BEIRUT / Reuters Lebanon has signed its first deal to buy electricity from private companies, the energy minister said, in a model which took years to hammer out and opens the country up to more international investment. Lebanon has been short of electricity since its 1975-90 civil war. Households experience at least three-hour outages each day. Those who can afford …

Bloomberg France’s nuclear giant has a plan to survive the wave of renewable energy that’s sweeping aside old-fashioned utilities across Europe. First it needs to disprove the conventional wisdom about how reactors work. Electricite de France SA says its fleet of nuclear reactors aren’t just able to provide a steady stream of power, they’re flexible enough to complement a large …

Bloomberg The biggest independent refiners in the US are lining their pockets with billions of dollars in tax reform windfalls just in time to invest in equipment that meets ever-tightening domestic and global environmental rules, making the “liquid freedom” they export cleaner than ever. “The reduction in the corporate tax rate is a catalyst for incremental investment in the business,” …

Bloomberg European Central Bank Executive Board member Benoit Coeure urged European governments to push ahead with plans to strengthen monetary union to avoid stretching his institution’s mandate in the next crisis. “Without further reforms, the next crisis may well force the ECB to test the limits of its mandate,” he said in a speech near Ljubljana, Slovenia. “To assume that …

Bloomberg UBS AG brought forward its forecast for the next UK interest-rate increase, though it also sounded a warning bell about such a move. Bank of England policy makers will raise their benchmark by 25 points at their May meeting, strategist John Wraith wrote in a report dated January 31. In forecasts published after the BOE’s November rate hike, UBS …

Bloomberg Czech policy makers raised borrowing costs for the third time in six months to cool one of Europe’s fastest-growing economies and unveiled a hotly anticipated outlook predicting a surge in the currency. The Czech National Bank’s board voted unanimously to increase the benchmark interest rate a quarter point to 0.75 percent, Governor Jiri Rusnok said. The fresh forecasts, which …

Bloomberg Bank of New York Mellon Corp. and State Street Corp. stand to benefit most as US regulators rush to ease a key leverage rule, giving the custody-banking giants room to once again accept deposits they’ve shunned in recent years. The Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency may unveil a proposal to ease the leverage …

Bloomberg Macquarie Group Ltd. is teaming up with a New York-based venture firm to spot the next big thing in energy and infrastructure innovation. The Australian bank will provide specialist knowledge and possibly financial backing for the project with R/GA Ventures, according to a statement. Macquarie’s New York-based program will help develop so-called infratech companies, which typically feature technology and …

Bloomberg Danske Bank A/S hired 2,700 people last year as part of a strategy it says will help it cope with the digital age. In an industry relying increasingly on robots, adding headcount isn’t a given. Danske Chief Financial Officer Jacob Aarup-Andersen says management is building up its technology department, adding staff to areas such as the “customer experience.” Net …

Bloomberg The European bank with the most capital relative to total assets is DNB ASA of Norway. That pedigree will make it easier to sell a new kind of senior debt that’s designed to absorb losses if issuers get into trouble, according to the bank. “We don’t think that will be a big challenge or problem for DNB due to …