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Bertelsmann opens new chapter for Penguin

German media giant Bertelsmann said on Monday that it was going to merge its English-language division Random House with Penguin books, owned by British publisher Pearson. Bertelsmann is to be the main share-holder.

Bertelsmann opens new chapter for Penguin
Photo: DPA

Penguin and Random House will combine their businesses in a newly-created joint venture named Penguin Random House, said a statement. Bertelsmann will own 53 percent of the joint venture and Pearson 47 percent.

The tie-up was expected to complete in the second half of next year, subject to regulatory approvals.

“The combination brings together two of the world’s leading English language publishers, with highly complementary skills and strengths,” the statement said.

“Random House is the leading English language publisher in the US and the UK, while Penguin is the world’s most famous publishing brand and has a strong presence in fast-growing developing markets.”

Bertelsmann is set to nominate five directors to the board of Penguin Random House and Pearson four. John Makinson, currently chairman and chief executive of Penguin, is to become chairman of Penguin Random House and Markus Dohle, currently chief executive of Random House, its chief executive.

“Our new company will bring together the publishing expertise, experience, and skill sets of two of the world’s most successful, enduring trade book publishers,” said Dohle.

“In doing so, we will create a publishing home that gives employees, authors, agents, and booksellers access to unprecedented resources.”

Marjorie Scardino, the outgoing chief executive of Pearson, added that, “together, the two publishers will be able to share a large part of their costs, to invest more for their author and reader constituencies and to be more adventurous in trying new models in this exciting, fast-moving world of digital books and digital readers.”

The joint venture excludes Bertelsmann’s trade publishing business in Germany, while Pearson was to retain rights to use the Penguin brand in education markets worldwide.

In 2011, Random House reported revenues of €1.7 billion and operating profit of €185 million, while Penguin revenues hit £1.0 billion and operating profit £111 million.

AFP/jcw

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BUSINESS

France’s EDF hails €10billion profit, despite huge UK nuclear charge

French energy giant EDF has unveiled net profit of €10billion and cut its massive debt by increasing nuclear production after problems forced some plants offline.

France's EDF hails €10billion profit, despite huge UK nuclear charge

EDF hailed an “exceptional” year after its loss of €17.9billion in 2022.

Sales slipped 2.6 percent to €139.7billion , but the group managed to slice debt by €10billion euros to €54.4billion.

EDF said however that it had booked a €12.9 billion depreciation linked to difficulties at its Hinkley Point nuclear plant in Britain.

The charge includes €11.2 billion for Hinkley Point assets and €1.7billion at its British subsidiary, EDF Energy, the group explained.

EDF announced last month a fresh delay and additional costs for the giant project hit by repeated cost overruns.

“The year was marked by many events, in particular by the recovery of production and the company’s mobilisation around production recovery,” CEO Luc Remont told reporters.

EDF put its strong showing down to a strong operational performance, notably a significant increase in nuclear generation in France at a time of historically high prices.

That followed a drop in nuclear output in France in 2022. The group had to deal with stress corrosion problems at some reactors while also facing government orders to limit price rises.

The French reactors last year produced around 320.4 TWh, in the upper range of expectations.

Nuclear production had slid back in 2022 to 279 TWh, its lowest level in three decades, because of the corrosion problems and maintenance changes after
the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hinkley Point C is one of a small number of European Pressurised Reactors (EPRs) worldwide, an EDF-led design that has been plagued by cost overruns
running into billions of euros and years of construction delays.

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