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90 day
hit totals 37,376
BUSINESS
AND INDUSTRY
DSM-SABIC
SALE COMPLETED
BIZ: Heerlen, June 29]
The sale of DSM’s petrochemicals business to Saudi Basic Industries
Corporation (SABIC) has been completed. As a result, the activities of
DSM Petrochemicals in Geleen (Netherlands) and Gelsenkirchen (Germany)
have been transferred to SABIC with retroactive effect from January 1,
2002. During ceremonies to be held in Geleen (Monday, July 1) and
Gelsenkirchen (Tuesday, July 2), DSM Board Chairman, Peter Elverding
will hand over these businesses to SABIC MD, Mohamed Al-Mady.
http:www.dsm.com
Aachen
insurance giant does well
[BIZ:
Aachen, June 26]
The AMB Generali insurance company based in Aachen revealed that
business had been successful in 2001 and that AMB had defied the
generally negative trend in the market. Dividend went up to EUR
1.35, this is an increase of 9.8% on the previous year. By May
2002 455,000 Riester pension contracts had been concluded by the
company. The increase in its consolidated net income, before
adjustment, was 3.3% at EUR 361.9 million. After adjustment this had
gone up by 2.6% to EUR 315.7 million. The company is expecting
to see a growth of 5% over 2002 with particular opportunities in the
old age provision, as can be seen above in the Riester contracts
concluded.
http://www.amb.de
new
top man at the aachener and munchener
[BIZ:
Aachen, June 26]
Michael Westkamp (52) has been appointed the new CEO of the two
Aachener and Münchener companies, the insurance giants in Aachen,
with effect from January 1, 2003 and will succeed Dr Michael Kalka
retiring at the end of this year. Mr Westkamp has been a member
of the Board of Management of Aachener and Münchener
Lebensversicherung (life insurance) since joining the companies in
1999. He has also been a member of the Board of Management of Aachener
and Münchener Versicherung AG.
http://www.amg.de
MUEHLNER
motorsport goes long distance
[IND:
Spa,
June 24]
Muehlner Motorsport, based at the SPI+ dedicated automotive business
park near Spa, is entering two Volvo S60s in the German long distance
championships. This is a response to the excellent performance
of the S60 in the 24 hour race at the Nürburgring, where the S60 was
second in its class. Muehlner Motorsport prepares production
vehicles for competition events.
http://www.muehlner-motorsport.com
NEW
MODELS FROM NEDCAR
[IND:
Born,
June 22]
The new Mitsubishi Space Star for 2003 has been presented to the
press. New features are a new bumper and grill. There are
new halogen headlights with integrated indicators and five new colors,
including terracotta, midnight blue and mint silver. The rear
light units are higher and the seat position gives a good view of the
road. 25% of the purchasers of the Space Star are women, 52% are
between 30 and 40 years of age. The leading markets so far are
Germany, Italy and The Netherlands. NedCar's Volvo S40/V40 is
also coming out with a new model next year.
http://www.nedcar.nl
EUR
43M for AACHEN IN 2001
[BIZ:
Aachen,
June 21]
The North-Rhine Westphalian investment bank, has produced its figures
for public funding in the year 2001. The department of Economic
Development and European Affairs in Aachen received EUR 12m in 2001
for start-up and growth investment in the city area which covered 270
interest-free loans. These are largely high-tech spin-offs from
universities. EUR 7.5m, producing an investment volume of
EUR 15.8m, went to start-up and growth financing; this is a
cooperative program at national and state levels with the Deutsche
Ausgleichsbankbank and the North-Rhine Westphalian Investment
Bank. Integration at national and state levels has produced an
excellent response since its inception in 1998. This program
also produced around 250 new jobs.
http://www.aachen.de
THE
STATE OF THe walloon economy
[BIZ:
Wavre,
June 20]
The Walloon Business Association (Union Wallonne des Enterprises)
presented its report noting that the Walloon economy had followed the
European trend showing growth in the GDP of 0.8% in 2001.
However, the region had not yet entirely caught up. The gross
national Walloon product per head of the population was at this time
78% of the European average. To meet future objectives dynamism
among the populace and in business was more necessary than ever.
The current catch-up program should be pursued, developed and
supported by the authorities. Matters requiring urgent attention
were: effective and coherent procedures in response to labor
shortages; an increase in the public sector R & D budget at least
to equal Flemish levels; an exemption of tax on plant for new
investments; tax relief on investment and legal security for business
in respect of the impact and cost of environmental legislation.
These are the principal conclusions of the report. During the
course of the press conference, it was emphasized that the economic
structure of the Walloon Region, despite advances, still remained a
cause for concern.
http://www.uwe.be
local
purchasing and one-stop formality shop
[BIZ:
Liège,
June 19]
Jacques Thomas the new president of the Liège Chamber of Commerce,
himself the MD of a
plasma
and supersonic coating
operation,
is a strong spokesman for SMEs. He emphasizes the importance of
local purchasing. Why do large companies go to far off countries
for their supplies when they could buy them from small companies close
at hand, he says. [This of course, could be extended to cover
the Euroregion as the Euroregion purchasing fairs held in Liège would
indicate. The next one, by the way is on October 25, 2002.]
Mr Thomas also pointed to the importance of the one-stop shop for
Chamber formalities, referring, rather appropriately, to the Kafka
computerized system where the 75 forms for 120 professions regulated
by law, with different criteria characterizing the business and
producing a total number of 3,500 permutations, can all be done
automatically. This covers the administrative formalities in
setting up a company, the registration with the Chamber, VAT
formalities and those relating to the Ministries.
http://www.ccilg.be
imtech
grows in parking technology
[biz:
Veldhoven, June 19]
European technical services provider Imtech N.V. is acquiring CTC in
the Netherlands and UPS in the United Kingdom. This gives
Imtech the option of strengthening its position in the parking
technology market. Imtech has acquired 75% of the shares of CTC,
Communications Technology Center B.V., from Veldhoven in the
Netherlands. This company is an audio and video specialist in
the paid parking market and an agreement has also been reached to
acquire the remaining 25% of the shares in the medium term. CTC
achieves annual revenues of EUR 2.5 million. Imtech has also
acquired the remaining 92% of the shares in UPS, Universal Parking
Systems Ltd., of Leeds, UK which are presently held by Maastricht-based
Q-Park UK Ltd., and WPS Parking Systems B.V., the latter being a
wholly owned subsidiary of Imtech Technology. UPS achieves
annual revenues of around EUR 2 million. This activity reveals
the major role played in parking systems by Netherlands companies in
Europe. That this business is not all fun and games is, however,
revealed by the current situation in Maastricht at the Vrijthof car
park where an eight-month reconstruction job awaits Q-Park because of
a faulty roof.
http://www.imtech.nl
GENERALI
PENSION FUND Licensed
[BIZ:
Munich,
June 18]
Generali Pension Funds AG, which is part of the Generali group based
in Aachen, announced that they and the Generali Lloyd group, were
among the first providers of financial services in a position to offer
corporate clients a fifth vehicle for corporate old-age provision. The
innovative concepts of the Generali Pension Fund links a guaranteed
benefit to the yield opportunities of the capital market. For
this purpose, the fund has a range of investment categories to match
client requirements and their willingness to take risks. Generali
Lloyd Lebensversicherung Life Insurance AG takes over the
guaranteed benefits and the cover of premature risks, using a
re-insurance concept so that supplementary financing by the employer
is virtually excluded.
http://www.generali.de
A
starter motor
[BIZ:
Maastricht,
June 14]
LIOF has set up a new fund called LIOF Startmotor, designed to
assist business in the preliminary stages, from the birth of an idea
to the development of a business plan, with the provision of a
subordinated interest-free loan, to a maximum of EUR 20,000 per
participant in the form of seed capital. The funding would allow for
market research, location research, the registration of a trade name
and trademark, calculating technical feasibility and support. In
addition to the funding, LIOF coaching would be provided by the
project managers and there would also be access to the LIOF network.
Registration is only possible via the LIOF website. There will be a
selection procedure. The program is designed for Limburg SMEs in
industry or services. This does not include the retail trade,
hotel and catering, freelancers or small scale consultancies. A number
of years of experience is also a requirement.
http://www.liof.nl
IPTE
takes over Slovak cableboard biz
[BIZ:
Genk, June 13]
Connect Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of IPTE N.V. in Genk, has
acquired all the shares of Ratio Slovakia, an industrial cables
assembler and subsidiary of Ratio Beheer B.V., Together with this
acquisition, Connect Systems is also taking over a number of Ratio's
Dutch clients. Connect Systems wants to grow its presence on the
Dutch market and this will strengthen and expand the service and
position in that market. The transfer of a number Ratio's Dutch
customers to Connect Systems will also have its impact on sales.
Ratio set up the production facilities in Slovakia which now employs
80 on a two shift basis. IPTE is a market leader in the supply
of production equipment for the electronics industry. The
company develops turnkey automation systems for the production,
testing and treatment of printed circuit boards and for final assembly
work. It is also active as a contract manufacturer, through
Connect Systems, of printed circuit boards, off-the-shelf cabling and
product assembly.
http://www.ipte.com
new
chairman for limburg employers (BE)
[BIZ:
Hasselt, June 13]
Didier Goesaert (1960) was elected President of the Limburg
Employers Association VKW on Thursday June 13 and he will replace Hugo
Leroi, the retiring Chairman on July 1. The Vice-Presidents are
Philip Demot (1960) MD at Democo Hasselt and Dominiek Stinckens (1959)
General Manager of Scana Noliko in Bree. Mr Goesaert was born on
July 6, 1960 and lives in Genk with his wife and two children.
After a classical education in Genk, he graduated in criminology
from the University of Louvain. In 1984 he received a graduate
diploma in economics from the same university. He started work
in 1985 as Plant Manager and General Manager for NV Agglo in Genk,
where he is currently MD. Agglo is in the wood processing
industry, producing chipboard and oriented strand board which is an
environmental friendly alternative to triplex and multiplex. It
employs 180 and achieved revenues of EUR 50 million in 2001.
http://www.vkwlimburg.be
A
new corporate image for eurogress
[BIZ:
Aachen,
June 12 ]
Aachen's convention center, Eurogress, is 25 years old and is to start
on a facelift developing a new corporate image, starting with the
image of its hostesses, now to be clad in blue and gray. New
interior furnishings are also in place and the foyer will be
refurbished in July.
http://www.eurogress.de
foreign
euro payments by internet
[BIZ:
The
Hague, May 28]
The Rabobank has introduced foreign Euro payments via the internet.
Rabobank is the first Dutch bank to offer this service. The new
service relates to Euro payments up to a maximum of EUR 12,500 to
payees in the 11 other Euro countries.
http://www.rabobank.nl
LOGISTICS
AND INFRASTRUCTURE
CIAO CIAO
[LOG: Liège, June 26 ]
In our last issue, we mentioned a new low-cost service by Lugano-based
Ciaofly between Liège Airport and Luton Airport, near London.
This was mentioned in the press and on the company's website when we
went to press for the last issue. However, the service has been
cancelled before it even started because of a lack of interest.
According to the Company they spent EUR 80,000 on publicity but
precious little of it seems to have arrived at the periphery of the
Province of Liège and it would seem rather a short run-up period for
a service starting on July 1. This looks to be a marketing
problem, also encountered in the marketing charter flights, from
Liège Airport, in adjacent areas of Germany and the Netherlands.
[There are rumors, that they may try again later. Ed.]
http://www.webcontentnow.com
new
website for Limburg (B)
[inf:
Hasselt, June 26]
The Limburg Investment Company LRM, has established a new website in
Dutch and English which gives an overview of its investment
activities, news of its activities and information about its
investment portfolio.
http://www.lrm.be
tritone
goes down
[inf:
Maastricht, June 24]
The Meuse-Rhine Telco Tritone active in the Euroregion since 1999, is
seeking the required permit to lay-off 80 of its employees. It
is cooperating with KPN to maintain a service to its customers.
The decision to wind up the company is a result of a major downturn in
business which led to losses of EUR 62m in 2001 that have since risen
to EUR 70m. In 2001, Tritone generated revenues of EUR 16m.
Tritone was initially set up by Belgacom, Nutsbedrijven Maastricht,
Accom and the Limburg Development Company LIOF. Belgacom
currently holds 83% of the shares and would appear, although this is
not mentioned in their press release, to have taken over the Essent
shareholding. One problem in recent times was major disagreement
between Essent and Belgacom about the course of business.
http://www.tritone-tele.com
triceps
house opens its doors at Maastricht airport
[inf:
Maastricht, June 24]
Triceps house, Europalaan 24, a new style business location, has
opened at Maastricht Aachen Airport. This new concept in office design
provides flexible, comprehensive, service-supported accommodation for
modern business in the network economy. The first residents at Triceps
House, Maastricht Airport, are TVTotaal, Webster University, The Holla
Poelman Law firm, ILC-Europe and the Human Resources Department of the
Triceps Group. Triceps House expects to play a role in the
development of other locations in the Maastricht Airport area.
Information from tulkens@triceps.nl
http://www.triceps.nl
meuse-Rhine
lions
[INF:
Vaals, June 24]
Service Clubs in the Euroregion play an important part in the informal
cooperative infrastructure for business people and the Lions have
often played an important role in providing cross-border support.
Each year, one Euroregional Lions Club hosts other clubs from Belgium
and Germany and most recently the Liège Club hosted fellow 'prides'
from Maastricht, Aachen, Eupen and Belgian-Limburg at the Industrial
Museum in Liège. Now, a separate Meuse-Rhine Club has been
established which draws its members from the three countries and is
called Lions-Club Euregio Maas-Rhein. They recently held their
charter night at Chateau Vaalsbroek in Vaals with 32 members from the
three countries. We wish them well with this first tri-national
club.
http://www.aachener-zeitung.de
MAA
again
[INF:
Maastricht, June 21]
There is a timely article in the South Limburg Chamber's newspaper on
developments at Maastricht Aachen airport. In an interview with
Jos van Wersch of the Chamber newspaper, Dré Thewessen, the General
Manager of Kantoren Fonds Nederland (KFN) in Maastricht, one of
the most important players in business real estate in the country,
says that he is extremely upset by the fragmentation going on at the
airport. The airport in combination with business parks could be
one of the best locations in the country. KFN has the most
modern portfolio of office buildings in the country with 600,000 m2
and an order portfolio of EUR 1.2m. In Dré Thewessen's
view, MAA should not be competing with other airports, but should set
up a dedicated airport for executive jets combined with high quality
office accommodation. Mayor Armand Cremers of Beek and representatives
of local business found the tone of the article unnecessarily
negative. [However, it does keep the debate alive; particularly
important, when the province is divesting itself of its interest in
the airport and paying in EUR 2.6m to cover projected losses and EUR
10.5m for infrastructural investment. Ed]
http://www.maastricht.kvk.nl
Limburg
logistics day 2002
[LOG:
Venlo, June 20]
The 2002 Limburg Logistics Day will be held on Thursday
September 19, at the Fortunato conference center in Sittard. 250
to 300 participants are expected. The focus will,
unsurprisingly, be on logistics which, in the EU, means a 29% increase
in the transport of goods by 2010. To deal with this growth, the
European Logistics Center in Limburg is encouraging the movement of
goods from the roads to rail and water; particularly in around
Sittard, Geleen, Born and Venlo, which are regions of particular
importance, with the presence of major shippers like DSM and NedCar
and their spin-offs. The multi-modal international logistical
facilities in this narrowest part of Limburg, which include the Meuse
and the A2 and A76 highways and the main international rail
connections, made it the obvious venue for Limburg Logistics Day 2002.
The day will be introduced by Mayor Dijkstra of Sittard-Geleen and Mrs
Hanja Maij-Weggen, chair of the European Intermodal Association, will
talk about the development of international multi-modal networks.
Professor Nico Douben, President of ELC Limburg, will also talk about
the integrated logistical plan for the western mining region and an
agreement will be signed on the completion of the Maurits rail
terminal at the former DSM Maurits site.
http://www.elc-limburg.nl
PROximus
3g
[INF:
Brussels, June 20]
Nokia, the telecom hardware company, and Belgacom Mobile have signed a
three year framework agreement to expand the Proximus mobile network.
Nokia will provide the 3G infrastructure. Proximus is owned by
Belgacom (75%) and Vodafone (25%) and has 4.1 million subscribers
making it the largest in Belgium.
http://www.europemedia.net
business
real estate
[inf:
Maastricht, June 19]
RSP/Van de Laar Makelaars B.V., a new business real estate
company, is due to start in Maastricht. This company is an
independent unit of the RSP Group, in business for 15 years, with 5
branches in the southern Netherlands employing 45. The RSP Group
is located in the most important towns along the A2 highway (Den
Bosch, Eindhoven and Maastricht). It covers the real estate market
from the Betuwe to Maastricht. Company specialties are offices,
business premises, retail property, appraisal, investment, research
and consultancy. Peter van de Laar (35) formerly Director of 3W
and Jos Schüssel (40) Director of RSP/Van Boxtel & Partners
Taxatie B.V., both based in Eindhoven, will form the management team.
http://www.rsp.nl
Flemish
information line gets a prize
[inf:
Brussels, June 19]
The Flemish Government information line in Belgium has won the Sliver
Contact Center Award for 2002. The award is made by an
international research organization operating in 30 countries.
The line was set up as a guide to government services and has, in
three years, grown to be an essential part of the government
information service. Last year the line was used by 430,122
callers and it answers an average of 1,700 questions a day. The idea
is that the information line should be the natural source of
information for the public. It is available from 0900 - 1900
hrs, free, on 0800 30201 in Belgium.
http://www.hbvl.be
intercity
must stop in liege
[inf:
Maastricht, June 19]
The City of Maastricht wants the Dutch railways intercity from Haarlem
to Maastricht to continue through to Liège. Maastricht must be
able to continue to sell tickets for international destinations.
The Councilor responsible, J. Aarts (VVD -Liberal), says that the
closure of international ticket sales in Maastricht is a very bad
idea. Tickets to Belgium, Luxembourg and North-Rhine Westphalian
destinations should be on sale in Maastricht. The railways say
that international services don't produce enough revenue. Mr
Aarts, quoted in the Limburger, says "it leaves a bad
taste in your mouth when you remember that Maastricht spent money a
couple of years ago to make the rail connection to Liège better
known."
http://www.limburger.nl
quality
office space shortage in liege?
[inf:
Liège, June 18]
Sophie Lebrun reports in La Libre Belgique that contrary to
what one often hears, there is soon likely to be a shortage of office
space in Liège, according to Christophe Nihon, the Director of the
Walloon branch of DTZ, the real estate company, which recently opened
up in the center of Liège. DTZ with 6,500 consultants in
33 countries, and 115 in Belgium, specializes in business real estate.
They want to make the Walloon market more transparent and better known
to promoters and investors in real estate who tend to
remain in the 'institutionalized' markets of Flanders and Brussels.
"We need to show them what is going on in the Walloon country and
particularly Liège". At present the stocks are around
6,000m2, with 2,500m2 at I'îlot
Saint-Michel, 2,400m2 at the Zénobe Gramme Business Park
and 700m2 at Chanmurly. Demand will be for 50,000m2
whereas the new office project at Sart Tilman and Media City at
Longdoz etc., won't see the light of day for four years, the market
will then be saturated. As far as areas zoned for
semi-industrial business premises are concerned, according to DTZ, Liège
needs building of between 1,000m2 and 2,000m2 with
offices taking 150 - 200m2 like the relais buildings
set up by SPI+ for SMEs start-ups, professionals and specialists.
DTZ also pointed out that operations like the Prologis building
in the center of Milmort, which attracts international investors, are
extremely rare.
http://www.lalibre.be
cheap
bus pass
[inf:
Hasselt, June 18]
The Belgian bus company De Lijn is launching Omnipas a cheap
season ticket for those over 25 valid on all buses and trams run by De
Lijn in Flanders as of July 1. Subscriptions on longer
distances will also be cheaper. The maximum price of a ticket
will be EUR 3, whatever the number of zones. A year's Omnipas
will cost EUR 190,30 and has been on sale since June 20.
http://www.hbvl.be
EUR
50 million for liege
[INF:
Liège, June 18]
The Walloon region has selected a number of major projects to be
funded by the EU, including the development of the Port of Liège, the
refurbishment of the conference center, the upgrading of the Meuse
riverbank, museum project and the new TGV station which will mean EUR
50m flowing into the cities coffers.
http://www.aachener-zeitung.de
the
province contributes to laarbruch
[inf:
Maastricht, June 17]
The Province of Limburg (NL) will be contributing to the German
airport at the former RAF base at Laarbruch (Flughaven Niederrhein).
The Provincial Assembly agreed to a contribution of EUR 100,000 for a
study of access to the airport. The greater part of the money
comes from the Interreg funds and the Province has added EUR
3,200 of its own money. The assembly took the decision at the
request of the Chamber of Commerce in Germany. The money is for
an investigation of market potential and access to the airfield.
http://www.flughafen-niederrhein.de/
Limburg
(B) cable and power for Fouron/voeren
[inf:
Fouron/Voeren, June 12]
Fouron/ Voeren wants to source its electricity supply and cable
facilities from the Limburg (B) company Interelectra. The reason
for this change is the liberalization of the electricity market and
the fact that Intermosane, the current supplier, doesn't always meet
the Flemish regulations in respect of the free market.
Liberalization means that the electricity companies are supposed to
separate sales and management of the network. The Walloon
municipalities are not hurrying with the liberalization, which only
starts in the Walloon region in 2005. In Flanders,
liberalization starts in January 2003. From that date, Flemings
can buy their power where they want to, except if they happen to live
in Fouron/Voeren, because Intermosane still has to complete the
paperwork.
http://www.hbvl.be
parkstad
investigates retail infrastructure
[INF:
Maastricht, June]
Parkstad Limburg has commissioned the research bureau BRO from Vught
to produce a study on the retail infrastructure of the area. The
study will set forth its views on the status and prospects per area.
There has been consultation with the working group on Parkstad
Limburg's retail infrastructure, with the retail commission and the
various municipalities and other interested parties. In addition
to the retail sector, there are 900 businesses in the catering sector
and 35 concentrations of retail activity with the focus in the center
of Heerlen. Expansion and redevelopment plans have been
developed for every level and a total of 110,000 m2 of
retail space has been added.
http://www.regio-psl.nl
new
cold storage facility for galliker
[log:
Liège, June]
The Swiss and Belgian based logistics company Galliker, is completing
construction of its new 10,000m2 storage facility which
contains room temperature, fresh and frozen facilities at Milmort, not
far from Liège Airport. The complex represents an investment of
EUR 10 million and is adjacent to Galliker's existing facility.
The business will be operational in October. The distribution
platform with the temperature controlled facilities will have 20
access gates.
http://www.galliker.com
planning
in BELGIAN limburg
[INF:
Hasselt, May]
In the current May issue of GOM Limburg's magazine Economisch
Rapport, there is a great deal of information about the
infrastructure in the province with a focus on business parks and on
the transport infrastructure including road, rail and water. On
the business park side, although there are some differences of opinion
between GOM and the province, there is a good measure of agreement.
GOM states that it cannot agree that the province doesn't have any
more land to issue but it doesn't want to enter into a discussion on
the figures. GOM's proposal is to start with 470 hectares for
business parks. 1) The Bree canal site: 40 hectares, 2) the Genk
south site: 70 hectares (50 hectares on the Diepenbeek side and 20
hectares on the Zutendaal side, 3) the Helchtern site: 40 hectares, 4)
the Zolder Lummen site: 50 hectares on the territory of Hasselt and
Lummen, 5) the Opglabbeek site: 25 hectares, 6) the Ravenshout site:
70 hectares on the territory of Beringen/Tessenderlo/Ham, 7) the
expansion of the Meerhout site: 20 hectares on Ham territory, 8) the
old Bunders site: 70 hectares on Maasmechelen territory, 9) the
Lanklaar site: 15 hectares on Dilsen-Stokkem territory, 10)
Jagersborg: 20 hectares on Maaseik territory, 11) the Overhaem
site: 10 hectares on Tongeren territory, 12) the Kolmen site: 15
hectares on Alken territory, 13) Hoeselt: 25 hectares. GOM
further points out the importance of the network of the Albert Canal
and E313 highway and the need to commercialize the existing
infrastructure on the one side with the Albert Canal and on the other
hand with the E313 highway and also the Montzen-Antwerp-Ruhr railway
line. All the towns in the area are covered, as are the
sites. Two areas of focus seem deserving of additional attention.
One is the development in Hasselt of an R & D oriented
campus on the Philips Hasselt site where the suppliers and spin-offs
from Philips and IT companies can set up operations. In
reference to the Genk area, mention is made of the development option
of a high quality business park, as part of the redevelopment of the
old Waterschei mining site. This would be based on a campus
concept grouping industrial activities and service activities.
The campus concept would also have its greenbelt with high quality
landscaping and quality architecture creating a prestigious business
park.
http://www.gomlimburg.be
GOVERNMENT
AND EDUCATION
3.2M
EUROS FOR MEUSE-RHINE EU PROJECTS
[GOV:
Maastricht, June 29]
The following projects worth a total of EUR 3.2m have been approved
for Meuse-Rhine under the EU Interreg III program: 1) 'Cake' for
training in the retail sector; 2) 'Yomm' for tertiary education to
meet the requirements of transfrontier education and the labor market;
3) 'People to People' to establish events and activities in sport, the
arts and the media; 4) 'Heath, Moor and Meadow' for the restoration of
wetlands in the German/Belgian border area; 5) 'Turopom' for the
maintenance and care of orchards in Meuse-Rhine.
http://www.aachener-zeitung.de
SPI+
IN THE RED
[GOV:
Liège, June 27]
La Libre Belgique, relaying a report from the Belga news agency,
states that SPI+, the development agency of the Province of Liège, is
in the red for the first time since its establishment 40 years ago.
Losses in 2001 amount to EUR 1,028,881. Management does not regard
this as catastrophic, but there is apparently a question as to whether
all the services provided are viable. As regards business parks, the
agency runs 40 parks, home to 1,434 businesses employing 30,000. A
problem on the horizon is the need for more business parks. In
February, the Walloon government released 297 ha for development; SPI
had asked for 638. According to a study investigating the availability
of sites through 2007. They will be full in the French-speaking area
by 2012 and in the German-speaking area by 2041 - presumably on the
basis of a projection.
http://www.lalibre.be
WALLOON
SYNERGY
[EDU:
Liège, June 27]
Twenty institutions of higher education, including universities and
colleges in the Provinces of Liège, Luxembourg and Namur, have
decided to join forces and develop a Mosan Center of Higher &
University education. The Declaration of Intent to set up the Le
Pôle Mosan will be made officially on Monday July 8, 2002 at
15.00hrs at the Château de Colonster at the University of Liège's
Sart Tilman campus.
http://www.ulg.be
SUPERC:
ONE-STOP STUDENT SHOP
[EDU:
Aachen, June 26]
A futuristic energy-saving, glass-fronted edifice in the shape of a
stylized C is to rise 20 m high next to the main building of Aachen's
RWTH university on the Templergraben in the middle of the city. This
will be a service center which will embrace all student services in
one building. It is a first in Germany. In addition to administrative
services, there will be an internet cafe. The building will provide a
venue for concerts and exhibitions and will crystallize, in the form
of an architectural symbol, the technological orientation of the
region.
http://www.rwth-aachen.de
kindred
spirits
[gov:
Eijsden, June 26]
There is a lot of coming and going between Quebec and the Province of
Liège and one notices that Quebeckers sometimes play a role in Liège
when international communication is an issue. People in the
Province put down the interest in La belle Province to a shared
cultural background. One wonders whether the new political changes on
the horizon in Quebec - where Mario Dumont (32) of the Action Démocratique
Québec (ADQ) is spreading Mariomania, a program with a
decidedly conservative flavor - will influence thinking in the
Principality. Dumont calls for big tax cuts, a flat rate of tax for
the rich and not-so-rich alike and major cuts in Quebec’s
heavyweight bureaucracy.
http://www.assnat.qc.ca/fra/Membres/dumm1.html
Nedcar
educates in kind
[edu:
Born, June 26]
NedCar is providing various materials for technical education to
technical schools in Roermond and Maaseik. These include welding
equipment, cylinders, electric motors, starter motors and various
types of electrical and pneumatic switching materials. Normally
speaking, NedCar invites the staff of technical schools in the region
to the plant once a year, but because of the exchange of material the
teaching staff have been able to make a second trip. This is
perhaps one way of killing two birds with one stone, improving
technical education and making sure it has the right orientation.
http://www.nedcar.nl
the
limburg lobby
[GOV:
Maastricht, June 25]
The Limburg team, soon to be fielded in The Hague, will be playing a
4-4 attack formation. The eight members of parliament who are
ready to take up their positions include Maastricht's Maria van
der Hoeven (CDA), Frans Timmermans from Heerlen, (PvdA), Camiel
Eurlings from Valkenberg (CDA), Jan de Wit from Heerlen, Socialist
Party (SP), Ger Koopmans from Velden, (CDA), Ine Aasted Madsen from
Kerkrade (CDA), Nelly Verbugt from Helden, Liberal Party (VVD), Jos
Hessels from Melick (CDA). The team photograph is in Dagblad
de Limburger on Tuesday June 25 on page A5.
http://www.limburger.nl
new
occupant for Kremers chair
[EDU:
Maastricht, June 25]
Professor Paul Curfs has been appointed Governor Kremers Extraordinary
Professor and will occupy the Governor Kremer's Chair which was
established in 1990 by the Stichting Wetenschappelijk Instituut en
Historisch Centrum (the Science Institute and Historical
Center Trust) for people suffering from a mental handicap. The
Chair is for the care of the mentally handicapped. Professor
Curfs succeeds Professor Ad van Gennep who was appointed in 1996.
Professor Curfs is a member of staff at the Clinical Genetics
Foundation for South-East Netherlands at the Maastricht University
Hospital. He is also Extraordinary Professor in Biological
Development Psychology in the Faculty of Psychology at the University
of Maastricht.
http://www.persunimaas.nl
CONSULAR
CORPS PRIZE
[GOV:
Liège, June 24]
The Consular corps in the Province of Liège, including Edith Ravaux,
the Consul General of France, Luc Partoune, the Honorary Consul of
Chile, Robert Dindelinger, Honorary Consul of the Grand Duchy of
Luxembourg, with representatives of the university including Professor
Jean Beaufays, Président Francis Balace and Professor Simon
Petermann, have awarded the Consular Prize for 2002, worth EUR 1500,
to Stefan Herold, a graduate in Law of Berlin's Humboldt University
and holder of a Diploma in International Relations and European
Integration at the University of Liège, for his study on the
integration of the German Federal Republic in the European Union.
http://www.ulg.ac.be/press
police
to use vodafone GPRS to access data
[gov:
Maastricht, June 24]
Policemen on the beat will soon have direct mobile access to
information, including car license numbers and the police database.
Vodafone will be the provider working with ITO, an IT organization for
the police and justice departments starting these new services.
An encrypted GPRS system will give them access to the computer network
and various police departments in the Netherlands will be able to use
their own system. ITO is an agency of the Ministry of the
Interior which manages data communications networks involving police
and justice departments. Vodafone is the largest mobile telco in
the Netherlands, and indeed the largest in the world, with 101 million
clients in 28 countries. It has its Dutch headquarters in
Maastricht.
http://www.vodafone.nl
communications
and media design
[EDU:
Aachen, June 24]
Institutions of higher education in Aachen, Heerlen and Genk are
developing a new program on communication and media design which is
expected to start at the beginning of the 2003-2004 academic year.
This will be in the form of a four year Bachelor's degree with strong
practical orientation and will in fact be taught largely by practicing
members of the profession. The location for the program has not
yet been determined but Maastricht is a likely option and the
Institute for Mechatronic on the Vaalser Strasse would also seem a
good bet. The basic program would include Economics, IT and
Design. Another major advantage of this program would be
its international orientation.
http://www.aachener-zeitung.de
EUR
5M FOR tUL?
[EDU:
Maastricht, June 21]
The Transnational University of Limburg (tUL), a cooperative project
between the University of Maastricht and the Limburg University Center
in Diepenbeek, Belgium requires EUR 5m to balance its books. The
Province of Limburg (NL) has been approached, but as education does
not normally fall within its purview, the matter requires some
thought.
http://www.ld.nl
new
business school for liege
[EDU:
Liège, June 20]
A new Business School is to be created in Liège by a merger between
the Institution for Higher Commercial Studies and the University
School of Management. The merger between the two establishments
and their programs will take place at the beginning of the academic
year 2004-2005. It is expected that the school will have 2,500
students. Among the targets of the new school will be the
Meuse-Rhine Euroregion catchment area. The school will play a
major role in the economic development of the region and develop
centers of excellence in financial management, HRM, marketing and go
for Equis accreditation. It will also develop new programs in
entrepreneurship, logistics, IT and biotechnology management , most
probably with the Universities of Aachen and Maastricht. The
school will offer an MBA and will also offer some of its courses in
English.
http://www.ulg.ac.be/press
Provinces
claim a national role
[gov:
Maastricht, June 19]
The Provinces of North Brabant and Limburg are reported by Peter de
Graaf of the Volkskrant, to be asking for the transfer of particular
regional tasks from the national to the provincial level. These
include those of the construction inspectorate in the municipalities.
Traffic, waterways and highway construction, are also viewed as better
dealt with at the provincial level. Decentralization not only brings
government closer to the citizen, but also increases the efficacy of
the policy. This is the position of Governors Houben of
Brabant and van Voorst tot Voorst of Limburg. They are concerned
about current national government policy which seems designed to
prevent local projects from getting off the ground. They are also
troubled about what might be seen as the delaying tactics of
ministries. Both Governors, for example find it highly illogical
that a ministry at the national level should monitor whether building
regulations are observed in all municipalities. The
Southern provinces also feel that The Hague doesn't pay enough
attention to the needs of the South where a quarter of the population
of country lives, an area which also provides 25% of employment and
exports and 40% of expenditure on research and development. To
add insult to injury Brabant and Limburg are increasingly made
inaccessible because of the failure to clear the A2 highway bottleneck
and the Governors also see the need for light-rail systems among the
towns in Brabant and Maastricht, Heerlen and Kerkrade in South
Limburg. Messrs Houben and van Voorst tot Voorst say there has
been enough talking and enough written on the subject, it is now time
to get on with the job.
http://www.volkskrant.nl
Belgian
money for dutch migrants
[gov:
Brussels, June 8]
The Belgian government is going to inform the European Commission as
to why Dutch migrant workers don't receive Belgian unemployment
insurance payment to compliment their half-time bridging pension.
http://www.hbvl.nl
NO
double social security dues
[GOV:
Maastricht, June ]
A court in Maastricht has decided that an employee who has already
made social security payments to the state in Germany should not have
to pay again in the Netherlands. This is the result of a case
where a German citizen, resident in the Netherlands for 18 years, was
subject to a claim by the authorities for NLG 28,000 (EUR 12,710) in
Dutch social security payments on his retirement. What he had
not realized was that on retirement, as a resident in the Netherlands,
he should have made an application for exemption from the insurance
requirement, which he was then required to pay because such an
exemption could not be given retrospectively. Fortunately, the
courts agreed with his position and not that of the authorities,
although this judgment may not be the last word in the case.
http://www.aachener-zeitung.de
LIFE
SCIENCE AND SCI-TECH
A
EUR 3 MILLION MICROSCOPE
[life-sci:
Maastricht, June 27]
The Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research has awarded an
investment subsidy of EUR 3 million to the University of Maastricht
and the Technical University in Eindhoven for the purchase of a liquid
helium cooled cryo-electron microscope. This microscope allows a
view at 10 degrees above absolute zero of the nanoworld with great
precision. This is the first time that a microscope of this type
is to be located in the Netherlands, there are only 10 worldwide.
This means a view of life on a nanometer scale of one millionth part
of a millimeter. Biological and chemical information can be
combined to produce new materials and applications. This will
also provide insight into the processes taking place in the living
cell. Preparations for use of this microscope will use The
Vitrobot (Vitrification Robot) a fully PC-controlled device for
vitrification (=rapid cooling) of aqueous samples (issue 38).
http://www.pers.unimaas.nl
GIGA
GENOME-PROTEOMICS CLUSTER
[life-sci:
Liège, June 25]
The Walloon Region and the European Fund for Regional Development
(EFRD) have just released the means to enable the University of Liège
to develop a cluster of laboratories and companies for GIGA (the
interdisciplinary applied genome-proteomics cluster) at the city's
hospital center CHU. The laboratories involved are molecular biology
and genetic engineering, the laboratory for factorial and molecular
genetics (veterinary sciences), the laboratory for virology and
immunology, the mass spectrometry laboratory and the laboratory for
cellular biology and tissue study.
http:///www.ulg.ac.be/le15jour
funding
for women scholars
[life-sci:
Maastricht, June 25]
At Maastricht University, a special source of funding for women
scholars, known as the Aspasia Fund has gone to Dr Ellen Baak (Human
Biology), for research into the role of fatty acids in obesity and
diabetes mellitus, to Dr Madelon Peters (Medical, Clinical and
Experimental Psychology), for work on chronic pain and to Dr
Bernadette Schmitt, (Neurocognition), who is involved in brain scans
to determine how words are selected. Aspasia was the most
celebrated of the Greek Hetaerae; however, the founders of this prize
were probably thinking of her salon, a center of literary and
philosophical society in Periclean Athens, and not of her role in
luring Pericles away from his wife or of the accomplishments of
other such ladies.
http://www.pers.unimaas.nl
CYCLOTRON RESEARCH
CENTER IN THE NEWS
[LIFE-SCI: Liège, June 22]
Research conducted at the Cyclotron Research Center Liège focuses on
the biological basis of the cerebral processes in human beings using
the functional neuro-imaging techniques of positron emission
tomography (PET) and electroencephalography (EEG). A functional
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) apparatus will soon be available as
well. Recently scholars from the Cyclotron Research Center at
the University of Liège, led by Dr Pierre Maquet, presented
information on their research into brain-scanning during rapid eye
movement (REM) sleep in Japan. The issue being investigated was
why sleep is good for the memory. Dr Maquet, according to The
Economist, used Positron Emission Tomography (PET) to study the
brains of people as they practised a task during the day and as they
slept during the following night. The team concluded that the
neural connections involved in memory are reinforced through
reactivation during REM sleep, particularly if the brain detects an
intrinsic structure in the material being learnt.
http://www.ulg.ac.be/crc/
AIXTRON IN 10 BEST
AGAIN
[TECH: Aachen/San Jose,
California, June 20]
Aixtron is proud the announce that the results of the 2002 VLSI
Research Incorporated Customer Satisfaction Survey on Chip Making
equipment show that customers have rated Aixtron among the 10
best in the small suppliers of wafer processing equipment category for
the fourth year in succession. In this double-blind survey, statistics
were drawn from a mailing of 55,000 questionnaires sent out worldwide
in six languages.
http://www.aixtron.com
BIOTECHNICA
BUSINESS FORUM
[LIFE-SCI: Hanover, June 19 ]
An announcement has been published about the Biotechnica Business
Forum to be held in Hanover November 27 through 28 of this year.
Biotechnica's Business Forum is inviting participants to get together.
It is not a scientific congress but a summit for the industry which
will bring together all of the areas of biotechnology and
life-sciences to develop new ideas and to develop their networks.
It will be grouped around four themes. First, will be biotech
trends and biotech business; second, biotech in Europe and
biotech politics. The themes will be chaired by key individuals
from the industry. Biotech business by Horst Domdey of BioM AG,
Crispin Kirkman of the BioIndustry Association in London will lead the
forum on biotech in Europe. Jens Katzek, of the German Industrial
Association of Biotechnology (DIB) in Frankfurt, will chair the
biotech politics session. Another prominent participant will be
the Federal Minister of Education and Research, Edelgard Bulmahn.
The target groups are marketing and business managers of biotech
business and start-ups, general managers, researchers and developers
in the food and drink sector, the chemicals industry, pharmaceutical
and medical technology and also students and teachers. Biotech
Business Forum will be held in future every two years, Biotechnica
will be held in the uneven years and Biotech Business in the even
years.
http://www.messe.de
FIRST 3G CALL IN
THE NETHERLANDS
[TECH: Maastricht, June 17]
Sir Christopher Gent, MD of Vodafone, made the first public 3G call in
the Netherlands when he telephoned a network engineer in Maarssen from
Maastricht. Vodafone-Libertel started construction of its 3G
network in April and hopes to be offering the services soon. Let
us hope they start before everybody starts thinking about 4G and mesh
antennae.
http://www.europemedia.net
POSITION PAPER
FROM FORUM TELECOM
[TECH: Liège, June 14]
Forum Telecom (analogous to Regitel and Regina) is an association in
the Province of Liège which was set up at the initiative of SPI+, the
Liège Development Company, six years ago with the support of the
Walloon region and the European Union to investigate IT and telecom
issues in the area. It now has 2,000 members. The Position
Paper is based on questionnaires, 955 of which were sent by e-mail and
1,469 which were sent by regular mail. Interestingly the results
of the inquiry have come up with points of view that are not
unfamiliar in other parts of the Euroregion. The points
headlined are the confusion about services; the relationship between
the customer and the operators; the problem of billing, an area of
persistent opacity; the persistence of monopolies despite the much
vaunted options of liberalization and finally the poor geographical
coverage of digital subscriber lines and the problem of the local
loop, the last mile home, which still is largely in the hands of the
monopolists. Then there is the failure of services to meet SME
needs for data services. One surprising omission is that,
although the paper does at some point look forward to wi-fi
developments, it is still talking about third generation
developments whereas fourth generation developments and mesh-network
technology are now widely discussed, as is the bottom-up approach to
networks in wireless communication.
http://www.forumtelecom.org
BUSINESS FROM
AACHEN
[TECH: Aachen, June]
The Business Promotion and European Affairs Department of the City of
Aachen produces a magazine on Aachen as a business location called Wirtschafsstandort
Aachen. In its ninth issue it includes in its contents
Expo-Real an international fair for business real estate from October
28 through 30, 2002 for the fifth time in Munich. There are
9,000 exhibitors, including 150 from outside Germany. It
includes lectures and discussions in addition to the presentations.
Also on the list is EuRegionale 2008, 25 years of the Meuse-Rhine
Euroregion. It discusses Poland on its way to membership of the
EU and the role that Aachen can play as an example and other
interesting issues. Information at e-mail: wifoe@mail.aachen.de
http://www.aachen.de
BARRIER
THERAPEUTICS INC. RAISES USD 46M
[LIFE-SCI: Princeton, May 10
]
Barrier Therapeutics Inc., a new drug development company for
dermatological products, has raised USD 46m to create an independent
biopharmaceutical company based on technology and products licensed
from Janssen Pharmaceutica Products, L.P., Johnson & Johnson
Consumer Companies Inc., and Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical Inc., (all
affiliates of Johnson & Johnson). JP Morgan Partners and TL
Ventures serve as the lead investors with additional participation
from Perseus-Soros BioPharmaceutical Fund, Baker/Tisch Investment
Partners, and KBC of Belgium. Barrier will use the funds to
complete clinical development of its three lead products, in or
entering Phase III clinical trials, and to further the progress of six
additional products in the Company's clinical development pipeline.
The Company's three late-stage development candidates address fungal
infections, diaper dermatitis and seborrheic dermatitis.
Barrier's earlier-stage clinical programs are in the areas of
psoriasis, acne, skin inflammation, allergies and wound healing.
The Barrier Management team includes Marcel Borgers as Chief
Scientific Officer, an expert in determatological and cardiovascular
pharmacology. Dr Borgers has been Vice-President of Life
Sciences Pharmacology at Janssen Research and is Professor of
Cardiovascular Pharmacology at the University of Maastricht.
http://www.biospace.com
LEISURE
DUERER
IN MALMEDY
[LEI: Malmedy, June 29]
There will be an exhibition of the works of Albrecht Dürer at Maison
Cavens, place de Rome 11, Malmedy from June 29 through September 1
daily from 14.00-17.00 hrs, except Monday and July 21. 35 Original
engravings of this great 15th century German artist will be on display
and they will include the 15 engravings of the Apocalyps of St. John
the Evangelist. Information can be had from 00.32.80.33.70.58.
http://www.malmedy.be/info/musees.htm
VIDEO
ART
[LEI: Aachen, June 28 ]
There is an exhibition of contemporary video art at the Ludwig Forum
for International Art, June 28 through August 18. The work of
the following artists will be shown Kjell Bjorgeengen, Yael Davids,
Anne-Katrina Dolven, Gunilla Klingberg, Maria Marshall, Tony Oursler,
Bettina Pousttchi, Anri Sala, Grazia Toderi and Minnette Vari.
http://www.ludwigforum.de
CHARLES
EYCK THE ARTIST
[lEI:
Maastricht, June 27]
There will be an exhibition of the work of the well-known Maastricht
artist Charles Eyck from June 2002 through January 10, 2003 at the
Administrative Building at the University of Maastricht, and there
will also be a small exhibition at the State Rijksarchief.
The first exhibition will deal with Eyck's relationship with the
magazine De Gemeenschap in the 1930's and the exhibition at the
State archives will deal with Eyck as a book illustrator, of books
published by the publishers of the magazin De Gemeenschap.
http://www.pers.unimaas.nl
CLOSE
TO A MILLION AT LIMBURG PAVILION
[LEI: Maastricht, June 24]
Up to and including June 23, 945,000 visitors had visited the Limburg
Pavilion at the Floriade exhibition in the north of the country.
Floriade opened on April 6 and runs through to October 20. They
are expecting 3 million visitors to this greatest flower and garden
exhibition in the world. Limburg pavilion receives a lot of
visitors because it is part of the central concourse. There will
be a range of cultural activities through to October 20, including
performances of the Limburg Symphony Orchestra.
http://www.welkominlimburg.nl
PIET
HODIAMONT
[LEI: Thimister-Clermont, June 22]
There is an exhibition of the paintings and drawings of the Aachen
born artist, Piet Hodiamont, at the Galerie Clermont, in
Thimister-Clermont from June 22 through July 7. The gallery is
open from 1400hrs to 1600hrs.
http://www.galerie-clermont.com
IMC-UNESCO
MUSIC PRIZE
[LEI: Aachen, June 21]
The IM-UNESCO music prize is uniquely important in the world of music.
It has been awarded by UNESCO and the International Music Council
(IMC) since 1975 . It was initially a biennial prize and awarded
at various locations. Since 1994, however, the prize has been
awarded annually in Aachen. This year it goes to Maria Joao
Pires and the Oman Center for Traditional Music. Maria Joao
Pires is a distinguished pianist who has a preference for chamber
music and has formed a duet, since 1989, with the French violinist
Augustin Dumay. She was educated in Lisbon, Munich and Hanover
and started her international career in 1970 by winning the Brussels
competition on Beethoven's 200th birthday. Madame Pires has also
played and important role in Portugal in the struggle for the rights
for women and children. The Oman Center for Traditional Music
was established in 1984 at the initiative of the Sultan and is
intended to show the influence of traditional music in Omani culture.
The Center has a very extensive archive of traditional Omani songs and
dances and a range of audio-visual media documents. It also
publishes information about the country's traditional music. In
addition to a certificate and the UNESCO Picasso-Miro-Medallion, there
is a prize of EUR 2,500.
http://www.aachen.de
FRANCOFOLIES
HERE AGAIN
[LEI: Spa, June 20]
From the July 17 thru 21, the annual festival of French music and
light entertainment will be held in Spa. Further information is
available at the website.
http://www.francofolies.be
A
LIMBURG DOUBLE ACT
[LEI: Maastricht, June 18]
An excellent guide book to both Limburgs in a handy 60-page issue that
can be slipped into an inside pocket, if you have a capacious one, has
been published at the initiative of the Provinces of Belgian and
Netherlands Limburg. It includes the history of the area, a
history of the roman period of religious developments, the famous
Maasland style of architecture, the French period, the canal and river
networks, gastronomy and separate chapters on Hasselt and Maastricht.
Throughout the book there are tips on trips for walking and cycling,
trips that can be made with addresses, websites and telephone numbers.
It is a practical and extremely useful guide. Its presentation at
Chateau Neercanne was prefaced by the Belgian Provincial
parliamentarian J.P. Lavigne and Netherlands Limburg representative
Martin Eurlings. An interesting reference during the
presentation was made to comments by Belgian politician Sylvain
Sleypen, who makes reference to the colonization of the
Meuse-Rhineland by Brussels and The Hague. The concept of
Meuse-Rhineland is one that is becoming increasingly popular and
reports abound of secret conclaves on the subject held by Messrs
Eurlings and Sleypen at Bokrijk. It would perhaps have been nice
to see the author Martine Boutz-Schijvens on the podium as well.
The previous edition had been written by Koenraad Nijssen. The
photographs were by Eddy Daniëls and Stefan Kellens.
http://www.limburg.nl
http://www.limburg.be
AMERICAN
MUSIC
[LEI: Maastricht, June 18]
There will be a performance of Gian-Carlo Menotti's opera 'The Consul'
at Theater aan het Vrijthof in Maastricht on Thursday July 4,
American Independence Day, at 2015 hrs. The Limburg Symphony
Orchestra will be conducted by Jan Stulen. Soloists will include Frans
Kekkelmans, Kelly God, Yvonne Schiffelers, Daphne Ramaekers, Pascal
Pittie and the Director will be Jan Bouws. The choice of
contemporary opera has to do with the annual festival of American
music and the invitation came from the Netherlands American Institute
Limburg (NAIL) which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its
relationship with the United States. The production was
supported by the Province of Limburg.
http://www.lso.nl
DON
GIOVANNI AT THE PALACE
[LEI: Liège, June 14]
There will be a performance of Mozart's Don Giovanni in the courtyard
of the Episcopal Palace in Liège on August 22, 23 and 24 starting at
2100hrs. Tickets are priced at EUR 25, 30, 35 and 45 (VIP).
Information and reservations at 00 32 70 222 007. The opera will
be directed by Gérad Corbiau with the Belgian baritone Marc Claesen
as Don Giovanni who will share the role with Taras Kulish, a young
Canadian star. The commendatore will be played by Jean-Marie
Lenaerts and Leporello by Werner Van Mechelen. Donna Anna will
be played by Olga Pasichnyk.
http://www.orw.be/
EVOKING
SIMENON
[LEI: Liège, June 12 ]
A book is being published by Michelle Lemoine and publishers Céfal
with the assistance of the Centre d'études Georges Simenon
called 'Liège couleur Simenon'. In 560 pages the author
takes the reader through the city to those places which had left their
mark on Simenon himself like Outremeuse and from Amercoeur to
Coronmeuse. It is also a journey in time, providing a memoir of the
city and there are articles written by Simenon in the Gazette de Liège
between 1919 and 1922.
http://www.lalibre.be
PAVEMENT
MUSIC
[LEI: Hasselt, June]
In July and August there will be live music every Thursday evening in
the Kapermolenpark in Hasselt. Flanders Summer Festival will be
bringing multi-cultural music in various styles to the park. The
program changes regularly and entrance is free.
http://www.hasselt.be
SUMMER
ART
[LEI: Aachen, June]
There will be the Summer Arts in the Katschof in the center of Aachen
behind the great city hall from July 10 through 13. This will
include open-air concerts of various types opened by the 'Young
Tenors' on July 10. On Thursday July 11 there will be a concert
given by Maceo Parker, a soul and funk giant together with the Dutch
saxophonist Candy Dulfer. On Friday July 12 there will be a
performance of 'Glashaus 3 Normal Generation' and special guests.
On Saturday the series will end with a performance by 'Toto' a
well-known American group.
http://www.aachen.de
CASTLES
AND FORTRESSES IN MEUSE-RHINE
[LEI: Theux, June ]
A new book has been published on castles and fortresses in
Meuse-Rhine which focuses on Millen in Belgian Limburg, Franchimont in
the Province of Liège, Maastricht and Nideggen in the Düren
district. The book is supported by an EU Interreg II project.
The underlying objective is to provide cultural and historical
information by developing visitor centers in the castles and
fortresses mentioned above. There is also a series of cycling
networks around these locations and of course the book which talks
about the development of these fortresses describes topographical
aspects. It also gives a good introduction to the historical and
cultural development of the region. There are 18 routes, 12 by
car and 6 by bike and other sites along the way. The book is
published in Dutch, French and German editions by the Grenz-Echo
Verlag in Eupen.
http://www.euregio.net/ge
FETE
NATIONALE FRANCAISE AND A GALLIC VILLAGE
[LEI: Liège, June 14 ]
July 14 is celebrated in the Palais de Congrès and the Place
Saint-Paul in Liège and August 15 is the big festival 'Outremeuse'.
July 14 has splendid open-air balls and a typical French market with a
firework show to bring it all to a dramatic end. Gallic opportunities
for dining al fresco are already available at the Place St
Paul.
http://www.liege.be
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