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Monday 6 February, 2012
Siemens is working with GDF Suez, Vinci SA and CDC Infrastructure to compete for a 10-billion euro ($13 billion) contract in France to provide offshore wind power at Saint-Brieuc in the northwest, Les Echos cited the head of Siemens France as saying.
Siemens would build a plant in France to assemble the wind turbines if its group is selected over two others competing, the executive, said Christophe de Maistre, according to the paper. Siemens would also help its French partners expand internationally if their group is selected, it reported.
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Monday 6 February, 2012
Air France SA said about 15% of long-haul flights and 20% of European and domestic flights will be cancelled today amid a strike by labor unions.
The strike, involving pilots, flight attendants and ground workers, has been called to run through Feb. 9. The airline said it will give an update later today after it sees how many employees stay out of work.
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Monday 6 February, 2012
Sport’s highest court has banned Alberto Contador for two years after finding the Spanish cyclist guilty of doping, a decision that will strip the 2010 Tour de France champion of his title.
Spanish cycling federation president Juan Carlos Castano confirmed to The Associated Press on Tuesday that the Court of Arbitration for Sport has suspended Contador after rejecting his claim that his positive test for clenbuterol was caused by eating contaminated meat while winning his third Tour title.
The three-man CAS panel upheld appeals by the International Cycling Union and World Anti-Doping Agency, which challenged a Spanish cycling tribunal’s decision to exonerate Contador.
Contador will become only the second Tour de France champion to lose his title for doping. The first was American Floyd Landis, who lost his 2006 title after testing positive for testosterone.
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Sunday 5 February, 2012
The case against Lance Armstrong is closed. His legacy as a seven-time Tour de France champion endures.
Federal prosecutors dropped their investigation of Armstrong on Friday, ending a nearly two-year effort aimed at determining whether the world’s most famous cyclist and his teammates joined in a doping program during his greatest years.
Armstrong steadfastly has denied he doped during his unparalleled career, but the possibility of criminal charges threatened to stain not only his accomplishments, but his cancer charity work as well. Instead, another attempt to prove a star athlete used performance-enhancing drugs has fallen short, despite years of evidence gathering across two continents.
"I am gratified to learn that the U.S. Attorney’s Office is closing its investigation," Armstrong said in a statement. "It is the right decision and I commend them for reaching it. I look forward to continuing my life as a father, a competitor, and an advocate in the fight against cancer without this distraction."
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Sunday 5 February, 2012
France Football Federation (FFF) president Noel La Graet has reportedly decided to part company with coach Laurent Blanc after Euro 2012 and identified Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger as the man to take over.
Blanc’s contract expires after the tournament and the former Bordeaux boss has stated that he would like his future sorted out before the summer.
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Sunday 5 February, 2012
Rugby coach Philippe Saint-Andre has named an unchanged 23-man squad for Saturday night’s clash against Ireland.
Les Bleus beat Italy 30-12 in Paris in their Six Nations opener, running in four tries and Saint-Andre has opted to keep faith with the same men for the mouth-watering clash with the Irish.
"There were hesitations on one or two players but we thought we needed to work together and get bearings," Saint-Andre said.
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Wednesday 1 February, 2012
A French commercial court has found Google guilty of abusing the dominant position of its Google Maps application and ordered it to pay a fine and damages to a French mapping company.
In a ruling Tuesday, the Paris court upheld an unfair competition complaint lodged by Bottin Cartographes against Google France and its parent company Google Inc. for providing free web mapping services to some businesses.
The court ordered Google to pay 500,000 euros ($660,000) in damages and interest to the plaintiff and a 15,000 euro fine.
The French company provides the same services for a fee and claimed the Google strategy was aimed at undercutting competitors by temporarily swallowing the full cost until it gains control of the market. "This is the end of a two-year battle, a decision without precedent," said the lawyer for Bottin Cartographes, Jean-David Scemmama.
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Wednesday 1 February, 2012
Air France unions for pilots, cabin attendants and ground workers have asked the employees to strike from Feb. 6 at 1:00 a.m. Paris time through Feb. 9 to protest a bill going before the French senate that would oblige each employee planning to strike to give 48 hours’ notice, the unions said in an e-mailed statement.
The unions said in the statement they didn’t necessarily think the bill would be voted into law. Air France considers the subject of guaranteeing services at airports a matter for the state and is committed to preserving employees’ right to strike, the carrier said in an e-mailed statement.
