Current Account: Current account this week looks ast RTE, Auguinish, the ICG and the current debtate over the cap on retail floor space.
RTÉ meets its match in advertising stand-off:
In the Irish media landscape there aren't many players bigger than RTÉ. But the State-owned broadcaster may have finally met its match.
For several months now a bitter and costly stand-off has taken place between RTÉ's commercial department and Procter & Gamble (P&G), the biggest advertiser in the world.
P&G is no longer running ads on either of the RTÉ channels and has switched its allegiance to TV3 and Sky.
The row is essentially over price. RTÉ seems to believe that if it gives P&G a more generous deal other big conglomerates will come looking for similar discounts. The only problem is that P&G normally allocates about €4 million worth of business to RTÉ each year and, as long as the row continues, cash-strapped RTÉ is denied this income.
Talks are believed to be continuing and, inevitably, one side will eventually cave in. But with RTÉ desperate to produce a surplus of about €3 million for 2003, can the broadcaster really afford to take on P&G?
Maybe new director-general Cathal Goan will put out some peace feelers.
Aughinish may be in for some welcome news:
Some good news for Aughinish, the Swiss-owned alumina refinery based on the Shannon estuary. One of its larger customers, Alcan, has announced a €40 million plan to expand its plant at Lynemouth in north-east England.
Lynemouth and Alcan's other plant at Lochaber in Scotland, take 400,000 of the 1.55 million tonnes of alumina produced by Aughinish each year.
Hopefully the extra business will go some way to footing the bill for the carbon taxes currently mooted by the Minister for Environment, Martin Cullen.
ICG escapes the storm:
The tourism market may be languishing in the doldrums but ferry company Irish Continental Group (ICG) has some reasons to be cheerful, according to new figures showing steady gain in its market share.
Though the over-all Ireland-UK ferry market recorded a 5 per cent dip in passenger numbers, ICG has seen its trailer volume climb 8 per cent in the year to date, and by 20 per cent in June and July.
However the rest of the industry is faring less well, according to Cruise and Ferry magazine. Car traffic is down 2 per cent in the seven months to end of July, although trailer volumes are up by the same rate.
Tension in retail space:
To see the current review of the retail planning guidelines as nothing more than a formality standing between the Irish people and their professed love for IKEA's flatpack world would be to discount the powerful domestic hardware lobby.
Current Account is told that when a change to the rules was mooted before the last election, the sector politely made the Tánaiste, Ms Harney, aware of the estimated 6,000 voters in her own constituency who might not be very happy if their hardware-dependent livelihoods were threatened in any way.
The rules were left intact, as the hardware companies, fresh from their victory, claim they will be again.
IKEA would doubtless argue otherwise.
