Scottish & Southern Energy is running the rule over a potential cross-border utility takeover, with Energia, Ireland’s biggest independent power company, in its sights.

Analysts say the Scottish utility is a front-runner for a £2 billion bidding auction, which is expected to be started soon when Dresdner Kleinwort posts an information memorandum to prospective bidders.

The Autorola Group, Europe’s leading online car auction company is expanding again. The Danish company has just opened a subsidiary in Ireland, so now Autorola has online car auctions in 13 European countries. Autorola’s online car auction at www.autorola.ie is the first of its kind in Ireland. The launch of Autorola in the Irish motor trade has attracted great interest in the industry.

The new Autorola-subsidiary, with offices in Rathcoole near Dublin is managed by Eddie Lane. Eddie is well known in the motor trade in Ireland, England and Scotland and has 21 years of experience in the trade. He has worked with BMW Ireland, Scottish Car Auctions, Direct Car Finance UK and Direct Car Finance Ireland.

Currently, Autorola Ireland is signing car dealers for the online car auctions and making deals with leasing companies and financial institutions that want to sell cars via Autorola’s online car auctions. The interest is huge and the first auctions with cars from dealers are already running.

The opening in Ireland is the first since the successful opening in the Czech Republic earlier this year. CEO Peter Grøftehauge is pleased to welcome the Irish car sellers and buyers to the Autorola-universe:

“We are convinced that we have the right platform for the Irish trade car market and we are happy to see that the Irish sellers and buyers are reacting positively to what Autorola offer. We hope for a long term relationship”, he said.

The Autorola Group is planning additional Autorola subsidiaries both in Europe and further afield in the future.

Fine Art & Antique Auction Thursday 24th July 10:00am, viewing Wednesday 23rd July 2pm - 9pm. In our salesroom 161 Lwr Rathmines Road, D6. Ca

Herman & Wilkinson,
161 Lower Rathmines Road,
Rathmines,
Dublin 6
IRELAND
Telephone : +353 1 497 2245
Fax : +353 1 496 2245
Auction info HermanWilkinson.ie

Cheffins will hold a major dispersal auction sale of classic and vintage tractors, spares, modern farm machinery and equipment on Saturday 19th July, at Castlewarden, Kill, Co. Kildare.

The sale comprises a collection of Fordson Major tractors, by direction of the executors of Alan Ross Deceased, and will be conducted in association with Murtagh Bros of Mullingar, who are organising the sale.

Bill King, director at Cheffins, said: “Cheffins are delighted to be involved with this unique auction sale and it offers an exciting opportunity to offer for sale tractors to the many Irish customers that support our regular vintage sales. We are also pleased to be working along site Dillon Murtagh of Murtagh Bros, who will be organising the sale”.

The sale includes 14 Fordson Super Major’s, of which two are 6cylinder conversions, 2 Fordson Diesel Major’s, an E27N Major and a Universal UTB tractor, 2 Allis Chalmers HD5 crawler/dozer complete the line up of classic tractors. In addition to this there is also a selection of modern farm machinery, which will include a 1998 Massey Ferguson 6190 4wd Dynashift with just 321 recorded hours. A 1996 John Deere 4500 4wd material handler with just 763 recorded hours, a Ford 8700 2wd Dual Power and a John Deere AMT 626 Gata.

There is also a significant number of Fordson Major spares, enough to built 8 Fordson Major tractors!

Catalogues will be available on-line from Cheffins on www.cheffins.co.uk and Irish enthusiasts can obtain catalogues directly from Murtagh Bros on 00353 44 9342512 or www.murtaghbros.ie.

On Tuesday morning, Adam’s Auctioneers will auction more 100 items from Mrs Bullitt’s estate in their Fine Period Furniture and Decorative Arts Sale in Dublin.

Jane Beattie, associate director, Adam’s, said Anne Bullitt was a glamorous American socialite, who was well known for her great taste and great sense of style.

“Her collections of vintage haute couture clothing and jewellery are internationally renowned, and we’re delighted to be offering for sale some of her more personal, everyday items that largely decorated Palmerston House,” said Jane.

Anne Bullitt died in Dublin in August 2007 after a long illness and was known for her large collection of haute couture clothing and jewellery.

Anne’s father was William Christian Bullitt, the American millionaire diplomat, journalist and novelist. Her mother, who died when she was eight, was Louise Bryant, an American journalist and radical who counted Eugene O’Neill and F. Scott Fitzgerald as friends and who was part of the Parisian ex-patriot set of the 1920s.

Louise Bryant witnessed first hand the Bolshevik Revolution in Moscow with her first husband, John Reed. Their tempestuous relationship was the basis for the 1981, Oscar-winning film “Reds”, with Reed played by Warren Beatty and Bryant by Diane Keating.

After Reed’s death in 1920, Bryant remained in Europe as a leading correspondent for the Hearst newspaper chain; she interviewed Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Turkish Republic and Mussolini gave his first interview with a news correspondent to her. Around this time she met Bill Bullitt and the couple later married in Paris in 1923. In 1924 Anne was born. By 1928 their marriage was floundering, partly due to Louise’s contraction of an incurable and painful skin condition, which led to her reliance on alcohol, which in turn led to bouts of depression and paranoia. The couple divorced in 1930 and Bullitt retained sole custody of Anne.

During the 1930s, `Little Anne Bullitt` as the press often dubbed her, was her father’s companion and aide during his travels and foreign assignments as Ambassador to the Soviet Union and France under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Anne treasured the memories of her meetings with foreign dignitaries and heads of state. During one of her visits to Hyde Park when she was twelve, Roosevelt, expecting a delegation of local politicians, told her to hide behind the sofa in his study so she could overhear their conversation.

After the war, she bought the 700 acre Palmerston estate in, County Kildare, Ireland and for the next forty years this provided the setting for her distinguished racing career, in which she became the first female breeder and trainer of thoroughbred horses in Ireland and Palmerston Stud became the largest horse farm.