Company news in brief

AMC theatres to reopen

AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc said on Tuesday it was expecting to reopen its theatres globally in July after shutting them down in mid-March due to the Covid-19 pandemic, sending its shares up about 4% in extended trading.

AMC said it expects to run with limited capacity and blocked seating to maintain safety at its theatres, besides taking the usual precautionary measures. Last week, it flagged "substantial doubts" about its ability to continue operations, if it was forced to keep its theatres closed for a longer period.

Much like most other out-of-home entertainment businesses, movie theatre chains have also been hit by lockdowns and social distancing measures, which further added to the challenges due to a broader consumer shift to streaming services.

AMC on Tuesday said it was conducting an "exhaustive analysis" of its theatres to determine which ones to shut permanently, due to lack of profitability. The company, which operates Odeon Cinemas, recently reopened some theatres in Norway. - Nampa/Reuters

Huawei drives 5G

Vodafone Group Plc, the world's second-biggest mobile operator, has warned that Britain's desire to lead the world in 5G technology will face a big blow if it decides to remove China's Huawei Technologies Co Ltd from the country's telecoms infrastructure.

"The UK's leadership in 5G will be lost if mobile operators are forced to spend time and money replacing existing equipment", Scott Petty, Vodafone UK's chief technology officer, told Reuters in an emailed statement.

The British government should make efforts to expand 5G coverage and invest in the next stage of this technology instead of stripping out the equipment of the Chinese telecom’s equipment maker, Petty said.

"We are not tied to one supplier, but it is important to understand the extent of what is at stake here," he said, adding Vodafone is working with Ericsson and testing equipment from new suppliers.

The development comes as Britain held talks on 5G networking equipment supplies with Japan's NEC Corp and South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co Ltd as part of a bid to develop alternatives to Huawei. - Nampa/Reuters

Shell ready to negotiate

Royal Dutch Shell PLC is ready to start negotiating with potential clients the sale of future solar power on Brazil's free energy market from its first farms due to start operating in 2023, Shell's solar business development manager for Latin America said.

In a telephone interview on Monday, Maria Gabriela da Rocha said the start-up date would depend on the negotiations and was part of Shell's strategy to move into renewable energy, betting on industries' increasingly wanting to sign long-term clean energy contracts.

"For the last two years, we have focused mainly on building up our portfolio. Now we will start talking to clients with products in hand to offer," she said. Shell's solar projects are in an advanced stage of development, especially in Minas Gerais state, Rocha noted.

The first project that has already been registered with Brazil's electricity regulator, ANEEL, is a 130-megawatt solar farm complex built in Brasilandia, Minas Gerais state, some 500 km from the city of Belo Horizonte, at an estimated cost of 500 million reais (US$102 million).

Rocha said the majority of companies seeking clean energy contracts were multinational corporations with which Shell could negotiate internationally, while it also has a local sales unit negotiating in the local market in Brazil. - Nampa/Reuters

Emirates lays off pilots

Emirates, one of the world's biggest long-haul airlines, laid off more pilots and cabin crew on Tuesday as it manages a cash crunch caused by the global coronavirus pandemic, and plans thousands of additional job cuts, five company sources said.

Without giving further details, an airline spokeswoman told Reuters some employees had been laid off. "Given the significant impact that the pandemic has had on our business, we simply cannot sustain excess resources and have to right size our workforce in line with our reduced operations," she said.

A promise by the Dubai government to provide Emirates with new equity would allow it to "preserve its skilled workforce," the state airline said on May 10. It has since laid off employees, which sources previously told Reuters were trainee pilots and cabin crew.

Outgoing president Tim Clark has said it could take four years for the airline to resume flying to all of the 157 international destinations it served before the pandemic. - Nampa/Reuters

Blackrock funds build stakes

US investment fund Blackrock Inc and other investors have built stakes in Spanish telecom operator MasMovil in the days after the filing of a formal bid on June 1, according to the Spanish stock market regulator.

Since KKR, Cinven and Providence launched a 2.96 billion-euro (US$3.34 billion) offer, MasMovil stock has been trading above the 22.50-euro implied share price, suggesting investors expect rival bids or a sweetened offer from the funds.

Between June 2 and June 5, Blackrock gradually raised its stake in MasMovil to 6.49% from 5.70%, while Sand Grove Opportunities Management, Simon Davies, Wellington Management all bought shares in MasMovil in early June, according to data released on Tuesday by the regulator.

On June 4, French telecom giant Orange said it would not file a counter bid for MasMovil. The private equity trio said holders of 29.56% of MasMovil's stock had already agreed to sell at the price they offered. These shareholders have committed to remain loyal to the offer in the case of any counter bid lower than 26 euro. - Nampa/Reuters