DIA on-time arrivals rank second for July
Denver International Airport ranked No. 2 for on-time arrivals in July, up from No. 11 in the same month last year. Salt Lake City was ranked No. 1 in July.
The data released Thursday by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics showed 80.34 percent of flights arriving at DIA were on time in July. But for on-time departures in the month, Denver ranked No. 8. Denver-based Frontier Airlines ranked No. 3 in on-time arrivals in July.
For the year through July, DIA ranked No. 6 in on-time arrivals, down from No. 4 in the same period a year ago. DIA was No. 13 for on-time departures for the first seven months of the year.
825 mountain acres offered by Chevron
Chevron Corp. will offer more than 825 acres of pristine Rocky Mountain property in the Trout Creek Valley near Steamboat Springs in a live absolute auction Sept. 10 on the property.
“This property was acquired by Chevron Corp. in the purchase of another company. Having no immediate use for it, they have decided to sell to the highest bidder, regardless of price,” said Warren A. Ward, president of Albert Burney Inc., the Alabama-based auction company.
AmeriVest to sell 5 buildings, cut 9 jobs
AmeriVest Properties Inc. of Denver will lay off nine people locally, including some at the corporate level, as part of a restructuring that includes the sale of five buildings.
The layoffs will trigger a severance expense of up to $75,000, the company said. Two properties are being sold in Colorado: Panorama Falls Office Building, 9085 E. Mineral Circle in Centennial; and AmeriVest Plaza at In verness, 383 and 385 Inverness Parkway in Douglas County.
Century Casinos plans growth in S. Africa
Century Casinos said in a filing Thursday it has secured a $9.3 million loan, which it will use to repay the balance of a loan and fund expansion of the Caledon Casino in South Africa.
Cripple Creek-based Century said the loan, secured Aug. 26 through Nedbank Limited, would also be used to fund future growth in South Africa.
Three join to promote rural business growth
National Farmers Union announced Thursday a partnership agreement with the Colorado office of the Department of Agriculture Rural Development and the Rocky Mountain Farmers Union in creating rural business opportunities.
The three organizations will cooperate in promoting job creation, rural business development, cooperative education and economic and cooperative development assistance throughout Colorado.
Champps reports loss for quarter, year
Littleton-based Champps Entertainment Inc. on Thursday reported a fourth-quarter loss of $500,000, or 4 cents per share, compared with a gain of $400,000, or 3 cents per share, a year ago.
For the year, the company reported a net loss of $200,000, compared with net income of $4.3 million the previous year. Chief executive Michael O’Donnell said the company reduced its debt balances by more than $4 million and is focused on reversing a decline in same-store sales.
Oil production slated near Piceance basin
Independent Energy Partners Inc. has secured production rights on privately held oil-shale lands in Rio Blanco County containing more than 1.5 billion barrels of oil. The area is near the Piceance Creek Basin.
IEP said it will produce oil from the shale in a manner that is economical and environmentally friendly. The company will use a method that will capture “run-off” gases from heated oil shale that will be used to heat more shale, making the process self-fueling.
First Data announces division chief leaving
The president of First Data Corp.’s card-issuing services division, Jim Schoendinger, is leaving to pursue other opportunities, the company said Thursday.
Greenwood Village-based First Data issues credit and debit cards on behalf of more than 1,400 providers. But the business line has struggled to grow.
The card-issuing services division contributed $340.3 million to First Data’s sales in the second quarter, down from $429 million in 2004’s second quarter.
Drug giant Novartis offers to buy Chiron
The Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis AG said Thursday it is offering $4.5 billion in cash to take over the pioneering Northern California biotechnology company Chiron Corp., which has fallen on hard times.
Basel-based Novartis owns 42.2 percent of Chiron and is offering $40 per share for the remaining 57.8 percent.
U.S. savings rate falls; manufacturing lags
Americans’ savings rate fell to an all-time low in July while manufacturing showed signs of slowing in August, worrisome economic news amid uncertainty over how much Hurricane Katrina will hit the economy.
A group of economic reports Thursday showed the economy was buffeted by high oil prices even before Katrina shut down production along the Gulf of Mexico. The Commerce Department reported that consumer spending rose by 1 percent in July as Americans streamed into auto showrooms to take advantage of sales enticements.
