2024-04-06 17:03

COPENHAGEN, April 6(Reuters) - Residents in Copenhagen's famous hippie enclave Christiania began digging up its main street known for its cannabis trade on Saturday, hoping to free the area of criminal gangs following multiple deadly shootings. After tolerating the illegal sale of cannabis for more than 50 years in the former army barracks claimed by hippies during the 1970s, authorities and the residents of Christiania decided this year to dig up what is known to locals as 'Pusher Street'. Freetown Christiania has developed into a major tourist attraction with more than half a million visitors a year, but an increase in gang violence linked to drug trafficking in the area has concerned both residents and authorities. "We have always said we support free hash but it's not possible," said Hulda Mader, a spokesperson for Christiania. "We want the street to be ours again." Police have in recent years removed the cannabis booths from time to time only to see them rebuilt shortly after. "Pusher Street has to die in order for Christiania to live," the Mayor of Copenhagen Sophie Hæstorp Andersen told Reuters. "The crime scene we have seen here has been so violent ... we cannot have a Christiania that is dying out because people don't dare to be here and where we see the local Christianites being threatened by greedy pushers and dealers." In August, a 30-year-old man was fatally shot and four more were injured in the streets of Christiana, the most recent in several deadly shootings linked to organised crime. Locals were invited to claim cobble stones as souvenirs from the famous street on Saturday, after police tore down the booths. "To me, Pusher Street is actually the least unique, right? It is what I associate with violence, gangs, murder, threats, and everything which are actually antonyms to what Christiania is," said Mathilde Brandstrup, a Christiania local. Danish police will remain present in Christiania and in the surrounding area "as long as it is necessary" to prevent sales of illegal drugs resuming, Deputy Chief Superintendent Simon Hansen said. The residents in Christiania live autonomously with self-declared rules, although they are not recognised as their own town by Copenhagen authorities. Danish pop singer Lukas Graham was born and raised in Christiania, and has written several songs about his life growing up in the hippie enclave. The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/denmark-shuts-down-cannabis-street-christiania-hippie-enclave-2024-04-06/

2024-04-06 15:40

BENGALURU, April 6 (Reuters) - India will need to keep subsidies for electric scooters for another few years to boost the switch from polluting motorbikes, the CEO of e-scooter maker Ather Energy told Reuters on Saturday. Industry experts believe subsidies such as cash incentives are crucial to India hitting its goal of electrifying 70% of its two-wheeler fleet by 2030, as the world's third-largest importer of oil looks to reduce dependence on fossil fuels. "We've been able to cut down a lot of subsidy reliance, but it's also come at the cost of almost a year's worth of lost growth," Ather CEO and co-founder Tarun Mehta said in an interview. Mehta was referring to the government's surprise decision in May to slash cash incentives for e-scooters to a maximum of 15% of the purchase price before tax from 40% previously. India's e-scooter market is small but growing, accounting for 5% of total two-wheeler sales in fiscal 2023-2024. Ather was one of the first to drive the pick-up in adoption with the launch of its 450 series of e-scooters in 2018, but has fallen behind larger rivals Ola Electric (OLAE.NS) , opens new tab and TVS Motor (TVSM.NS) , opens new tab, whose discounts have driven sales. Ather, which counts India's biggest two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorp (HROM.NS) , opens new tab as its largest investor, launched a new, "family-friendly" e-scooter called "Rizta" on Saturday, priced at 109,999 rupees ($1,321). The scooter has a larger seat and storage space compared with rivals. Mehta hopes it will attract a wider range of buyers in India's populous north and west regions, helping boost sales. Loss-making Ather is focusing on top-line growth, Mehta said, but added margins would improve if sales volumes were higher. "We haven't broken even yet, I think there's still a journey, hopefully it's not very long. Hopefully the Rizta plays a meaningful role because I am happy in how margins are shaping up at a unit level," he said, without giving details. The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/india-must-keep-e-scooter-subsidies-boost-adoption-ather-ceo-says-2024-04-06/

2024-04-06 15:20

CAIRO, April 6 (Reuters) - Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Sabah al-Salem al-Sabah submitted his cabinet's resignation as expected to the Kuwaiti emir on Saturday, the state news agency reported. The move comes after a new parliament was elected on Thursday and is a procedural one as the current government has to submit its resignation before the legislature's inauguration. Kuwait's new Emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah will now either reappoint the same prime minister or a new one who will be tasked with forming a new cabinet. The OPEC producer, which bans political parties, has one of the most open political systems in the Gulf, though the emir has the final say in state matters. Feuding between appointed governments and the elected parliament has often led to political paralysis. Thursday's election was the fourth since December 2020. The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/kuwait-pm-submits-cabinet-resignation-following-election-2024-04-06/

2024-04-06 11:54

MOSCOW, April 6 (Reuters) - Russia has evacuated around 2,000 people from their homes in the Russian city of Orsk, Russian officials said on Saturday, a day after rising waters in the Ural river flooded riverside villages and caused a dam to burst. The regional government said the people had been evacuated from the city of 230,000 near Russia's border with Kazakhstan after thousands of homes were flooded in the area, the TASS news agency reported. Video footage published by the emergency services ministry showed residents being helped into lifeboats wearing life jackets. On Friday, local authorities in the Ural mountains' Orenburg region, where Orsk is located, urged residents of riverside communities to evacuate after the dam burst. Agencies cited the local prosecutor's office as saying the dam had been breached due to poor maintenance. A string of Russian Siberian and Urals mountain provinces and neighbouring parts of Kazakhstan have been inundated by floodwaters in recent days. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said the flooding may be Kazakhstan's largest natural disaster in terms of scale and impact for 80 years. "We must learn all the lessons from these large-scale floods," he said. The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-evacuates-more-than-700-people-homes-flood-hit-orsk-2024-04-06/

2024-04-06 10:18

KARACHI, Pakistan, April 6 (Reuters) - Pakistan's Liberty Power Holding, which this week signed a deal to buy the thermal energy assets of the country's largest conglomerate for $125 million, is banking on its coal reserves and reforms laid out by the IMF for its investment to pay off. Liberty Power entered into an agreement with a subsidiary of conglomerate Engro Corp (EGCH.PSX) , opens new tab to buy all its thermal assets, including Pakistan’s leading coal producer, Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company. The deal is among the biggest in recent times in Pakistan's power sector, which has remained in crisis for years due to unpaid debts and chronic technical issues. "We believe Thar Coal is the energy future of Pakistan, it's indigenous, it's cheap and it's base load," said Zain Mukaty, Chief Operating Officer of Liberty Power, in an interview with Reuters on Friday, referring to coal deposits of the Thar desert. The South Asian nation's power sector has been plagued by high rates of power theft and distribution losses, resulting in accumulating debt across the production chain - a concern also raised by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF's policy suggestions under the current $3 billion standby credit arrangements with Pakistan have been a major confidence boosting measure for Liberty Power. Leading up to national elections held in February, Pakistan was governed by a caretaker government which amongst other measures, raised energy prices to stop the accumulation of circular debt, a form of public debt that builds up in the power sector due to subsidies and unpaid bills - a key reform required by the IMF. The new government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is continuing with the reforms, especially as it is looking to negotiate a longer term bailout with the lender to shore up the country's reserves and improve its risk profile. "We feel that one of the primary prerogatives of the IMF (for the next programme) will be that circular debt needs to go from standstill towards reduction," said Mukaty, a 32-year-old Wharton graduate. The decision to go into coal for Liberty stems from Pakistan's foreign exchange crunch and its indigenous coal reserve potential. "It seems like foreign exchange is going to remain a challenge in the near future and the medium term future. By working on local coal you bypass any FX requirements you have," said Mukaty adding that the government is talking to coal powered power plants that work on imported coal, urging them to move to local coal. "So for us we see this as a long-term play. We don’t feel that domestic coal is a concept or an idea that’s going to go away. We feel that it needs to be further explored for the benefit of Pakistan and that’s why we’re taking a long-term view on this," he added. The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/pakistans-liberty-confident-its-125-mln-bet-troubled-power-sector-will-reap-2024-04-06/

2024-04-06 09:42

ATHENS, April 6 (Reuters) - Greece brought a wildfire under control on the island of Crete on Saturday that forced dozens to flee their homes, the fire department said, with authorities on alert due to strong winds. The blaze that broke out earlier in the day, fanned by strong winds, spread across the slopes of the mountainous forest east of the seaside town of Ierapetra. Authorities ordered the precautionary evacuation of the villages of Achlia, Galini, Agia Fotia and Mavros Kolimpos, as the blaze closed in on some homes. "The fire has subsided significantly after the efforts of hundreds of firefighters," a fire service official told Reuters. "It was the first big one near a residential area this year." Scientists fear that the season could be damaging given that Greece has just had its warmest winter on record, leaving much of the land warm and dry. Earlier in the day a fireman and a local resident were taken to hospital with minor injuries. About 150 firefighters were battling the forest fire on the ground, assisted by three helicopters. The civil protection ministry has set authorities on alert due to strong winds expected in next coming days and after dozens of smaller forest fires broke out on Saturday. Wildfires are common in the Mediterranean nation. Last year a wildfire burning in northeastern Greece for 11 days destroyed an area larger than New York City and killed 20 people. Make sense of the latest ESG trends affecting companies and governments with the Reuters Sustainable Switch newsletter. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/wildfire-rages-greeces-crete-island-settlements-evacuated-2024-04-06/