More business news in brief.

Minco reports pretax loss of $378,000

Exploration company Minco has reported a pretax loss of $378,000 for the six months to the end of June, compared with a loss of $431,000 for the same period in 2007.

The company which has drilled 29,000m at the Pallas Green prospect in Co Limerick with its partners, said at the end of the second quarter its cash reserves stood at $6.6 million, up from $2.4 million at the end of 2007.

Minco said 15 rigs were working at the site. A preliminary company estimate of the resource potential of the Tobermalug deposit in Pallas Green suggests a size of 10 million tonnes averaging 10 per cent zinc and 1.5 per cent lead.

Minco also reported that it had spun-out and floated its Mexican assets in a new company called Xtierra which was floated on the TSXV exchange in Toronto.

The company added it had paid $5 million for the remaining 25 per cent state in the Bilbao silver, zinc, lead and copper prospect.

Minco also confirmed the appointment of John Kearney as executive chairman and Terence McKillen as chief executive.

HR conference told of opportunities

The current economic climate presents opportunities as well as challenges for the hospitality sector, human resources professionals have heard at a conference in Dublin.

HR experts at the Tourism and Hospitality Human Resource Management Conference called for the adoption of a number of strategies which will assist them including, creative and cost-effective employee assistance programmes and investment in management development.

Meteor passes one million subscribers

Eircom's mobile phone subsidiary Meteor has passed the one million subscriber mark. The network operator which Eircom acquired for €420 million in 2005 has been growing rapidly in recent years having passed 500,000 customers in November 2005.

Meteor's earnings at the interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation level grew 78 per cent to €116 million in the 12 months to June last.

Tiler fined €60,000 for dodging tax

A Co Galway tiling contractor has been fined more than €60,000 in his absence at Galway District Court for failing to make tax returns over five years.

Prosecuting State solicitor Willie Kennedy said Seán Spellman, a tiling contractor from Carnmore, Oranmore, Co Galway, was not in court and had not replied to any correspondence about the matter from his office.

Mr Kennedy said the 24 offences (dealing with the tax years 2000 to 2005) had initially come before the court on June 4th but as Mr Spellman had failed to appear then, they had been adjourned to yesterday.

Mr Kennedy said he had written to Mr Spellman informing him that penalties in excess of €50,000 could be imposed if the returns were not made, but had received no reply.

Kepak reference

In an article entitled "EU court advocate rejects beef firms' deal on abattoirs", which ran in Business This Weekon September 5th, there was a reference to Repak. This was an error and should have referred to Kepak.