City Latest: Grant for technology firm, ATH postpones extension, and more
LED firm Seren Photonics has won a £230,000 grant to develop its technology.
The Sheffield-based firm is developing “high brightness” LED lights used in laptops and televisions to make them more efficient.
Dr Carl Griffiths, chief executive of Seren Photonics, said: “We are delighted to have secured this grant and very grateful to the Technology Strategy Board for their support of high tech businesses in the UK.
“The money will enable us to accelerate the transfer of Seren’s latest nano-particle technology into a fit-for-purpose manufacturing process.”
Seren is a portfolio company of Sheffield-based Fusion IP which has a 40% stake in the business.
:::
MINING group ATH Resources has postponed the start of an extension at its Glenmuckloch site.
The Doncaster-based group said that a fall in international coal prices over recent months had influenced the decision, despite demand for coal remaining generally strong.
ATH said it would reassess the extension later this year but warned that if the extension is abandoned group coal volumes would be reduced by around 500,000 tonnes over the following two years.
In a trading update this morning, the group also said that reduced coal prices continued to impact on its margins and that will further hit its trading performance.
ATH warned in March that it expects full year performance to be “substantially below expectations”.
:::
CREDIT lender International Personal Finance has secured its banking facilities until 2015.
Shareholders will be told that £130m of bank facilities have been agreed until 2015 which will ensure the company has sufficient funding.
Speaking at the company’s AGM, chairman Christopher Rodrigues will say the company as a whole is making “good progress” and the banking agreement was agreed with no increase in margin or change to its financial covenants.
