2024-01-07 20:42
ROME, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Mountain rescue teams found the bodies of two Italian hikers after an avalanche on Sunday in the Alps close to the border between Italy and Switzerland. One body was found buried in snow while the other was recovered from a lake after the avalanche at a height of around 2,200 metres (7,200 feet)in the Val Formazza area in Italy's Piedmont region, Alpine rescue group CNSAS said in a statement. A specialist rescue team was sent to the scene by helicopter despite strong winds in the area after the alarm was raised around midday (1100 GMT). A dog trained in rescue operations also helped to find the bodies. The victims, who had been wearing snowshoes to help navigate the mountain, were a 30-year-old woman and a man aged 53, Italian media reported. They were from the region of Lombardy in northern Italy. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/two-bodies-found-after-avalanche-italian-alps-2024-01-07/
2024-01-07 18:46
SARAJEVO, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Five people have been trapped in a cave in southwestern Slovenia since Saturday afternoon after heavy rainfall raised the water levels, making it impossible for rescuers to take them out safely, local media reported on Sunday. The group, including a family of three and two tourist guides were reported to be sheltered in a safe place in the 8.2-kilometre-long Krizna jama cave, which can only be visited by boat. On Saturday evening, rescuers managed to reach the group briefly and delivered food, water and a heated tent, civil protection officials from the area told journalists on Sunday. But since the group was located more than two kilometres away from the entrance to the cave, it will take a new team of divers three to four hours to get to them, officials said, adding that the final rescue will depend on when the water levels fall, STA news agency reported. That may be Sunday overnight, but could also take a couple of days. Križna jama, a chain of underground lakes with emerald green water, is the fourth largest known cave ecosystem in the world in terms of biodiversity. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/five-people-trapped-slovenia-cave-after-heavy-rainfall-2024-01-07/
2024-01-07 18:20
LONDON, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Strikes planned by rail union RMT members working for London Underground from Monday to Thursday have been suspended after the union said it had made progress in talks with operator Transport for London (TfL). "Following further positive discussions today, the negotiations on a pay deal for our London Underground members can now take place on an improved basis and mandate with significant further funding for a settlement being made available," RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said in a statement on Sunday. "This significantly improved funding position means the scheduled strike action will be suspended with immediate effect and we look forward to getting into urgent negotiations with TfL in order to develop a suitable agreement and resolution to the dispute." TfL said the mayor of Britain's capital had been able to provide additional funds to enable discussions with the unions to continue, but warned passengers there would still be disruption on Monday as the strike was lifted at a late stage. "We will now meet with representatives of all the unions to agree on the best way for this funding to be used to resolve the current dispute," a spokesperson said in a statement. https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/london-underground-strikes-mon-thurs-suspended-union-says-2024-01-07/
2024-01-07 16:52
Jan 7 (Reuters) - Rescuers on Sunday pulled out all 15 subsistence mine workers who were trapped in an underground shaft at Redwing mine in Zimbabwe after it collapsed on Thursday, a government spokesman said. The miners were trapped after a ground collapse at the mine, 270 km (167.77 miles) east of the capital Harare. "All miners were rescued alive," government spokesperson Nick Mangwana said. The rescue operation had been delayed due to unstable ground according to Metallon Gold, which owns Redwing. Video footage posted on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, by Mangwana showed the workers, covered in mud, being greeted by a small jubilant crowd at the mine site. Formal mining operations at Redwing have been undertaken by subsistence miners carrying out unsanctioned work since the mine was placed under corporate rescue in 2020, the company said. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/zimbabwe-rescues-all-15-trapped-miners-alive-govt-2024-01-07/
2024-01-07 16:00
CAIRO, Jan 7 (Reuters) - The Saudi Ministry of Energy and NEOM company signed on Sunday a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on enhancing cooperation in the energy fields, the Saudi state news agency reported. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/saudi-energy-ministry-neom-company-sign-mou-cooperation-energy-fields-spa-2024-01-07/
2024-01-07 15:33
PARIS, Jan 7 (Reuters) - France requires more than the six new nuclear plants currently planned and possibly needs to build more than 14 new plants, its energy minister said, just days before a parliamentary debate begins on the issue. Speaking to weekly newspaper La Tribune Dimanche, Energy Transition Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher said it was vital to build more nuclear reactors and increase France's renewable energy mix to reduce the country's dependence on fossil fuels to 40% from 60% by 2035. "We need nuclear power beyond the first six EPRs (European Pressurised Reactors) since the existing (nuclear) park will not be eternal," Pannier-Runacher said, adding that post-2026 additional needs would be equivalent to 13 gigawatts corresponding to eight EPRs. President Emmanuel Macron in 2022 placed nuclear power at the heart of his country's drive for carbon neutrality by 2050, announcing the construction of six new European Pressurised Reactor reactors and studies for a further eight reactors. The new plants are to be built and operated by state-controlled energy provider EDF with tens of billions of euros in public financing mobilized to finance the projects and safeguard EDF's finances. The new energy strategy must be codified into law and is set to be debated in parliament from late January. Pannier-Runacher said going beyond 14 EPRs would be a "good subject for discussion with lawmakers", while repeating that renewable energy capacity also needed to be ramped up massively. Macron's decision to extend the lifespan of existing nuclear plants to more than 50 years from 40 years for certain reactors marked a U-turn on an earlier pledge to close more than a dozen of EDF's 56 reactors by 2035. He has also promised to accelerate the development of solar and offshore wind power. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/nuclear-debate-nears-french-minister-sees-potential-14-new-reactors-2024-01-07/
