Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1110343
20 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 28 APRIL 2019 COMMERCIAL THE launching of a new scheme for sports organisations to increase energy efficiency is an essential scheme in consum- ing energy in a sustainable way. This scheme entitled "Leading Sport Organisations to Higher Energy Efficiency" is being led by one of the Ministry for En- ergy and Water Managament's entity, the Energy and Water Agency together with Sport- Malta. This scheme, which is pro- viding the sum of half a mil- lion euros, provides assistance to sports organisations in the form of financial grants, of up to €50,000 per organisation to implement changes or intro- duce new energy saving ap- pliances, intelligent lighting and other actions that would result in at least 20% energy savings. As agreed with SportMalta the grant shall cover 100% of the eligible cost in the case of investments up to 20,000 eu- ros (excl. VAT) and 90% of the eligible cost in the case of in- vestments greater than 20,000 euros (excl. VAT) and up to 50,000 euros (excl. VAT). Proposed investment with an eligible cost less than 5,000 euros (excl. VAT) will be pro- vided with free-of-charge tech- nical assistance. Beneficiaries can invest on various types of energy effi- ciency measures including: - Scrapping of inefficient ap- pliances and replacement with new models and upgrading motors with variable speed drives. - Building envelope improve- ment. - Reduction of energy con- sumption for heating and cool- ing systems. - Improvement of lighting ef- ficiency. - Any other action not contemplated in the above- mentioned projects which is expected to result in energy savings of at least 20%. Projects which fall under the following categories are not considered eligible under this scheme. - Improvements in equipment or systems which could have a direct impact on competition results/performance. - Interventions addressing water systems which do not re- sult in end use energy savings. - Installation of photovoltaic panels. - Consumables. - Maintenance work. 'Leading Sport Organisations to Higher Energy Efficiency' APS Bank presented its 2018 results at a corporate event for the financial community held at the Corinthia Palace Hotel & Spa on Thursday. The presentation followed the Annual General Meeting which approved the 2018 Au- dited Financial Statements, the recommendation of a scrip dividend, the re-appointment of Deloitte Malta as external auditors and the re-election of the following directors: Fred- erick Mifsud Bonnici (Chair- man), Victor E Agius, Franco Azzopardi, Joseph C Attard, Laragh Cassar, Alfred DeMar- co, Victor Gusman, Michael Pace Ross and Martin Sciclu- na. Mifsud Bonnici announced the approval by the General Meeting of a 1 for 12 Rights Issue which would be marking the first phase of a process that would support the Bank's pro- jected growth over the coming years. He also spoke about the new 2019-2021 Strategic Plan and how the vision to grow into an increasingly important bank for the Maltese system "places on us challenges as well as re- sponsibilities". In his presentation, CEO Marcel Cassar elaborated on the Bank's record €19 mil- lion pre-tax profit in 2018 and other strong performance in- dicators which "attested to our ability at gaining market share and maximising on opportuni- ties in a buoyant, yet competi- tive and demanding, environ- ment". He also referred to the recent conversion to 'plc', which sig- nified the Bank's clear vision and long term development plans also vis-à-vis capital requirements. Another an- nouncement related to the launch of the digitally en- hanced omni-channel solution 'myAPS' in the coming weeks. The 2018 Annual Report and Audited Financial Statements of APS Bank plc can be down- loaded from this link: www. apsbank.com.mt/annual-re- ports APS Bank presents its 2018 financial results Photography: PIERRE SAMMUT (DOI) MALTA has become one of the first countries in the world, and the only country in Europe, where ultrafast 1000 Megabits (1 gigabit) per sec- ond fixed internet is available nationwide. The latest up- grades to Melita's hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) network have also reduced the latency on the network, further improv- ing quality and reliability. Harald Roesch, CEO at Mel- ita Limited, said, "This is an historic milestone for Melita and for Malta. After being the first to roll out a 5G-ready mo- bile network last December, we have now achieved another first, delivering Gigabit inter- net nationwide. Our ongoing investments in infrastructure continue to ensure Malta re- tains its position as one of the best-connected countries in the world, while also future proofing our network for the coming Internet of Things era." As demand for data from homes and businesses contin- ues to grow exponentially and more devices become con- nected to the internet, Melita is offering its 1 Gbps internet service through the GigaPower product line whilst also deliv- ering dedicated fibre services to offices and business centres. Through GigaPower, home customers will enjoy 40 times more speed than a 25 Mbps in- ternet connection. This means that, for example, an HD film can be downloaded in seconds. More details can be found at www.melita.com/internet. Melita employees who are part of the team which has made 1Gbps nationwide internet a reality 1,000 Mbps internet available nationwide from Melita