Three New England States Extend Offshore Wind Solicitation Due Date
Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island extended on Thursday the date bids are due in the states' next offshore wind solicitations from Jan. 31 to March 27.Offshore wind is expected to play a critical role in U.S. President Joe Biden's and several states' plans to decarbonize the power grid and combat climate change.But offshore wind industry had a tough time in 2023 with some developers cancelling contracts to sell power in several states because their proposed projects were no longer economic due to soaring inflation…
US Trucks Revved Up, Capacity Crisis Revealed
As a polar vortex snarled North America's railroads and upended freight flows this winter, everyone from agricultural giant Cargill to Dow Chemical rushed to secure the next-best form of hauling goods: trucks. In what trucking executives described as an unprecedented bidding frenzy, spot market rates surged by as much as 20 percent to record highs in the first three months of 2014 as shippers sought to minimize sometimes weeks-long delays in rail service. "We've received letters from CEOs from major chemical companies asking us if we can do more," said Bill Marchbank, vice president of operations at Houston-based Trimac Transportation, a leading bulk shipper of liquid chemicals and industrial minerals.
Alexander & Baldwin Finalizes Financing
New A&B Will Have a Well-Capitalized Balance Sheet Providing Strong Liquidity and Financial Flexibility; Receives Favorable IRS Ruling on Tax-Free Nature of Planned Separation. Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ALEX) ("Company"), successor by merger to Alexander & Baldwin, Inc., today announced that, in connection with previously announced plans to separate its transportation and land businesses into two publicly traded companies, it has entered into new financing arrangements for the land business ("New A&B"). The new financing arrangements will provide significant liquidity and support New A&B in the execution of its growth strategies as a stand-alone company and complement separately announced financing arrangements that have been made for Matson Navigation Company, Inc.
Protocol Proposed to Netherlands-U.S. Tax Treaty
President Bush sent a Message to the U.S. Senate transmitting for advice and consent to ratification a Protocol that would, if adopted, modify the Netherlands-U.S. Tax Treaty. Among its many provisions is one that seems, to my non-tax mind, intended to avoid double taxation of income derived from shipping and air transport activities within the other nation’s territory for “qualified persons”. While written in the usual cryptic language of taxation, the provision may be designed to avoid implications of a recent U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulation. You may wish to seek advice of an expert tax lawyer. (HK Law)
IRS Changes Freight Tax Exemption
The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued final, temporary and proposed regulations recently that significantly change certain requirements to claim the exemption from freight tax. In addition, the regulations clarify that certain activities will be treated as "incidental" to international shipping operations, meaning that income from these incidental activities can qualify for the exemption from freight tax. (Source: HK Law)
Baker Hughes To Record Second Quarter Tax Benefit
Baker Hughes Inc. will reportedly recognize a tax benefit of $20 million in the second quarter as a result of an agreement with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service to close the audit of the company's fiscal 1994 and 1995 consolidated income tax returns.
