Latest news with #Elridge
Focus Malaysia
15-07-2025
- Business
- Focus Malaysia
Elridge Energy welcomes its first GLIC-linked substantial shareholder in Urusharta Jamaah
BIOENERGY-based Elridge Energy Holdings Bhd has landed its biggest government-linked institutional investor (GLIC) to-date after Urusharta Jamaah Sdn Bhd emerged the company's substantial shareholder with direct holding of 105.19 million shares or 5.26% stake in the company. This came about after the Minister of Finance Inc wholly owned investment holding and asset management company acquired 7.19 million shares in Elridge on July 9 via Citigroup Nominees (Tempatan) Sdn Bhd, according to the company's Bursa Malaysia filing today (July 15). The group which is principally involved in the manufacturing and trading of biomass fuel products, particularly PKS (palm kernel shells) and wood pellets, was listed on the ACE Market of Bursa Malaysia on Aug 22 last year. Other major institutional investors in Elridge include Mikro MSC Bhd (20.62% stake/412.5 million shares); Kayavest Sdn Bhd (16.37%/327.32 million shares); Bio Eneco Holding Sdn Bhd (9.32%/186.5 million shares) and Norges Bank Investment Management (2.95%/59 million shares). Elridge kickstarted its 1Q FY2025 ended March 31, 2025 on a positive note with a net profit of RM13.58 mil on the back of RM109.67 mil in revenue that were mainly contributed by customers based in Japan, Indonesia and Malaysia. PKS remain the cornerstone of the group's operations by contributing RM95.81 mil or 87.36% of total revenue while the remaining RM13.87 mil was derived from the trading and manufacturing of wood pellets. According to Coherent Market Insights, the PKS industry in Asia-Pacific is expected to grow at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 8.9% from US$308.6 mil (RM1.4 bil) in 2024 to US$366.1 mil (RM1.7 bil) by 2026. The wood pellet market in the region is also forecast to expand at a CAGR of 8.6% to reach USD$12.5 bil (RM57.1 bil) in 2026 from US$10.6 bil (RM48.4 bil) in 2024. 'To support this growing market, we're executing our expansion plan with the development of new manufacturing sites in Pasir Gudang (Johor), Kuantan (Pahang) and Lahad Datu (Sabah),' revealed the group's executive director and CEO Oliver Yeo. 'These facilities will each house two PKS production lines with a combined annual output of 240,000 metric tonnes per site. The capacity expansion will enhance our ability to secure long-term export contracts and reinforce our position in the regional biomass supply chain.' At the close of today's (July 15) market trading, Elridge was up 0.5 sen or 0.79% to 64 sen with 17.48 million shares traded, thus valuing the company at RM1.28 bil. – July 15, 2025
Boston Globe
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
The Democrats' path back to power might start in places like this Appalachian town
Democrats' path back to power may start here, one small meeting at a time, because it will be difficult, if not impossible, for the party to regain U.S. Senate control or win the presidency without competing harder for rural and small-town voters. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The party recently lost senators from states with significant rural populations: Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Also, Democratic-led states are losing population to Sun Belt states led by Republicans, with some projections suggesting Democrats would lose 12 seats in the Electoral College in the 2030 census. Advertisement 'The gut check is we'd stopped having these conversations' in white rural America, said Colmon Elridge, the Kentucky Democratic chair. 'Folks didn't give up on the Democratic Party. We stopped doing the things that we knew we needed to do.' It's not that Democrats must carry most white rural precincts outright to win more elections. More realistically, it's a matter of consistently chipping away at Republican margins in the way Trump narrowed Democrats' usual advantages among Black and Latino men in 2024 and not unlike what Kentucky's Democratic governor, Andy Beshear, did in two statewide victories. Advertisement Nationally, Trump won 60% of small town and rural voters in 2020, according to 'We have to be intentional about how we build something sustainable,' Elridge said. 'It's not like we haven't won here before.' Angst over GOP domination and 'caricature' of Democrats For two hours in downtown Paintsville, Elridge listened as Stumbo and others took umbrage at conservatives' policy agenda, expressed frustration over Trump's standing in eastern Kentucky and said they were determined to sell their neighbors an alternative. Many brought their personal experiences to bear. The event was part town hall, part catharsis, part pep talk. In some ways, the complaints in Paintsville mirrored how Democrats nationally are angry, often for very different reasons. Related : Sandra Music, a retired teacher who called herself 'a new Democrat,' converted because of Trump. She bemoaned conservatives' success in advancing private school tuition voucher programs and said they were threatening a public education system 'meant to ensure we educate everybody.' Music criticized Republicans for making a 'caricature' of Democrats. 'They want to pull out keywords: abortion, transgender, boys in girls' sports' and 'distract' from the rest of the Republican agenda, she said. Stumbo, the former justice, lamented what she called the rightward lurch of the state and federal courts. 'We are going to suffer irreparable damage,' she said, 'if we don't stop these conservative idiots.' Advertisement Downtown Paintsville, Ky., on May 16. Bill Barrow/Associated Press Michael Halfhill, who works in health care information technology, was incredulous that the billionaire president has taken hold of voters in Appalachia, which is historically one of the country's poorest regions. 'It's not left vs. right. It's rich vs. poor,' he said, shaking his head at working-class white voters — Johnson County is 97.5% white — 'voting against themselves.' Ned Pillersdorf, who is married to Stumbo, went after Republicans for their proposed Elridge, the first Black chair of a major party in Kentucky, mentioned Trump's attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and related civil rights laws and regulations. 'This is where Trump and MAGA excel — if somebody who looks like me is your enemy, then you don't care if the guy in the White House is peeing on your leg and telling you it's rain,' he said, referring to Trump's 'Make American Great Again' movement. Republicans say their Democratic 'caricature' is accurate By definition, a 'listening tour' is not meant to produce concrete action. Elridge and Nicholas Hazelett, the Johnson County Democratic chair who is a college student doubling as a Paintsville City Council member, acknowledged that the small crowd was Democrat-friendly. Despite a few recent converts, no one was there waiting to be convinced. Across the street, antiques shop owner Michelle Hackworth said she did not even know Democrats were holding a meeting. Calling herself a 'hard-core Republican,' she smiled when asked if she had consider attending. Advertisement 'They wouldn't convince me of anything,' she said. Related : Bill Mike Runyon, a self-described conservative Republican who is Paintsville's mayor and loves Trump, went immediately to social and cultural commentary when asked in an interview to explain Johnson County politics. Democrats, he said, 'have to get away from the far-left radical — look at the transgender message.' Further, Runyon said, 'Everything got kind of racial. It's not like that here in Paintsville and in Johnson County, but I can see it as a country. … It's making people more racist against one another.' Michelle Hackworth discussed US politics while standing in her Paintsville, Ky., antiques store. She considers herself a "hard-core Republican," and has voted against Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, a Democrat, twice. Bill Barrow/Associated Press Asked specifically who he was talking about, he alluded to progressive U.S. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Latina from New York City, and Jasmine Crockett, a Black woman from Texas. 'It's the ones you always see on TV,' the mayor said. Beshear wins plaudits from across the spectrum Beshear seems to be the one Democrat who commands wide respect in and around Paintsville. Democrats hailed the 47-year-old governor for supporting abortion and LGBTQ+ rights while still attracting support beyond Democratic strongholds of Louisville, Lexington and Frankfort. Beshear did not win Johnson County, but got 37% of the vote in his 2023 reelection. He carried several nearby counties. Multiple Republicans, including the mayor, complimented Beshear for his handling of floods and other disasters in the region. 'He's been here,' Runyon said. 'I absolutely can get to him if I need him.' In 2024, Beshear landed on the list of potential vice presidential running mates for Kamala Harris. He also remains Senate Democrats' top pick for a 2026 campaign for the seat coming open with Republican Mitch McConnell's retirement. Beshear, whose father once lost to McConnell after having won two governor's races, has said he will not run for Senate. But he has stepped up his cable TV interviews and launched his own podcast, fueling speculation that his next campaign will be for the 2028 presidential nomination. Advertisement 'Andy is not like those national Democrats,' Runyon insisted. Hearkening back to the 1990s, he added, 'Bill Clinton wasn't like these Democrats today.' Paintsville Mayor Bill Mike Runyon, seen looking at newspapers clippings from his days as a state championship high school basketball coach, said that Democrats 'have to get away from the far-left radical — look at the transgender message.' Bill Barrow/Associated Press Hackworth, the shop owner, noted that she voted against the younger Beshear twice. But over the course of an extended interview she, too, commended the governor's disaster management. She also questioned some moves from Trump, including the idea of getting Washington completely out of the disaster aid business. She blamed Trump's predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden, for a 'tough time at my store,' but acknowledged that federal aid had helped many businesses and households stay afloat through the COVID-19 pandemic. Hackworth said she was not familiar with details of Medicaid expansion, but she identified the nearby hospital as among the area's largest employers. The others, she said, are the public school system and Walmart, which a day earlier had announced it was increasing prices because of Trump's tariffs. While supporting Trump's 'America First' agenda, Hackworth said widespread tariffs would upset many consumers. 'You can walk through my store and see where the new stuff is made,' she said. 'I try to buy American, but so much of it is China, China, China.' Asked again whether any of that should give Democrats an opening in places like Paintsville, she said, 'Well, there's always an opening if you show up.'
Euronews
14-05-2025
- Business
- Euronews
Annual leave misery: How many employees fail to switch off on holiday?
If you can't resist the urge to open your mailbox while sipping a drink poolside on a long-overdue holiday, remember you are not the only one. A survey of 2,580 white collar workers in Spain, the UK and France by talent consulting company Robert Walters found that most of them fail to switch off during their leave. Brits are the most likely (78%) to get anxious before returning to work after a long trip. Over half of them (51%) check their inbox out of fear of being overwhelmed by an email avalanche when they get back on duty, while 43% check their messages because they want to make sure nothing urgent is happening while they're away. The Spanish too have a slight obsession with their inbox: 40% open it on a holiday and 28% do so on a daily basis. In general, 63% of Spanish workers are anxious about returning to work after taking annual leave, and 64% in France. The rates are extremely low. Again, only a thin portion of British workers (15%) say they are completely recharged and ready to return to work after taking annual leave. Slightly more in France (22%) and in Spain (25%) A lot of workers fear that their time off will leave them out of the loop with their team. A potential solution could be going on holiday all at the same time - in other words, a company shutdown. Opinions across Europe differ. Most Brits (54%) don't believe it's a good way to address the problem, deeming shutdowns too disruptive for the company. Never mind fixed periods of leave: 51% of British workers say it would reduce flexibility. Spaniards too aren't blown away by the idea: 47% are against. The French are more positive, pointing out benefits such as "unified time off for teams" and "stress relief". Only 31% see no pros in being all off work simultaneously. France was the first European country to introduce the "right to switch off" into its labour law, in 2017. There are however no penalties for companies which don't comply. Spain enshrined that right in its legislation in 2018 and now plans to bolster it with a new draft bill, while Portugal introduced it into its Labour Code in 2021. Italy so far only gave this protection to people who work remotely. Belgium extended this right to the private sector in 2023, but limited that to companies with at least 20 employees. The UK has no such legislation but there have been growing calls to introduce it. Robert Walters CEO Chris Eldrige says annual leave anxiety might have relevant implications for companies. "It doesn't only threaten to lower already historically low engagement rates, but our research suggests that it could have major implications for productivity rates for workplaces across Europe." "Not only are professionals resorting to inbox-watching during annual leave, but some are even putting off booking it altogether due to fears of how it may make them look at work.' Elridge argues that season shutdowns are not a solution. "There is no one-size-fits-all approach to annual leave or holiday policies. Employers must develop an approach that goes beyond seasonal shutdowns," he said. "No matter the location, business operations will rarely completely pause when staff go on holiday and so the key action for employers across Europe must be in reinforcing and placing value on the right to switch off within their organisational culture." He suggests that mandatory handovers and pre-leave to-do lists would improve annual leave transitions between co-workers.
