EXXONMOBIL ACQUIRES MORE IN SHALE PLAY
Earlier this year, we reported that the world's largest company had moved into Arkansas and acquired a sizable footprint in the Fayetteville Shale Play. That footprint looks to get bigger.
ExxonMobil has agreed to buy Petrohawk Energy Corp.'s natural gas wells and pipelines in Arkansas. The $650 million deal gives ExxonMobil the third and fourth largest asset base in Arkansas' unconventional natural gas play.
ExxonMobil acquired natural gas driller XTO Energy in June for $30 billion.
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TOURISM SEES Q3 GAINS, HOLDING STEADY FOR '10
Arkansas tourism is holding it's own.
Collections of Arkansas' two percent tourism tax totaled $3.388 million for the third quarter of 2010, up nearly three percent compared to the 2009 period. For the first nine months of 2010, the tax has collected $9.038 million, down just .07 percent compared to the 2009 period.
In 2009, tourism tax collections totaled $11.378 million, 5.2 percent lower than 2008 and 1.7 percent lower than 2007.
On a related note, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported last week that "real spending" on travel and tourism during the third quarter increased 8 percent. A decrease in airline fares spurred demand, and hotel use increased 9.5 percent in the third quarter, according to the BEA.
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ABB-BALDOR TO SETTLE LEGAL CLAIMS
Officials with ABB and Baldor Electric Co. have moved to settle out of court three lawsuits filed shortly after ABB announced its intent to acquire Baldor.
Zurich, Switzerland-based ABB announced Nov. 29 the move to acquire Fort Smith-based Baldor in an all-cash $4.2 billion deal expected to close in the first quarter of 2011.
A joint statement from ABB and Baldor noted that the firms thought the lawsuits were "entirely without merit," but agreed to the settlement in order to avoid risk and a protracted legal battle that would have delayed the merger.
The settlement will have to be approved by the Sebastian County Circuit Court, and terms of the deal will be shared with Baldor shareholders "prior to final approval of the settlement," the statement explained.
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AMERICAN GREETINGS TO ADD 50 JOBS IN OSCEOLA
Seasons greetings from American Greetings. That could be the salutation on its next round of Christmas cards.
Osceola-based American Greetings, which has been located in northeast Arkansas since 1962, announced it would expand its local card making facility and add 50 jobs in the process. Mississippi County government officials approved the use of $360,000 from their local economic development kitty to aid in the expansion.
The money will go toward updating and expanding electrical capabilities at the Osceola American Greetings plant. Officials also report that the expansion is a result of downsizing from overseas, or in-sourcing - the reverse of outsourcing.
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VERNON WEAVER DIES
Arkansas businessman and Presidential confidante Vernon Weaver is dead at the age of 88. Weaver, who in recent years lived in Bal Harbor, Fla., died Tuesday at a hospital in Miami.
He was chairman of the Small Business Administration under President Jimmy Carter (1977-1981) and was U.S. ambassador to the European Union in Brussels from 1996-2000 under President Bill Clinton.
Between and since his presidential appointments, Weaver was assistant to the chairman at Stephens Inc. in Little Rock.
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THE YEAR IN
REVIEW & A LOOK
AT THE NEW
2010 was a hectic year in the world of business and politics. Talk Business followed the major headlines in both arenas offering our readers a chance to meet newsmakers up close and in-depth.
We've compiled a list of the Top 10 Business and Top 10 Political stories of 2010 on our web site. This week and next, we'll roll out a series of articles aiming to prepare you for what to expect in 2011.
To read more on the Top Stories of 2010, and to prep for a look ahead to 2011, visit our web site at www.talkbusiness.net.
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