30bn of deposits at risk, since the government obviously cannot guarantee them. This would likely bring down most if not the entire Cypriot financial system.
With the financial sector close to or in the process of collapsing and no support forthcoming from the eurozone or ECB, since Cyprus rejected their terms, Cyprus could even be forced to leave the eurozone and begin printing its own new currency, one that would have little international trust and could lead to a spiral of hyperinflation, etc, etc (i.e. a very nasty scenario).
There is, of course, a chance that if faced with the prospect of Cyprus leaving the euro, the rest of the eurozone could blink and find an alternative way to bailout Cyprus but the politics of such a scenario would get very ugly indeed. The ECB may not follow through on its threat to withdraw liquidity for Cypriot banks but this would only be a temporary reprieve. The Cypriot government will run out of cash at the start of June when it needs to pay off a €1.4bn bond, while the banks' position could be worsened by the likely deposit outflows once banks open, even if the tax is not applied.
12.31 Nicos Anastasiades, Cypriot president, has predicted that the draft bill will be voted down by parliament, while also alluding to an alternative plan brewing behind the scenes. He told reporters:
The feeling I'm having is that the house is going to reject it.
They feel it is against the interests of Cyprus at large.
We have our own plans but I have to admit it was something not expected by the troika or by our friends in the Eurogroup.
What could the government's "own plans" entail? Think tank Open Europe reckons that help from Russia could well be a possibility. Other options on the table are a financial transaction tax, which has been widely rejected by Cyprus, and a plan to convert deposits into deposit certificates with fixed long term maturities - essentially bonds.
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades makes statements as he leaves the parliament on Monday. Credit: Reuters
12.22 Italian news channel Rai is reporting that the Cyprus parliamentary vote is to be pushed back again.
12.00 Incidentally, an EU-Russia summit between EU Commissioners and the Russian government is scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday. On the agenda is trade, energy cooperation, transport and mobility. Will the meeting be hijacked by talk of Cyprus? The FT's Peter Spiegel thinks so.
A sign on a storefront advertises the location of a Russian product store in Nicosia, Cyprus, on Tuesday. Credit: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg
11.45 Yuri Botiuk, head of the Russia and Ukraine desk at law firm Pinset Masons, explains why the stakes are so high for Russia.
If approved, the levy would have a particular impact on Russian businesses and savers. Both corporate and private savers have deposited substantial amounts in Cypriot banks since the collapse of the USSR in 1991.
According to the BBC, Russian banks alone had placed $12bn in Cypriot banks at the end of 2012, with corporate deposits at $19bn.
These figures grow larger when savings from across the other former Soviet Union Republics (Ukraine, Kazakhstan etc) are taken into account.
11.41 European lenders are evidently nervous about the possibility of Russian involvement in a Cyprus bailout deal. French news agency AFP reports that Angela Merkel, German chancellor, stressed that Cyprus only hold talks with the EU-ECB-IMF troika of creditors, in a call with Mr Anastasiades yesterday evening.
Angela Merkel seems nervous that Cyprus will turn to Russia for an alternative to the EU-IMF bailout
11.24 The Russians, who were left out of the loop on Cypriot bailout talks despite an agreement to co-ordinate actions on Cyprus, have spoken out against the plans again, after president Vladimir Putin branded the bank levy "dangerous and unfair" yesterday. Vladimir Chizhov, Russia's envoy to the EU, likened the levy to "forceful expropriation", saying it risked precipitating a collapse of the island's banking system.
Earlier (07.47), we reported that Mr Anastasiades is likely to meet with Mr Putin today.
Nearly half of all deposits held in Cypriot banks is held by non-residents, a significant proportion of whom are Russian, and yesterday Anton Silluanov, the Russian finance minister, threatened to withdraw financial aid - via restructuring an outstanding €2.5bn loan between Moscow and Nicosia - after being left out of talks. Full story here.
11.13 The Greeks, whose own banking crisis hit Cyprus lenders hard, are getting involved, according to Hellenic news website ekathimerini.
10.41 Lagarde, while voicing her backing of the Cypriot government's draft bill abandoning the levy payment for deposits under €20,000 (10.30), has made clear her stance on any digression from the overall bailout commitments.
It's time to deliver.
10.35 Marshall Gittler, head of global FX strategy at IronFX, has pointed out that movements in the currency markets should not be attributed to Cyprus alone:
The fuss over Cyprus has caused the market to forget that there is an FOMC meeting today and tomorrow. Expectations for Federal funds have come down about 10 basis points (0.1pc) from their highs, which is making it difficult for the dollar to rally further. The UK budget tomorrow and the possible change in the Bank of England's remit may also bring the 'currency wars' back into focus.
10.30 Christine Lagarde, head of the IMF - one of Cyprus's troika of lenders - has trumpeted her support of the draft bill scrapping the levy on deposits up to €20,000. She has also called for a restructure and shrinking of the banking sector on the island.
Christine Lagarde, head of the IMF, one of Cyprus's troika of lenders
10.17 Could the draft bill be doomed to fail? Our Brussels correspondent Bruno Waterfield reckons the new arrangement would create a funding gap in the order of €400m. We've already seen that any shortfall on the €5.8bn will fail to satisfy Cyprus' international lenders.
10.01 Cyprus central bank chief Panicos Demetriades has warned parliament that the island's banks will lose 10pc of their deposit base within days if the draft bill passes, and urged it to consider extending the levy-free rate all the way up to €100,000, which is the ECB's preference.
He also said the measures in the draft legislation will fail to raise the €5.8bn required to supplement the troika's €10bn bail out.
Cyprus Central Bank chief Panicos Demetriades, right, leaves the meeting with president Nicos Anastasiades on Sunday. Credit: AP
09.40 Reuters have reported that the Cypriot government has submitted draft bill to parliament scrapping a controversial levy on bank deposits up to €20,000.
The draft, seen by Reuters, sets a zero percent levy on deposits of up to €20,000 euros, a 6.75pc rate for amounts between €20,000 and €100,000 euros and maintains a 9.9pc tax on all deposits above that level.
09.34 A PricewaterhouseCoopers paper from December reported that 4,900 of Cyprus's 18,000 financial services workers deal with 'international clients'. Sarah Butcher at eFinancial Careers has pointed out that these individuals could find themselves without a job should a bank levy on large deposits spark a flight from the island's banks by foreign customers.
09.27 French finance minister Pierre Moscovici, whose comments we mentioned earlier (08.18), also told reporters that the eurozone "unanimously" agreed to bin the one-time levy on bank deposits below €100,000, a move which he says he pleaded for "right from the start." He said the Eurogroup gathered yesterday evening to address the "confusion" that followed Saturday's announcement of the Cyprus bail out and bank levy deal.
09.19 Meanwhile in Cyprus, it seems banks are still filling up their ATMs although all branches are closed. Channel Four's Faisal Islam is tweeting from the island:
09.08 Rumour has it Angela Merkel is feeling the political ramifications of the Cypriot bank levy.
09.05 Cyprus's defence minister Fotis Fotiou has told Skai TV the debate, let alone the vote, may not happen today. He's also said the government is working on "Plan B", within an hour of French finance minister Pierre Moscovici categoricallly stating there is no Plan B for the island.
09.00 Ratings agency Fitch has placed Cyprus's banks on negative watch.
Bank of Cyprus, Cyprus Popular Bank and Hellenic Bank on Rating Watch Negative "to reflect downside rating risks arising from the deliberations to impose losses onto the banks' depositors," Fitch said in a statement.
08.39 Alistair Darling, former Chancellor, has been on Radio Four's Today programme, where he fiercely criticised the Cypriot bank levy plan.
They have actually now said to people 'We will come after your deposits, no matter how small your savings are' and that seems to me to make it more likely that, if you are a saver in Spain or in Italy, for example, and you have just the sniff of the EU or the IMF coming your way, you will take your money out and you will get a run on the bank.
So what they are doing is everything you shouldn't do when you are trying to solve a problem like this.
I've got precious little sympathy with Russians or anybody else who happen to be parking their money in a Cypriot bank because nobody's really looking at it closely but the way to sort that out is to grab hold of these banks, to do the restructuring you need and to tighten up the controls that are singularly lacking in some of these countries.
Alistair Darling, who was chancellor under Gordon Brown, has slammed the Cypriot bail out
08.31 It looks like today's parliamentary vote is set to go ahead, despite rumours yesterday it could be pushed back for a third time.
08.18 Meanwhile, our man in Brussels Bruno Waterfield is unimpressed with Pierre Moscovici, French finance minister, who has said the Cyprus bailout broke a "taboo" by taxing small deposits.
Mr Moscovici this morning told reporters he was in favour of scrapping the levy on deposits below €100,000 but that the eurozone cannot increase its side of the bailout above €10bn, meaning the island must nonethless raise its €5.8bn through levying larger deposit holders. He said Cyprus would have inevitably gone bankrupt without EU action and called for more transparency in the Cyprus banking system.
Above €10bn we are entering into a size of debt that is not sustainable.
Pierre Moscovici, French finance minister
08.13 The Guardian's Europe Editor Ian Traynor has neatly summarised the Cyprus situation in under 140 characters.
08.05 European markets have just opened, all extending yesterday's losses though not nearly as dramatically as on Monday morning.
The FTSE 100 is down 0.42pc, the DAX has fallen 0.29pc and the CAC slid 0.36pc. Madrid's IBEX and Milan's MIB, the two exchanges which posted the deepest losses yesterday, slipped 0.33pc and 0.31pc in opening trade respectively.
07.55 The global banking group that led negotiations for Greece's private debt write-down last year has weighed in with a warning that the Cyprus arrangement sets a "dangerous precedent".
Tim Adams, managing director of the Institute of International Finance, said the plan had reignited concerns over the eurozone crisis. He told Reuters:
Crossing the Rubicon of addressing insured deposits and undermining the explicit guarantee - you can call it a tax or whatever you want - but essentially the broken guarantee opens up lots of different possibilities for destabilizing effects in the short term, medium term and long term.
The next time there is a crisis in any one of these countries, depositors are going to ask themselves, why am I going to stick around to see if the same set of rules are applied or not? I do think it is an incredibly dangerous precedent, without question.
07.47 Mr Anastasiades appealed to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and EU economic affairs commissioner Olli Rehn for additional help on Monday evening, his spokesman told state radio. The spokesman told the broadcaster that while the Cypriot president was ready to honour the agreed terms of the bailout, he wanted more support from his EU partners.
The spokesman also said Mr Anastasiades was likely to talk to Russian president Vladimir Putin later today.
A float featuring papier-maché caricatures of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President of Cyprus Nikos Anastasiadis is seen during a carnival parade in Limassol. Credit: Yiannis Kourtoglou/AFP/Getty Images
07.40 The Cyprus Stock Exchange, which trades shares totalling around €600,000 and around €40,000 worth of bonds, has announced it will suspend trade on Tuesday and Wednesday while banks remained shut pending a final decision on the terms of Cyprus's bailout.
The bourse said in a statement its decision was taken to ensure the smooth functioning of the exchange and to protect investors.
07.30 Chief Business Correspondent Louise Armitstead meanwhile argues the Cypriot bailout "has threatened to scuttle the island, the global recovery and even the euro project itself."
It's a measure of the mishandling that this drop of an economy, just 1.1m people and 0.2pc of eurozone GDP, has been able to trigger such a tsunami.
The timing couldn't be worse. Italy, the eurozone's third biggest economy, is in political limbo while Portugal and Spain are languishing in a deep economic slump. Over the next week, Greece, Spain, Portugal and Italy are planning to tap the bondmarkets for much needed cash.
The Cypriot vote to approve the deal has been delayed, apparently while some radical changes are made. It's a waiting game for savers whose money remains locked in Cypriot banks until at least Thursday. Investors in Cyrprus and the EU may not be so patient.
Read her full analysis here.
07.25 Jeremy Warner has argued that the Cypriot haircut is nothing compared with the sufferings of British depositors, whose savings have been eroded through currency devaluation.
Don't suppose that being outside the euro has spared British savers the same injustice. In many respects, the damage has been worse, undermining the nation's wealth much more comprehensively than the comparatively minor haircut Europe is attempting to impose on Cyprus. It's just that the British haircut is being done in a different and more subtle way.
Rewind to the Northern Rock crisis in the autumn of 2007, and the UK government made a number of commitments to protect depositors. Alistair Darling, then UK Chancellor, gave an unqualified taxpayer guarantee to all Northern Rock deposits. The prime minister, Gordon Brown, later promised that not a single UK depositor would lose money in the wider banking crisis.
In terms of the nominal, sterling value of deposits, they spoke the truth – well, sort of, for Britain imposed its own version of Cyprus's deposit tax some years ago in the form of the banking levy, which is a charge, albeit a very small one, on wholesale deposits. British savers have also been persistently leached through low interest rates to pay for the bad debts of the boom.
Yet the main difference is that in Britain the damage to savings has been external, through currency devaluation, rather than as proposed for tiny little Cyprus, internal. This has had a devastating impact on the relative worth of British savings.
Read his whole piece here.
07.09 Yesterday we followed Financial Secretary to the Treasury Greg Clark's session before the Commons, where he answered questions on the Cypriot bailout. We noted he seemed to be in "wait-and-see" mode, reluctant to make any firm commitments before knowing the final shape of the bailout deal. He also told MPs the Treasury would only cover "reasonable losses" incurred by British service personnel in Cyprus. Here's Deputy Political Editor James Kirkup's full story.
06.50 Here is the full text of the Eurogroup statement, issued after its emergency conference call on Monday evening.
The Eurogroup held a teleconference this evening to take stock of the situation in Cyprus.
I recall that the political agreement reached on 16 March on the cornerstones of the adjustment programme and the financing envelope for Cyprus reflects the consensus reached by the Cypriot government with the Eurogroup. The implementation of the reform measures included in the draft programme is the best guarantee for a more prosperous future for Cyprus and its citizens, through a viable financial sector, sound public finances and sustainable economic growth.
I reiterate that the stability levy on deposits is a one-off measure. This measure will - together with the international financial support - be used to restore the viability of the Cypriot banking system and hence, safeguard financial stability in Cyprus. In the absence of this measure, Cyprus would have faced scenarios that would have left deposit holders significantly worse off.
The Eurogroup continues to be of the view that small depositors should be treated differently from large depositors and reaffirms the importance of fully guaranteeing deposits below EUR 100.000. The Cypriot authorities will introduce more progressivity in the one-off levy compared to what was agreed on 16 March, provided that it continues yielding the targeted reduction of the financing envelope and, hence, not impact the overall amount of financial assistance up to EUR 10bn.
The Eurogroup takes note of the authorities' decision to declare a temporary bank holiday in Cyprus on 19-20 March 2013 to safeguard the stability of the financial sector, and urges a swift decision by the Cypriot authorities and parliament to rapidly implement the agreed measures.
The euro area Member States stand ready to assist Cyprus in its reform efforts on the basis of the agreed adjustment programme.
Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the Dutch finance minister who took over as president of the Euro Gorup in January
06.40 Meanwhile in the currency markets the euro hovered near a three month low against the dollar, trading at $1.29400, though it did recoup some losses following the Eurogroup statement.
06.30 Overnight, Asian markets recovered after a knee-jerk reaction to the controversial Cyprus bailout which saw more than 2pc wiped of both the Nikkei in Tokyo and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index in Monday trading. The Nikkei rebounded 2pc on Tuesday, regaining most of its lost ground from the previous session. The Hang Seng posted a small loss of 0.06pc.
06.00 Good morning. Cyprus left us on tenterhooks last night as it failed to reach a revised deal on the bank levy accompanying its €10bn bailout from the EU, ECB and IMF troika of lenders. However, the direction of travel seems to be towards a lower rate, or even exemption for savers with €20,000 or less in deposit, a cut-off favoured by Cypriot MPs. The Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers want this to go further, with an exemption for deposit holders up to €100,000, the amount guaranteed under EU law. Cyprus must nonetheless raise the same figure, €5.8bn, from the bank levy, the Eurogroup insisted, meaning a proportionately higher cut from larger deposits of 15.6pc.
A parliamentary vote which was initially due to be held on Sunday was pushed back to Monday, which in turn was postponed until this afternoon. Reports suggest this could be subject to even further delay, and whatever happens, Cypriot banks are to stay closed until Thursday.
In any case, it far from clear that Nicos Anastasiades, Cypriot president, will win parliamentary backing for the measures, since his DISI party holds only 20 seats in a 56-seat house. His coalition partners, DIKO, which holds eight seats, were poised to vote against the savings levy in its current terms, according to state-run station CYBC. Akel with 19 seats, and Edek with 5 seats, have already indicated they will oppose the bill. That only leaves the Green party, with one seat, EUROKO, with two seats, and one independent candidate who are yet to show their hands. It's going to be a nail-biter.
Meanwhile, even the US Treasury Department has issued a statement on Cyprus. It said:


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Last week, we were inclined to say this plane was simply a Hondgu L-15 trainer jet being transported accross China via a flatebed truck. Some readers were skeptical, saying that it looked more like the stealth F-60 that China's Shenyang aircraft-maker is rumored to be building. Well, new pics emerged over the weekend that show an aircraft that has us rethinking our initial call.
As you can see from these new pics, it appears that the mystery jet has air intakes that do indeed resemble those shown on a mock up of the F-60 (see below), it's wing flaps also seem t resemble the F-60, and the cockpit, well, you be the judge.
Click through the jump to see an overhead view of the mystery jet that also resembles the F-60 as well as a picture of a model F-60 that strongly resembles a smaller version of an F-22 Raptor (with different air intakes and engine nozzles, etc.) I'm not even gonna say it.
If this veiled jet really is the F-60 (it could be another airplane or just a large mock up of the F-60), China might be on track to to reveal two new types of stealth fighters in less than two years.
H/t to China Defense and The DEW Line.


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Next Episode of Profiel is
Profiel is a Dutch program that describes the life biographies of major domestic and foreign persons.
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In response to: Former UCAN boss faces trouble at home
U-T Watchdog needs a Watchdog!
Your persistent accusations against ex-UCAN founder Michael Shames smacks of a witch-hunt.
Your latest criticism regarding his community homeowners association reaches a new low.
The fact that his current homeowners fees are only $195 per month should be lauded rather than criticized. Every homeowner's association has unhappy owners -- why does this one make front page of Local news? I served with Michael Shames on a homeowners board association for a condominium complex for many years . Michael was the most conscientious and effective board president who ever served there. He was instrumental in maintaining our low monthly fee, in securing a high reserve fund and ensuring that all of the maintenance and repairs etc. were being properly done without any compromise.
All the UCAN accusations against Shames have continually been unsubstantiated, yet are repeated over and over in the U-T.
Ironically, Michael is actually one of those good guys who dedicated his life to being a real Watchdog looking after the little guy.
Ellen Sacks
La Jolla
View the Video Watchdog Minute: Trouble at home
- Utility action group disbanding amid probe
- Intrigue surrounds utility group spat
- Fissures formed a year ago for UCAN
- Boss bonuses at UCAN totaled $249,000
- UCAN settlement would allow group to go on
- New leader at action group after turmoil
- Consumers group endangered again
- UCAN boss prepared an out, had side businesses
- More activity in federal UCAN probe
- UCAN demands $474K from ex-boss
- Utility group transaction under scrutiny
- Shames sues UCAN for libel
- UCAN fires back at former director


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Searching for Entrepreneurs?
In his book The Rise of the Creative Class, Richard Florida, an author and public intellectual (remember when there were so many public intellectuals! Milton Friedman, Christopher Hitchens and Dr. Spock? There are only like six of them left now, and, Cornel West and Tom Friedman are three of them) wrote about the function that cities have had in the rapid growth of an economy based on creativity.
One of the arguments that Florida makes is that the notion of creativity does not just involve a musical tribute to organized labor or a dude with a Tumblr blog in the style of Picasso. It's one that has strong ramifications on business and the entrepreneurial class. Inspired, intellectually active communities are often the ones that generate inspired ideas for business (think: San Francisco) – although, he added in a recent column in The Atlantic, cities that are closely tied to the financial industry aren't necessarily the ones that are best able to support thriving arts economies (think: Hong Kong).
So how does that relate to the beverage business? Not necessarily directly – after all, much of the beverage industry is outsourced to factories that manufacture either centrally or regionally and then redistribute their production to wider areas. But on an entrepreneurial level there is an interesting relationship. In communities like Brooklyn, N.Y., and Santa Monica, Calif. (and closer to home, in Somerville, Mass. and Burlington, Vt.), there are thriving colonies of entrepreneurial food and beverage producers, some of whom have created viable businesses that eventually emerged from smaller channels to become crossover hits. Even those companies with larger scale facilities are often keeping the creative side at home, working on branding and sales strategy centrally, proximate to their creative 'hood.
But those aren't the only areas for success, particularly when it comes to consumer products. We find that there are plenty of products coming from strongly agricultural areas like dairies and farms. Old beverage hand Greg Steltenpohl recently started up a brand new juice project for Califia Farms in California's Central Valley, while I also was the proud recipient of a "Farm to Bottle" alcoholic's starter kit from Bone Spirits, which is a small producer in Smithville, Texas.
So it would seem that proximity to sourcing is also a way of stimulating creativity for food and beverage entrepreneurs. Certainly there are many cases of restaurateurs growing up "on the farm" and deciding to take their backgrounds in a new, but related direction.
The reason I was thinking about this is that my last trip to Natural Products Expo East in Baltimore showed the gathering to function as a kind of magnet for creative food and beverage enterprises in the mid-Atlantic region. Not only were the established companies there, but also a lot of just-getting started entrepreneurs who weren't buying tables but were walking the floor, networking, showing exciting ideas that weren't yet ready to move beyond a small, local circle. When we hold a BevNET Live in New York or Santa Monica, we see a similar local weighting – yes, people come to an event near them because it's more logical than spending an arm and a leg on travel, but there's also something about having an opportunity that's local that can lay bare a thriving group.
I recently spoke with Doug Rauch, the former President of Trader Joe's, who told me that when he was bringing that company to the East Coast, he looked for neighborhood locations not by income, but by educational level, as the places to site new stores. There is a thriving demand in areas where better-educated consumers live to try new products and different flavors, Rauch told me, and with Trader Joe's' focus on new, trendy, and global flavors, when he found those high grade point average locations, the stores succeeded. And we are all familiar with the local foraging programs at forward thinking retailers like Whole Foods, as well.
The point isn't so much that one should look at specific neighborhoods or agricultural communities to determine where to find the next big hit. The point is that where there's one, there's usually more than one. Communities are like that.


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Obituary: John Stofanik
John Stofanik passed away on January 26, 2014
John was born in Detroit, Michigan January 24, 1959. the family moved to Lake Tahoe the summer of 1974. John graduated from South Lake Tahoe High, class of 1977. He was an avid outdoorsman, enjoying skiing, hiking and snowmobiling. His greatest joy was boating on Lake Tahoe. For many years John owned and operated Monks Pizza which he took over from his parents.
John went from the Pizza business to ocean sailing. He crewed races from San Diego to Mexico and crossed the Atlantic. His pride and joy was his Islander 36. John's love of the sea led him to new adventures as a Merchant Marine. As a Merchant Marine he traveled around the world.
John is survived by his parents, John and Bernadine Stofanik, Sisters, Rosalie, Christine and Sue, brother-in-laws, nieces, nephews and many friends.
Services will be held Saturday, February 1, 2014 at 11:00 am, Our Lady of Tahoe Parish, Elk Point Rd., Zephyr Cove, NV.


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Our prices include the renting of one nest for 1 or 2 adults for one night with heating, electricity and breakfast.
Our basis price include also bathroom linen and the making of the bed for two adults.
Look at the calendar in the page called Booking, taking on board the seasons.
BLUE rate in high season at 199 € inc. / 219 € Saturday Nigth & HOLLIDAYS (BLUE SQUARES ON THE CALENDAR in the page BOOKING, mainly weekends and holidays), rate for two adults in one treehouse (except treehouse number 3, 8, 9 and 10 "Deluxe" + 100 €).
GREEN rate in low season (GREEN SQUARES), at 159 € inc. per night and per treehouse (except treehouse number 3, 8,9 and 10 "Deluxe" + 100 €)
Tourist tax : 0.22 € per adult and per night moreover.
And if there are more than two adults ?
Family advantage : housing and breakfast are free for children in the family treehouses (1 to 3 children under 14 years old, without extra*). You have to bring a sleeping bag, a pillowcase and a bath towel per child.
If there is one person who has more than 14 years old moreover : 39€ extra per adult per night (49 € for the treehouse number 8 and 9 "Deluxe"), with a breakfast for one adult included, bathroom linen provided and beds made.
Sauna extra (8 € per adult, 4€per child older than 8 years old). Ready-made meals hot or cold in extra delivered, family treehouses with equiped kitchen (for 2-people treehouses with an oven).
It's possible to book all the treehouses at the same time (seminary, groups...), Please contact us.
Offer for a week stay, to specify according to the dates : Please contact us.
The maximum capacity of the Nests can be overtaken of 1 person in some nests exceptionally, only with a writting agreement of the Nids des Vosges. The welcomming of one person more (child or adult) leads to a lack of comfort accepted by the customer and an extra of 39 € per night (or 49 € for the treehouse number 3, 8 and 9 Deluxe) per night and breakfast.
Attention, pets are not accepted. It's possible to look after in the area, please contact www.animaute.fr
(*) extra for the 4th child : 39 € per night (or 49 € in the treehouse Deluxe).
You can check general conditions and the charter of the treehouses.


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Artist description:
Another Abstract from my own imagination.
Java Draw Created Jun 06, 2012 640 x 460px Unless noted Copyright 2012 Whitemorn.
We encourage you to submit a comment and let the artist know what you think of this drawing. Please log in or join to post a comment.
Post a comment
very cool!
I'm totally psyched over this cool mind bending piece of awesome art,,, love the color and hues you used,,, the technique is super suave, it has a tranquil feel to it,, can you say collector!
Beatiful colours !!! :)
great abstract!! looks very unique :D 5/5
Great art work 5 hearts
awesome abstract ! 5♥s
Very nice drawing!
so cool. It really looks organic.
Awwwwesome abstract! :D 5 hearts for sure!
very coool abstract! 5 hearts~


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Colorado's frosh defensive ends impress veteran Tupou
BOULDER — Some Colorado football observers had to be surprised when a true freshman defensive end, Christian Shaver, trotted onto the field with the first-team unit during Saturday's scrimmage.
Shaver was given the opportunity in part because of injuries to defensive ends Tyler Henington and Derek McCartney. But CU could have started others instead of Shaver.
A 6-foot-3, 235-pounder, Shaver only had been rated two stars (out of five) by recruiting websites last winter after earning all-region honors at Jordan High School in Sandy, Utah, in 2013.
However, CU junior defensive tackle Josh Tupou said he wasn't surprised when Shaver's name was called Saturday with the first unit. Tupou said he has been impressed with Shaver.
Read more…


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|Cos Cob, Conn.
|High School:
|Libero/Outside Hitter
|House Affiliation:
Junior • 2011
Had eight kills and seven digs in wins over Newbury and Endicott ... Had 12 digs in 3-0 win over Stevens Tech Feb. 12 ... Recorded 18 digs in 3-2 win over Princeton March 5 ... Played in 71 of 84 games, averaging 1.80 digs per game.
Sophmore • 2010
Played in 19 sets at the beginning of the season … Tallied 41 digs and two assists on the year … Recorded a season-high 19 digs and handed out an assist at Endicott (Jan. 29) … Dished out an assist against Baruch (Feb. 4).
Freshman · 2009
Played in 14 matches, appearing in 30 sets ... Led the team with an average of 1.90 digs per set ... Posted five digs in each of the first two matches of his career at East Stroudsburg Feb. 14 and against Newbury Feb. 17 ... Had a kill and eight digs at East Stroudsburg March 14 ... Upped his career high with nine digs March 29 at Sacred Heart ... Had four digs and two assists at George Mason April 22.
Before Harvard
Four-year outside hitter on the varsity volleyball team ... Also fenced junior and senior seasons ... Team captain in volleyball junior and senior years and in fencing senior year ... All-Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference second-team senior year and honorable mention junior season ... Team MVP junior and senior seasons ... Fencing MVP senior year ... Holds the school record for digs and kills in a career ... Earned departmental awards in English and chemistry ... Yale Book Award recipient ... Wendy's High School Heisman Cardinal Prize in Mathematics ... Participated in Red Cross Safe Rides ... Assistant sports director of the Boys and Girls Club ... Peer mathematics tutor.
Before Harvard
Enjoys ping pong and is a fan of the New York Giants ... Cousin, James, was a high school All-American in cross country.


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+ More
Makro's dedication to innovation, research and technology has altered the way we think about modern bathrooms. Established in the mid 1990's, the leading Italian maestro designs and manufactures integrable bath concepts. Fusing a bathtub with a washbasin, or both with a shower into a harmonious whole makes for one of many spectacular yet highly functional environments.
Constructed of acrylic and EPS, Makro's over-mount and under-mount bathtubs come in captivating profiles that offer superior thermo and noise isolation. Airpool-jet systems and color-therapy options enhance the bathing experience tenfold. Whether made of steel or stone, their sinks command admiration from every angle with their architectural structure, and their slim-silhouette showers emanate luxurious elegance and convenience.
Product lines have been conceived to stand out on their own or complement each other to create truly exceptional spa-style sanctuaries. Completing package are storage solutions in the form of vanities, mirrored cabinets and compartments intelligently engineered to maximize space while enhancing aesthetics.


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Summer Camp
A well-supervised, engaging and enriching camp for Junior and Senior Campers
2019 Summer Camp Information Coming Soon
Our Learning Academy offers a thrilling summer camp experience for preschool and elementary aged children. Check back with us in 2019 to see what we offer our families in the community – a Day Camp your child will absolutely love.
Our Most Recent Summer Camp
2018 summer camp "rocked the world!"
Kids 'R' Kids launched this Summer Camp designed to teach kids that they are an important part of the global community. With a different "world" to explore each week using STEAM strategies and hands-on activities, kids explored all the things our world has to offer – with loads of laughter and heaps of fun! They built confidence and discovered that one person no matter how big or small – CAN make a difference. And when we work together, there's NO LIMIT to the amazing things we can accomplish to ROCK THE WORLD!
Take a peek at last year's camp!
The fun doesn't stop here! Join us for year around excitement with our Before and After School Program with anticipation of our 2019 Summer Camp coming soon.


text: This has taken me forever, but in between orders i have been playing with a few knives. Have had a bunch of crazy stuff going on in my life and am ready to get back to it!! I am almost caught up on all of my orders(If you have knives on order, I will have them hopefully all done by the end of next week!), and get to play! So here is what everyone reading this wants to see! First, a 1,137,168 layer billet from the guys at HHH. Specs are as follow. 270 Gyuto(263 on edge) 1,137,168 layers of 1095,1080 and 15n20 at a 61rc. 51mm tall at the heel. Spine thickness is 3.2mm tapering to a very fine point. Handle is Desert ironwood burl, black spacer and musk ox ferrule. Dimensions are 152mm long, front: 19/23mm butt: 26/29mm Weight is 285 grams Price is $1300 plus shipping Next up is a 240 Sujihiki(236mm on edge) One off pattern of O-1/L6 steel at a 62rc. 36mm tall at the heel Spine thickness is 2.3mm tapering to a very fine point. Tip is very thin. Handle is Mark's super high grade koa with a ferrule of hippo ivory Dimensions are 139mm long, Front:18/23mm, Rear 21/25mm Weight is 168 grams. Price is $1100 plus shipping. Next up is a 165 deba(168mm on edge) in 52100 at 61rc. 49mm tall at the heel Spine thickness is 4.8mm Handle is Macassar ebony,mammoth ivory spacer and a spalted maple burl ferrule Handle dimensions are 136mm long, 19/23mm front and23/26mm rear. Weight is 289 grams. This was a test knife for me, and i really like it. I would have no hesitation to whack some big stuff with this!! It has a full urasuki grind and a very small micro bevel. The grain from the ivory is very visible and the ebony has a great chatoyance. Price is $450 plus shipping Thanks for looking and happy holidays!!! Mike


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Donald "Skip" Bickel, a 30-year marketing veteran of the van/truck conversion industry, passed away Jan. 26 following a year-long battle with cancer.
Bickel, 60, was instrumental in the successful startup of Advantage Corp., Goshen, Ind., and the restructuring of Alabama-based Kustom Kreations. He also owned Biarritz Motor Coach, Goshen, and Cruiser's Auto/Truck Outfitters, Naples, Fla.
Bickel is survived by his wife, Jane (Weldy), and daughter, Jessica Dallas of St. Augustine, Fla. Also surviving are a sister, Rebecca Bonham of South Bend, Ind.; brother John (Connie) Bickel of Syracuse, Ind.; and several nieces and nephews. Preceding him in death were his parents and a brother, Michael.
Bickel graduated from Goshen High in 1970 and attended Vincennes University.
A memorial service will be at 1 p.m. on Feb. 2 at Yoder-Culp Funeral Home. Memorial contributions may be directed to United Cancer Services of Elkhart County Inc. or Cass County Cancer Services.


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Benefit from our state-of-the-art, high availability (HA) architecture for your business continuity planning (BCP).


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Frontin' A LotThursday, December 11th, 2008
I had the opportunity this past Wednesday to enjoy a bit of a guilty pleasure. No, it isn't gambling or chocolate. It just happens to be Nerdcore. I've been a fan of a couple of prominent nerdcore hip hop artists for a while now, so when I got the chance to see one of my favorites live (courtesy of Ghostfreehood, who booked the show) I went well out of my way to get my nerd on.
MC Frontalot has been someone I've wanted to see live for a while now. I've been a fan of hip hop since I was a kid and lately it's taken something unique about an artist's sound to get me even remotely interested in them. There's a lot of generic hip hop out there (given a ridiculing by MC Lars' song Generic Crunk Rap), and I'm not a fan of a lot of it. Frontalot brings some funk/soul grooves to his sound that complements the flow of his rhymes.
Below is a sample, but check here to see the whole gallery of shots I took of the show.


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February 12-14, 2015 in Salt Lake City
22 August 2013 – Austin, TX. The Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) announced today that its 2015 National Conference will be held February 12-14, 2015, in Salt Lake City, Utah in conjunction with RootsTech, hosted by FamilySearch. RootsTech is held each February in Salt Lake City and helps thousands of attendees from around the world discover and share family connections, stories, and history.
With the Salt Palace Convention Center as the common venue, both FamilySearch and FGS are committed to producing a one-of-a-kind genealogy event addressing the educational needs of the family history, technology and genealogical society communities. As the logistics of this sizeable event are still being worked out, both FGS and FamilySearch will work together to share resources and provide cost benefits for all parties, including attendees and exhibitors. Attendees can expect to see familiar elements of previous FGS and RootsTech events including keynote presentations, a Society Showcase and Expo Hall.
Registration for both events will begin in August 2014, six months prior to the February 2015 dates. FGS will also hold a smaller national event for its members in late 2015, with details to be announced at a later date.
FGS President D. Joshua Taylor states, "FamilySearch has been a valued partner and sponsor for FGS during its past conferences. It only makes sense for both organizations to work together and produce what will be the most talked about genealogy events of 2015." Taylor added that such an event brings the best of RootsTech and FGS conferences together under one roof and will offer genealogists and family historians a wide array of activities and educational opportunities.
About the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS)
The Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) was founded in 1976 and represents the members of hundreds of genealogical societies. FGS links the genealogical community by helping genealogical societies strengthen and grow through resources available online, FGS Forum magazine (filled with articles pertaining to society management and genealogical news), and Society Strategy Series papers, covering topics about effectively operating a genealogical society. FGS also links the genealogical community through its annual conference -- four days of excellent lectures, including one full day devoted to society management topics. To learn more visit http://www.fgs.org.


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Looks like DaimlerChrysler's new mystery "Phoenix" engine, the higher-power and more-efficient version of the now-old 3.8 liter, may have found a roosting spot — Trenton, MI. The Detroit News is reporting UAW Local 372 agreed on Sunday to a set of new work rules designed to allow the workers of the Trenton Engine plant to keep their jobs. These new work rules are supposed to help the workers become a "flexible, nontraditional labor force." And by "flexible" the rules will require them to be able to bend over a full 90 degrees — and "nontraditional" meaning anyone can take them from behind, as long as DaimlerChrysler keeps jobs at the Trenton Engine plant. Actually it means they have to work four 10-hour days without overtime and with only two job classifications. Oh wait, we were wrong —the two classifications? Pitcher and Catcher.
Chrysler weighs modern factory [Detroit News]
More on Unions [internal]


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Thank you, Don!
2 months ago
A Blog detailing the insanity of my medical practice and the stupidity of everyday life.
I just don't get enough calls for naked women who "feel hot and agitated". I just don't.
I was once in a mall and suddenly a naked man ran past me. I did not see him attack any slushie machines, though. I don't think he was under the influence of any drugs, either - he was about 18 years old and I suspect he was streaking through the mall on a dare. It was pretty funny.
That's just so very, very sad. I feel terrible for her children who were waiting in the car.
Well, that one way to drop my habit of too many slushies. You don't know who's been messy with the stuff!
Little Calf Creamery. Delicious homemade ice cream and food in Thousand Oaks!


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Complex proteins in 3D thanks to simple heat-loving fungus
Model of the inner ring (green) of the nuclear pore, showing its components.
Credit: Heidelberg University Center of Biochemistry.
Please click on the image for a larger version.
A fungus that lives at extremely high temperatures could help understand structures within our own cells. Scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and Heidelberg University, both in Heidelberg, Germany, were the first to sequence and analyse the genome of a heat-loving fungus, and used that information to determine the long sought 3-dimensional structure of the inner ring of the nuclear pore. The study was published today in Cell.
The fungus Chaetomium thermophilum lives in soil, dung and compost heaps, at temperatures up to 60ºC. This means its proteins – including some which are very similar to our own – have to be very stable, and the Heidelberg scientists saw this stability as an advantage.
"There are a number of structures that we couldn't study before, because they are too unstable in organisms that live at more moderate temperatures," explains Peer Bork, who led the genome analysis at EMBL. "Now with this heat-loving fungus, we can."
The scientists compared the fungus' genome and proteome to those of other eukaryotes – organisms whose cells have a nucleus – and identified the proteins that make up the innermost ring of the nuclear pore, a channel that controls what enters and exits a cell's nucleus. Having identified the relevant building blocks, the scientists determined the complex 3D structure of that inner ring for the first time.
"This work shows the power of interdisciplinary collaborations," says Ed Hurt, who led the structural and biochemical analyses at Heidelberg University: "the nuclear pore is an intricate biological puzzle, but by combining bioinformatics with biochemistry and structural biology, we were able to solve this piece of it for the first time."
The scientists have made C. thermophilum's genome and proteome publicly available, and are confident that these will prove valuable for studying other eukaryotic structures and their interactions, as well as general adaptations to life in hot places. Such knowledge could potentially lead to new biotechnology applications.
Source Article
Amlacher, S., Sarges, P., Flemming, D., van Noort, V., Kunze, R., Devos, D.P., Arumugam, M., Bork, P. & Hurt, E. Insight into Structure and Assembly of the Nuclear Pore Complex by Utilizing the Genome of a Eukaryotic Thermophile. Cell, 22 July 2011.
Press Contact
Iris Kruijen
EMBL Press Officer, Meyerhofstraße 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
|+49 6221 387-8443
Mathias Jäger
EMBL Press Officer, Meyerhofstraße 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
|+49 6221 387-8726
Policy regarding use
Press and Picture Releases
EMBL press and picture releases including photographs, graphics, movies and videos are copyrighted by EMBL. They may be freely reprinted and distributed for non-commercial use via print, broadcast and electronic media, provided that proper attribution to authors, photographers and designers is made.


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Adobe Story is a new collaborative tool designed for writing scripts and screenplays and is a part of the new CS Live online services. Story includes a number of powerful productivity features including collaborative screenwriting, auto-completion tools, Adobe Premiere CS5 and OnLocation integration, scene tagging and many more.
Using Adobe Story, screenwriters have the option of either using a web browser or a desktop application powered by Adobe AIR to access the application.
The video demonstration below provides an excellent tutorial on Adobe Story including a demonstration of the AIR app. This is another stunning application of the types of advanced applications that can be built, in part, with Flash Player and AIR. Congratulations to the Adobe Story team for its public release of a terrific new tool!


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Once you have analyzed your local problem and established a baseline for measuring effectiveness, you should consider possible responses to address the problem. The following responses provide a foundation of ideas for addressing your particular pedestrian-vehicle crash problem. Several of these responses may be applicable to your communitys problem. It is critical that you tailor responses to local circumstances, and that you can justify each response based on reliable analysis of your local conditions. In most cases, an effective strategy will involve implementing several different responses. Law enforcement responses alone are seldom effective in reducing or solving such a problem. Do not limit yourself to considering what police can do: carefully consider whether others in your community share responsibility for the problem and can help police better respond to it. In some cases, you may need to be shift the responsibility to those who can implement more-effective responses. For example, it might be that redesigning an intersection may be the most effective response. In such a circumstance nonpolice public agencies and private organizations will have to do most of the work in carrying out the response. (For more detailed information on shifting and sharing responsibility, see Response Guide No. 3, Shifting and Sharing Responsibility for Public Safety Problems.)
General Considerations for an Effective Response Strategy
The following are some general considerations that may help you develop and implement an effective response strategy.
Using a Process Model To Develop Specific Responses
This guide has focused on two actors involved in the process of a pedestrian-vehicle crash: the pedestrian and the driver. It has also focused on the physical environment immediately around these two actors interaction. We can usefully expand the ideas the pedestrian-vehicle crash triangle summarizes by considering the process by which these crashes take place. Figure 3 depicts this process.
Before pedestrians and drivers are in the same environment, either or both have acted early to either help prevent a crash or make it more likely. Examples of this include drinking, talking on a cell phone, or speeding. As the two actors converge, their earlier decisions influence what they can do just before a potential crash. We call these the immediate actions. Some immediate actions help prevent the crash (e.g., looking both ways before crossing, crossing at the light, slowing down when pedestrians appear to be trying to cross the road, etc) while others make the crash more likely (e.g., darting off the curb).
The physical environment plays a large role here. A barricade, for example, can prevent a drunken pedestrian from crossing a cars path. The physical environment includes all the proximate physical circumstances that can facilitate or prevent a crash (e.g., signs, signals, barriers, curbs, cars parked at curbs, ice, lighting conditions). The agents interaction in this environment determines if a crash will occur.
Finally, as the actors separate, there is the aftermath to consider. If the crash was avoided, the aftermath might simply be some jangled nerves. If there is a crash, the aftermath includes the injuries sustained, vehicle damage, traffic congestion, etc. As this guide focuses on prevention, we have not addressed the aftermath here. Nevertheless, a problem-solver might want to consider whether changing how the aftermath is handledby drivers, pedestrians, police, emergency medical services, emergency room staff, and otherscould reduce the harm from crashes that do occur. For example, if a substantial number of drivers leave the scene of crashes without reporting to police (hit-and-run), this problem might require separate examination.
The process model is useful for three reasons. First, the model can help you consider the major factors involved in a particular pedestrian-vehicle crash problem. Second, it can help you organize a list of important questions regarding each component of the crash process. Third, the model can help your agency better formulate responses by considering all areas where they could address the problem (e.g., drivers early decisions, pedestrians immediate decisions). (See Appendix C, Developing a Comprehensive Response to Pedestrian-Vehicle Crashes.) The responses this guide next discusses target several components of the process model.
The process model suggests five separate intervention points for a comprehensive response to a pedestrian-vehicle crash: two each for the two actorsto influence early and immediate actionsand one for the physical environment. The responses that follow influence one or more of these five points (we have labeled pedestrian and driver interventions as early and immediate to show how they fit into this process). Though you should not neglect the aftermath, it is important to remember that preventing the crash in the first place should be the primary goal.
Some evaluation research studies directly examine the problem of pedestrian injuries and fatalities. Many of these analyses, however, report mixed results regarding the effectiveness of certain responses. And researchers have not evaluated some responses. For these reasons, many of the following responses are suggested because of their potential effectiveness for particular circumstances, rather than for widespread applicability. It is important that you continually evaluate your response to assess its impact in your particular community.
Specific Responses to Pedestrian Injuries and Fatalities
Pedestrian Behavior
This set of responses addresses both early and immediate actions.
It is also important to note that enforcement crackdowns are seldom sustainable for long periods, so you should best consider crackdowns as a short-term response and not a long-term solution. Consider them to be a short-term supplement to other longer-term responses.
There is some evidence, however, that jaywalking enforcement programs may not achieve much deterrence. As mentioned above, one report described the crackdown that New York City waged on jaywalking during the late-1990s. Nonetheless, this effort to step up jaywalking enforcement seemed to go unnoticed by both police authorities and citizens. In fact, the same article noted that the president of the police officers union claimed he had forgotten about the crackdown, while at the same time, dozens of jaywalking New Yorkers said they had seen no change in jaywalking enforcement.
Finally, although jaywalking and other types of pedestrian behavior have been emphasized as major factors in pedestrian injuries and fatalities, it is important not to confuse the ends and means of the problem. In other words, your agencys goal should be to reduce pedestrian encounters with moving vehicles, not necessarily to reduce jaywalking. Therefore, be mindful that you should frame responses aimed at pedestrian behavior in the context of reducing actual pedestrian injuries and fatalities, rather than part of a more general crime control strategy.
In some cities, citizen groups have also created awareness campaigns against jaywalking. For example, volunteers in Shanghai, China have monitored some of the citys crosswalks.58 These citizens believe that figurative whistle-blowing can improve public awareness of the problem of jaywalking.
Education/awareness campaigns are more successful when they target people who are directly at risk of the problem. For instance, if the problem involves a particular high school where students jaywalk at the schools opening and closing times, then the campaign should focus on those students and not on students in other, low-risk schools. In addition, you should isolate the awareness campaigns geographic coverage to problem areas. Using the same example, the message will be more effective if delivered at or near the intersections where the problem occurs, rather than only in school assemblies, for instance. General public-safety campaigns targeting the larger community are largely ineffective, as most people are unaffected by the problem, and the few that are affected forget about the message before they need to apply it.
See Response Guide No. 5, Crime Prevention Publicity Campaigns.
Addressing Pedestrians Early Actions: Bar Management and Pedestrian Safety in Shawnee, Kan. 63
Ferros was located on a major thoroughfare. The bar attracted a very large crowd, but patrons had to park on the far side of the thoroughfare. Large numbers of patrons, therefore, crossed the road sober and returned to their cars drunk.
To reduce the violence calls, police put pressure on the owners to improve their bar management practices. Among the many changes the owners introduced was a reduction in the number of patrons, which lessened the crowding and accompanying provocations leading to fights. Though the police looked into ways to move the parking area to the same side of the street as Ferros, they were unsuccessful.
Nevertheless, the bar management improvements may have reduced pedestrian- vehicle crashes, as can be seen in the accompanying table. Smiths work and police pressure to change Ferros practices began in May 2004. If the figures for 200506 are indicative of future crashes, then changing bar management reduced the problem from two thirds to three quarters of the 200204 levels. The decline might be due to fewer patrons crossing the street, or to patrons being less inebriated when returning to their vehicles. In either case, if a random fluctuation did not cause the drop in crashes, it seems quite likely that the drop was due to changes in bar practices, as there were no other changes in the immediate area that could have caused this drop.
All of these responses address early decisions, though one also influences immediate decisions. Because of drivers isolation in their vehicles and the speed they are traveling, it is difficult to craft immediate responses directed drivers. The physical environment responses, shown later, have immediate effects on drivers and/or pedestrians.
See Problem-Specific Guide No. 3, Speeding in Residential Areas, for further information on controlling speeding.
The more focused enforcement is at high-risk places, and the more the community understands the reasons for the enforcement, the less likely it is to create pressure from the public to curtail the enforcement. As with pedestrian enforcement, you should consider speed enforcement a temporary strategy supporting a longer-term solution.
See the POP guide titled Drunk Driving for further information on controlling drunken drivers.Immediate Physical Environment
Because the physical environment surrounds the immediate decisions, all of these interventions are designed to influence pedestrian and/or driver decisions in the immediate context of a potential crash. In addition, some of the following responses focus on improving existing crossing systems and other safety measures. Some crash hotspots, however, might not have any crossing systems or safety measures to begin with. Therefore, your agency might consider less expensive devices before resorting to some of the more sophisticated crossing systems and safety measures discussed below.
Photo 4: A variety of safety barriers are possible. The first photo shows a simple barrier designed to separate children from their parents vehicles during drop-off and pick-up times at a private school. The second photo shows a barrier along a busy street that was designed to enhance the environment. The barrier consists of a decorative chain, plantings, street furniture, and a change in the walking surface. It leads to a designated crossing point marked by signs and lights. The lights are pedestrian-controlled.
In addition, raising crosswalks table higher than the road (so they act like speed humps), and/or building crosswalks out of textured material, can also draw drivers attention to them. In snowy communities, however, such crosswalks might not be viable due to snowplow damage.
Consulting with schools, recreation departments, parents, and others involved with children and teens will be important in crafting an effective response. For instance, the Hamilton-Wentworth (Ontario) Police Department partnered with various city departments, the board of education, parents associations, and other related traffic-safety councils to develop KIDestrian.77 This strategy resulted in the development and distribution of a pedestrian safety book, along with kits that included a series of safety information and practical exercises.78 In addition, you might consult with older children and teens to understand what responses these groups find most appealing.
See Response Guide No. 5, Crime Prevention Publicity Campaigns.
Considering a Combined Response
Some communities could experience multiple factors that cause a pedestrian injury and fatality problem. For instance, it is possible that your community has high-risk areas due to pedestrian behavior and vehicle and driver factors, as well as structural issues. The following example shows how the city of San Diego used enforcement, education, and engineering to address pedestrian and structural factors.
In 1998, the city of San Diego experienced 24 fatal crashes involving pedestrians, with pedestrians being at fault 80 percent of the time. In 1999, the city experienced a 50 percent increase in fatal crashes involving pedestrians, with pedestrians being at fault 72 percent of the time. Analysts discovered that the problem disproportionately occurred along two main streets.
Police used the SARA (Scanning, Analysis, Response, and Assessment) process to address the problem. Following analysis, the San Diego Police Department developed a response that included enforcement, education, and engineering strategies.
The strategy involved these elements:
Enforcement: A multiunit approach to aggressive jaywalking enforcement resulted in 859 pedestrian-officer contacts.
Education: Officers from the Traffic Safety Office developed a brochure outlining pedestrian safety and responsibility. In addition, media coverage highlighted the problem of pedestrian-vehicle crashes, applicable laws, and the police departments response.
Engineering: The problem was related to midblock bus stops, where riders exited and crossed the street midblock rather than walking to the nearest pedestrian-regulated intersection. Therefore, the city moved eight different bus stops from midblock locations closer to intersections (thereby increasing the use of marked crosswalks and pedestrian signals).
Later evaluation revealed that there was nearly a 20 percent reduction in the pedestrian-vehicle crash rate in the project area.
You may order free bound copies in any of three ways:
Online: Department of Justice COPS Response Center
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Phone: 800-421-6770 or 202-307-1480
Allow several days for delivery.
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source : http://www.java.com
Download Linux RPM (self-extracting file) from HERE or HERE . filesize is 19.38 MB.
After you download it follow these instructions:
1. At the terminal: Type:
2. Enter the root password.
3. Change to the directory in which you want to install. Type:
cd <dir name>
For example, to install the software in the /usr/java/ directory, Type:
cd /usr/java
Note about root access: To install Java in a system-wide location such as/usr/local, you must login as the root user to gain the necessary permissions. If you do not have root access, install Java in your home directory or a subdirectory for which you have write permissions.
4. Change the permission of the file you downloaded to be executable. Type:
chmod a+x jre-6u<version>-linux-i586-rpm.bin
5. Start the installation process. Type:
This displays a binary license agreement. Read through the agreement. Press the spacebar to display the next page. At the end, enter yes to proceed with the installation.
6. The installation file creates jre-6u<version>-linux-i586.rpm file in the current directory.
7. Run the RPM command at the terminal to install the packages. Type:
rpm -iv jre-6u<version>-linux-i586.rpm
8. Java is installed in jre1.6.0_<version> sub-directory under the current directory. In this case, Java is installed in the /usr/java/jre1.6.0_<version> directory. Verify that the jre1.6.0_<version> sub-directory is listed under the current directory. Type:
your output would resemble the one below .
The installation is now complete. Go to the Enable and Configure section.


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Collections of recipes on Divalicious Recipes
Copyright 2019 - Divalicious Recipes . All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to DivaliciousRecipes.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Designed & Developed by Solo Pine.


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Nearest Town: KooskiaSite Size:
Highlights: Raptors, Shorebirds, Songbirds, Upland Birds, Waterbirds, Waterfowl
Access: Seasonal gate closure-site still accessible. Access free of charge.
Directions: From Kooskia, take US 12 E ~52 miles; R into Wilderness Gateway Campground on the south side of rd; park at amphitheatre and get brochure; hike 1.4 mi nature trail leading through several habitats.
More Information: USFS (208) 926-4274Kooskia Chamber of Commerce (208) 926-4362 www.reserveusa.com/jsp/commonpage.jsp?goto=/nrrs/id/wilg/newindex.html
General Services:
Handicapped Services:What do these icons mean?
Select a species from the list to view other sites on the Idaho Birding Trail Sites this species may be observed.


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Quayside Evening
The canvas limited editions are made to order with archival grade canvas with water-resistant coating and hand-stretched onto a wooden box frame & varnished ready to hang – available with or without a contemporary white box frame.
FREE DELIVERY ON ALL CANVAS ORDERS – canvases will be delivered by courier and will require a signature. Please allow up to 10 working days for canvases.
Please see below the list of buying options available for this canvas.
Please note: You do not need a Paypal account in order to make a purchase. Simply select the 'checkout as guest' option when you have been redirected to the Paypal payment page.
All prints are individually hand-signed by Chas. Prints are printed locally in Lancashire on high quality Somerset Velvet fine art paper.


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The UK's unofficial surfing capital, Newquay is shrugging off its image as a full–throttle party town and putting itself firmly on the map as a surfing and foodie mecca. Michelin–starred eateries and swanky sundowner bars are flinging open their doors between the surf outlets and amusement arcades – even Rick Stein is frying up fish and chips beside the wave–lashed sands. Of course, surfing is still at the heart of the town's laidback beach culture, but beyond the world–class waves at Fistral Beach there's plenty of peaks to choose from on the string of seven beaches between Crantock Bay and Lusty Glaze. Pentire Headland is a beautiful quiet haven where the stunning turquoise blue River Gannel offers an almost Caribean ambiance combined with palm trees and Cornish botanicals. We offer many dog friendly that can enjoy a luxury Cornish holiday also and of course stunning sea views for all!
A luxury coastal idyll located within the exclusive area of Pentire Headland, North Cornwall. A perfect home created just for two within moments walk of many golden sand beaches.
7 nights from £595 See More
Luxury coastal residence overlooking the beautiful Gannel Estuary that flanks Pentire Peninsula, Newquay. Interior styled to the highest standard and offers indulgent accommodation for 4
7 nights from £799 See More
A stunning coastal house right on the beach in North Cornwall
7 nights from £1539 See More
A stunning coastal townhouse overlooking the blue waters of Newquay Bay and the harbour, superb central location, perfect for friends and families
7 nights from £1059 See More
A luxury coastal barn just moments from the beach
7 nights from £1615 See More
A stylish coastal apartment with wonderful sea views. The impressive interior style offers a relaxing ambiance for up to 4 guests.
7 nights from £925 See More
Packed with coastal zen, this stunning apartment has been created with relaxation and wellbeing in mind
7 nights from £659 See More
An inspiring coastal home overlooking the tidal waters of the River Gannel and Crantock beach. Magnificent sea-facing balcony. Well positioned home, offering great accessibility to explore Cornwall.
7 nights from £959 See More
A stunning house overlooking the blue waters of the River Gannel.
7 nights from £1199 See More
A stunning coastal residence overlooking the blue waters of Pentire, Newquay
7 nights from £2105 See More
A wonderful coastal apartment created with luxury in mind overlooking the sea, sand and surf of Fistral Beach, Newquay
7 nights from £625 See More


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Our LRC Blog Has Moved!!!Wednesday, December 11th, 2013
Here is where you can continue following our LRC Blog.
Here is where you can continue following our LRC Blog.
Need a dictionary you can use all Semester? The Library has many to choose from–multi-language, medical, thesauri, handbooks–as well as some standard Webster's. Check one out now, and it won't be due until December !
WAVE Transit is considering eliminating bus route 207 that currently travels between the downtown Wilmington and North Campus.
There are two scheduled public hearings regarding the proposed service reductions:
Wednesday, August 21 at 6 p.m. and Thursday, August 22 at 12 p.m.
Both are occurring in the WAVE Transit Boardroom at Forden Station, 505 Cando Street, Wilmington.
Please see the link below for more information.
A map of Route 207 is located here: http://www.wavetransit.com/Portals/0/pdfMaps/new207.pdf
Email: email@example.com
Call WAVE Transit: 343-0106
The CFCC Learning Resource Center has started donating select titles to local correctional facilities to give the residents much needed reading material. Have something that you'd like to donate for this cause? We are accepting lightly used fiction and non-fiction titles at the library circulation desk.
Taking a standardized test soon? Check out our resources for: Accuplacer (CFCC math/english placement), ASVAB (military), GED (high school), GRE (graduate school), PRAXIS (educators), PSB/Nursing/Allied Health, and TOEFL (English as a foreign language).
The Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project has released the results of a survey conducted last fall on the library and reading habits of younger Americans, ages 16 to 29.  The survey found that almost all Americans under age 30 are online, and they are more likely than older patrons to use libraries' computer and internet connections; however, they are also still closely bound to print, as three-quarters (75%) of younger Americans say they have read at least one book in print in the past year, compared with 64% of adults ages 30 and older.
To see more of the report, go to:
Cape Fear Community College is involved in so many interesting things!
TV/Video Production Technician Travis Burdick was out on the RV Dan Moore with CFCC Marine Technology students and faculty as they helped archaeologists recover two cannons from the Pirate Blackbeard's ship, The Queen Anne's Revenge on June 20th, 2013. Â Using our trusty GoPro, Travis created this time lapse video showing the recovery of the second cannon, sunk off the coast of Atlantic Beach, NC in 1718.
June is National Outdoors, so G.O.–[Get Outdoors].
Backpacking North Carolina trails, surfing our local beaches, taking a walking tour of Wilmington's historic sights? Â Read all about it.


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*Photo is not exact, for illustration purposes only
Floor Plans
The Daphne
Key Features
Square Footage
3,061 Sq. Ft.
3 Car Garage
4 Bedrooms
Additional Features
Mud Room
2 Full, 1 Half Bath
Additional Features
Legendary Shuster Standards
Imagine… square footage used your way
Your plans… Your ideas… Your custom home…
Design Genie
Design the home of your dreams in hours! Consult with our design professionals and the same day you will walk away with prints and pricing.
Shuster Homes developed Design Genie as a way to take the mystery and delays out of designing your custom home.
Once you have picked out a lot in one of our Westmoreland County new home communities, we will ask you to give us your preferred home design, a wish list, and your budget. Then, we will invite you sit down with the architect and Shuster Homes representatives at the same time.


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The largest ship in the Greenpeace fleet, Esperanza, arrived today in Apo Island, home to one of the country's oldest community-managed marine reserves, to mark the start of its three week journey from the Visayas to Manila. The ship, which is on the Philippine leg of her "Ocean Defender Tour of Southeast Asia 2013," will tell the story of the richness and the beauty of the Philippine seas, expose destruction that causes marine degradation and sound the alarm to call for urgent government action to save the Philippine seas from crisis.
© Greenpeace
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I am just curious how dynamics get connected with low dimensional topology. Or it is just that we have now powerful computing machines therefore it is natural to use them on topological problems. What kind of problems researchers are interested in working at the intersection of dynamics and low dimensional topology.
Any suggestion for reading is greatly appreciated. The phrase sound fascinating, but have almost no understanding. Thanks.


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This is one of the conclusions that can be drawn from Windpower Intelligence 2012 data on project announcements. The data shows developers with the largest project pipelines in the UK, Germany, France and Sweden, the latter being a new entry among the most popular development destinations.
As was the case in 2011, Romania also ranks in the top five, while other eastern markets are increasingly drawing the interest of developers. Places such as Turkey and Poland are now preferred over Spain, which had been one of the most popular countries for wind development activity in 2011 but has now dropped out of Europe's top ten.
In terms of the size of the project pipeline, the UK continues to tower over other European countries, and over the next few years the pipeline is expected to be strong both for onshore and offshore projects. "In the UK, there is a huge potential both onshore and offshore," says James Hubbard, policy officer at industry body RenewableUK. "A lot of developers are trying to move projects forward under the current incentive mechanism, which is set to end in March 2017, due to some uncertainty about how the new system will work."
Given the high costs of offshore projects, development activity off the UK coast is dominated by large utilities such as Germany's RWE and Denmark's Dong Energy. Onshore, Hubbard says there is about a 50:50 mix of both utility players and independent power producers.
Offshore boost
On the back of its number-one position in Europe for installed wind capacity, almost all of it onshore, German development efforts are now concentrated off the coast. However, grid connection problems have slowed down the advancement of offshore projects and could discourage some developers. It has already complicated project financing, bankers say.
RWE, one of the most active firms on the European development front last year, had expected to receive a grid connection for its 295MW Nordsee Ost wind farm in the middle of 2012, notes spokesman Konrad Bocker, but now foresees a date of 2014. On the brighter side, Germany has put in place a compensation system for grid connection delays, Bocker says, although investors are waiting to see how this will work in practice.
French onshore activity has slowed a bit as investors await a European Court of Justice ruling later this year on the legitimacy of the country's tariff, although observers expect activity could pick up once the ruling - expected to be favourable - comes out. Meanwhile, offshore is also providing an impetus for development. In January, France announced a second offshore tender for 1GW and has said it is considering a third tender after roughly 2GW of capacity was awarded in the first offshore tender last year. Consortiums led by French utility EDF and Spain's Iberdrola were assigned capacity.
Should the projects be constructed, it will mean major contracts for French turbine manufacturers Areva and Alstom, which participated in the winning consortiums. Windpower Intelligence 2012 data showed German manufacturer Siemens announcing the largest number of European contracts, largely on the back of its offshore business.
Swedish surge
Sweden surged from nowhere to one of the top positions in Europe's development ranking in 2012. "There are lots of projects that are ready to be built in Sweden, so we could easily double installed capacity in the next two or three years," says Peter Nygren, chief executive of Swedish developer Arise Windpower. The extension of Sweden's green certificate system to cover Norway as well is one of the factors driving the interest.
Developers are also beginning to look at Norway now that it has an incentive mechanism in place, although that nascent interest is not yet reflected in project announcement data. "Unlike Sweden, Norway hasn't historically supported wind, so there are better greenfield sites," says David Williams, senior strategy and policy analyst at consultancy GL Garrad Hassan.
Nygren says developing wind farms in Norway is more complicated than in Sweden. Construction and operating costs are higher, he says, while the permitting process is slower, the terrain more mountainous and there are greater difficulties with the grid.
In addition to its Swedish pipeline, however, Arise is also developing a 130MW project in Norway. "In the short term, I would expect the build-up to be in Sweden," says Nygren. "It will take some time for Norway to have the permits and the grid in place."
Eastern markets
In eastern Europe, Romania continued to be a magnet for developers in 2012, but development activity in this country is widely expected to drop off sharply in the next year or two.
An attractive incentive programme applies only to wind farms operating by 2016, while the Romanian transmission system operator has warned that the country could start experiencing grid problems at around 3GW, a capacity level the country's fast-growing wind sector could already brush up against around the end of this year.
Yet developers are continuing to look east, although Williams notes that eastern markets tend to have both greater regulatory uncertainty and grid difficulties than their northern counterparts.
"We see the biggest opportunities for additional growth in eastern Europe, especially Poland," says Bocker of RWE. "There are very good wind conditions in the north and the grid is good enough."
Despite the fact there is still major potential onshore, Poland also stands out among up-and-coming markets in the east for the fact that a number of developers also have been making offshore plans. Poland last year passed the 2GW wind capacity threshold and has set a 2020 target of 6.65GW for wind - the wind industry believes as much as 13GW is possible.
Turkey is expected to be one of the hubs for wind development in the coming years, adds Williams. On paper, the potential is enormous, and it has set a target of 20GW, roughly ten times its current capacity, for 2023.
While Turkey's wind industry has suffered some teething problems - a fair share of licensed wind farms turned out not to be financially feasible because project sponsors bid excessive prices in grid connection tenders - developers agree that the build-up rate should increase significantly in the next few years. Some developers are also preparing for a new round of licensing, with a tender expected to be announced later this year.
Southern slump
Italy, which ended 2012 with an annual record for new capacity, has also become a rather dull market for development after a new incentive framework was put in place on 1 January.
The new system sees project sponsors of wind farms bigger than 5MW compete for a feed-in tariff. The end result is a major cut in the tariff and capacity limits on the wind farms that can receive the incentive price.
Spain has been sharply shoved down in the development rankings, with a moratorium in place since 1 January on new wind projects. Entry into the Spanish market is now being secured primarily through the acquisition of operational assets.
"Spain has disappeared as a market for new installations," says Williams. "Part of the shift northwards is not only because the north is looking attractive, but because the south is looking pretty unattractive."