Smyth urges regulation of housing development land

Private-equity and buyout funds that acquire development land should be regulated to preventing them from hoarding it, according to property developer and solicitor Noel Smyth.

Writing in the Sunday Independent, Mr Smyth said it is imperative that sites controlled by the National Asset Management Agency are not offered into the market without clear and unequivocal commitments from those agreeing to purchase them.

He has presented detailed proposals to Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly aimed at providing a solution to Dublin's housing crisis.

He said that up to 25,000 houses could be built in Dublin over the next three years if the Government was to direct Nama to boost the contruction industry and deal with the housing shortage. Among the measures proposed is a licensing system whereby developers would not own houses built by them until they were completed.

China invests in Irish start-up

Irish technology start-up FieldAware has secured a multimillion cash injection from the Chinese government, according to the Sunday Independent.

The China Investment Corporation, a sovereign wealth fund with $200 billion in reserves, has bought a large stake in the Trinity College spin-off. It is the first time the Chinese government has invested in an Irish technology venture, though two similar deals are due to be announced in the coming weeks, according to the newspaper.

Eircom back in play

Ireland's biggest telecoms company, Eircom, is preparing to push the button on a straight sale process, rather than returning to the stock market, according to the Sunday Business Post.

The company’s corporate advisers are championing a sale to a trade player or private equity fund, rather than a mooted €1 billion stock market listing. A return to the stock market would be the third such launch since 1999.

UK oil firm returns to profit

Blue Ocean Associates, a British oil business majority owned by businessman Denis O'Brien, has returned to profit, according to the Sunday Business Post.

It posted a pretax profit of £4.6 million last year, following cost-cutting and a strong performances of the company’s European fuel trading. Revenue at the company, which trades as Harvest Energy, were static at £4.6 billion.

The company recorded a loss of £7.8 million in 2012, with the loss including a £15 million restructuring cost.

Goodman adds to property investment team

Meat-processing tycoon Larry Goodman has hired David Torpey, former associate of property developer Liam Carroll, to work on his burgeoning property investment team. Goodman is mulling over a possible bid for Project Cherry, a portfolio of 400 acres, including office blocks and land for development, at Cherrywood, south Dublin, according to the Sunday Times.