Airbus launches new planes in wide body family

FARNBOROUGH, England — Airbus has launched updated versions of its A330 wide body aircraft in a bit to improve fuel efficiency, increase range and help the aircraft compete against Boeing's 787 Dreamliner.

Airbus told reporters Monday the new designs for the A330-800neo and the A330-900neo will reduce fuel consumption by 14 percent per seat and boost the model's range by 400 nautical miles.

Air Lease Corp. of Los Angeles on Monday agreed to buy 25 of the new A330-900s as well as 60 A320neos. No financial details were immediately disclosed at the world's premier aviation event in the south of England.

The launch comes as Airbus struggles to find buyers for the larger A350 model.

Emirates recently cancelled an order for the A350, and opted for Boeing aircraft of a similar size.

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How nations are tackling nuclear waste storage

TOKYO — For years, Japan has struggled to find a site to safely store highly radioactive waste from nuclear power plants for as long as 100,000 years.

Tens of thousands of tons of spent fuel stored at nuclear power plants will remain dangerously radioactive for thousands of years — a vexing problem that nuclear-powered nations around the world face. After decades of studies, scientists now agree that underground storage is the best option, but finding a community willing to host a radioactive dump site is difficult.

Here is how some countries have tackled the issue:

—JAPAN: Despite trying to find a storage site for more than a decade, Japan still doesn't have one. It seeks to continue its fuel recycling program and envisions an underground facility that can store more than 40,000 vitrified waste cylinders, each weighing half a ton and enclosed in a thick steel canister and an additional thick layer of clay, at a site 300 meters (990 feet) underground or deeper. The 3.5 trillion yen ($35 billion) repository is planned for launch by 2040, but a delay is likely given the lack of site candidates.

—UNITED STATES: A plan to dispose of spent fuel rods from commercial power plants and high-level waste from the country's weapons program at a 500-meter-deep (1,640-foot-deep) underground site at Yucca Mountain in Nevada failed in 2009 after more than $90 billion was spent. The government is now looking at extending the use of interim "dry cask" storage for spent fuel to buy time until it can find a new site for a possible 2048 launch.

—FINLAND: One of the world's most successful models, a current test site, called Onkalo, which means "cave," will be used as a final repository starting around 2020 to dispose of 9,000 tons of spent fuel without reprocessing, to be stored in protective casks. The site will be located as deep as 450 meters (1,480 feet) underground on hard crystalline bedrock.

—SWEDEN: Another successful model, Sweden is expecting to start construction next year on a 500-meter (1,640-foot) -deep repository to dispose of 12,000 tons of spent fuel, without reprocessing, for a planned launch in 2029. The project has so far cost about $7.4 billion since 1990.

—FRANCE: Experienced in fuel reprocessing, fabrication and storage of vitrified high-level waste, France has helped Japan with fuel recycling technologies. The country has identified a candidate site near its deep underground research site in the northeast town of Bure, to be located as deep as 500 meters (1,640 feet) underground on clay bedrock. It will store vitrified waste and high-level waste from the country's fuel reprocessing program, for a planned launch around 2025.

—BRITAIN: The country has a fuel reprocessing policy, but not all spent fuel is expected to be recycled. Britain has not found a research venue or a final repository, though its Nuclear Decommissioning Authority has been searching since 2008. Under the current plan, Britain will dig as deep as 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) to create a repository, for a possible launch by the late 2050s.

—GERMANY: Under Germany's nuclear phase-out policy, all power stations are to be closed by around 2022. Spent fuel is being managed jointly by the utilities for interim storage until final disposal by the federal government. Separated high-level waste from past reprocessing in France and Britain will return to Germany by 2022 for final disposal. The northern town of Gorleben's salt dome is considered a potential site for geological disposal, with a planned launch around 2035.

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Mylan to buy Abbott business line in $5.3B deal

PITTSBURGH — The generic drugmaker Mylan is buying Abbott Laboratories' generic-drugs business in developed markets for stock valued at about $5.3 billion.

Mylan said Monday that the deal will diversify and expand its business outside the U.S. The combined company will be organized in the Netherlands, which will help reduce its tax expenses. The company will keep its headquarters near Pittsburgh.

The deal is expected to lower Mylan's tax rate to approximately 20 percent to 21 percent in the first full year, and to the high teens after that.

Several other U.S. companies are using mergers to reincorporate in countries with lower tax rates. These moves are raising concerns among U.S. lawmakers because they can cost the federal government billions in tax revenue.

The business to be acquired by Mylan encompasses more than 100 generic and specialty drugs sold in Europe, Japan, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Some of the products include Creon, Influvac, Brufen, Amitiza and Androgel. It also include manufacturing plants in France and Japan.

The portfolio of products accounted for about $2 billion in sales last year.

Abbott is keeping its branded generic drug business in emerging markets. That business had 2013 sales of $2.9 billion. It is also keeping its other businesses and products in developed markets.

Abbott will own about 21 percent of the combined Mylan company — which will be called Mylan NV — but does not intend to remain a long-term shareholder. Shares of Mylan NV will trade on the Nasdaq under Mylan's existing ticker symbol, "MYL."

The transaction is expected to about double Mylan's revenue in Europe by strengthening its presence in countries such as Italy, the U.K., Germany, France, Spain and Portugal. It also is expected to more than double Mylan's revenue in Canada and Japan, and strengthen its business in Australia and New Zealand. The deal also gives Mylan a meaningful presence in the specialty and branded generics market in Central and Eastern Europe.

The deal is expected to close in early 2015. It is expected to immediately add to Mylan's earnings, to the tune of about 25 cents per share in adjusted earnings in the first year, increasing through 2018.

Mylan Inc. is based in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.

Mylan's stock added $2.10, or 4.2 percent, to $52.30 in premarket trading, while shares of Abbott gained 94 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $42.24 .

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Citigroup to pay $7B in subprime mortgages probe

WASHINGTON — Citigroup will pay $7 billion to settle an investigation into risky subprime mortgages, the type that helped fuel the financial crisis.

The agreement announced Monday comes weeks after talks between the sides broke down, prompting the government to warn that it would sue the New York investment bank. The bank had offered to pay less than $4 billion, a sum substantially less than what the Justice Department was asking for.

The settlement stems from the sale of securities made up of subprime mortgages, which fueled both the housing boom and bust that triggered the Great Recession at the end of 2007.

Citigroup and other banks downplayed the risks of subprime mortgages when packaging and selling them to mutual funds, investment trusts, pensions, as well as other banks and investors. The securities, which contained so-called residential mortgage-backed securities and collateralized debt obligations, plunged in value when the housing market collapsed in 2006 and 2007. Those losses triggered a financial crisis that pushed the economy into the worst recession since the 1930s.

The bank separately agreed in April to pay $1.13 billion to settle claims by investors seeking that the lender buy back billions of dollars in residential mortgage-backed securities.

In the deal announced Monday, Citigroup will make a $4 billion civil monetary payment to the Justice Department, and another $500 million in compensatory payments to state attorney's general and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

The bank will provide $2.5 billion in consumer relief, which will include financing for construction and preservation of affordable housing, as well as principal reduction and forbearance for residential loans.

"The comprehensive settlement announced today with the U.S. Department of Justice, state attorneys general, and the FDIC resolves all pending civil investigations related to our legacy RMBS and CDO underwriting, structuring and issuance activities, said CEO Michael Corbat. "We also have now resolved substantially all of our legacy RMBS and CDO litigation."

The bank will take a pre-tax charge of about $3.8 billion because of the settlement during its second quarter.

Shares of Citigroup Inc. rose nearly 4 percent to $48.82 an hour before the U.S. stock market opened Monday.

The Citigroup settlement comes months after a similar — but much larger — deal between the Justice Department and JPMorgan Chase & Co., the nation's biggest bank. After months of negotiations, the bank last year agreed to pay $13 billion after an investigation into toxic mortgage-backed securities.

As part of the deal, which included settlements with New York, California and other states, JPMorgan agreed to provide $4 billion in relief to homeowners affected by the bad loans. The bank also acknowledged that it misrepresented the quality of its securities to investors.

That deal was seen as a possible template for settlement with Citigroup and Bank of America Corp., which was accused in a government lawsuit last summer of failing to disclose risks and misleading investors in its sale of $850 million of mortgage-linked securities. The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a related lawsuit against Bank of America.

____

Josh Boak and Marcy Gordon in Washington contributed to this report.

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AbbVie, Shire enter detailed talks on combination

Drugmakers AbbVie and Shire have entered detailed talks about a possible combination after AbbVie raised its bid once again and offered to give Shire shareholders a bigger stake in the resulting company.

Shire said Monday that North Chicago, Illinois-based AbbVie is now offering a cash-stock combination valued at 53.20 British pounds ($91.10) for each share of Shire, which is headquartered on the British island of Jersey.

The new offer totals roughly $53.68 billion and represents an increase from AbbVie's previous proposal, which amounted to more than $51 billion. Shire PLC shareholders also would own about 25 percent of the combined new company, up from the 24 percent stake proposed in the most recent offer.

Shire had rejected several unsolicited bids from AbbVie Inc. before it asked for another revised proposal earlier this month. Shire said its board would be willing to recommend the latest bid to its shareholders if the companies resolved some other terms in the offer, which it did not detail.

The drugmaker said its board has entered "detailed discussions" with AbbVie over those terms.

Shire makes the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder medication Vyvanse as well as rare disease and gastrointestinal treatments. AbbVie was spun off from Abbott Laboratories at the start of last year. Its products include branded prescription drugs like the blockbuster anti-inflammatory drug Humira.

AbbVie executives have said the product portfolios of the two companies complement each other. The U.S. company also is interested in the tax break it could achieve through the deal.

AbbVie has said it expects the combined company to pay a tax rate of about 13 percent by 2016 after AbbVie reincorporates on Jersey. That would be down from its current rate of roughly 22 percent.

Several other U.S. companies are using or trying to use these overseas combinations called inversions to lower their tax rates. These moves are raising concerns among U.S. lawmakers since they can cost the federal government billions in tax revenue.

At 35 percent, the United States has the highest corporate income tax rate in the industrialized world. The European Union, by contrast, averages about 21 percent.

In addition to the higher tax rate, the United States also taxes income companies earn overseas once they bring it back home. The percentage taxed is the difference between the tax rate in the company where it was earned and the U.S. rate.

"We tax income where ever it is earned around the world once you bring it back home, and almost nobody else does that," said Donald Goldman, a professor at Arizona State's W.P. Carey School of Business.

Inversions can happen if a U.S. company merges with a foreign company and shareholders of the foreign entity own at least 20 percent of the newly merged business. The foreign company would either acquire the U.S. one or the two would create a new firm overseas, but the U.S. company can keep its corporate offices, and executives wouldn't have to move overseas.

AbbVie's stock fell 2.4 percent, or $1.31 to $53.65 in pre-market trading Monday after Shire announced the deal update. U.S.-traded shares of Shire rose by $4.30 to $253.36.

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Quincy lures tech firms

Quincy is throwing its hat into the Massachusetts technology ring, trying to lure growing high tech and life sciences companies — and the coveted jobs they bring with them — to the City of Presidents.

"We've really been working hard to put the pieces together to make Quincy more attractive for investment," said Quincy Mayor Thomas Koch.

Koch said Quincy can be a good fit for companies that need a bit more space than Boston offers, particularly for light manufacturing.

Recently, Quincy sent two economic development officials to a global biotechnology conference in San Diego to pitch Quincy as a good home, and joined the newly created Life Sciences Corridor, a joint effort with Cambridge, Boston, Somerville and Braintree to market the region to companies.

Medical device company RasLabs, a former MassChallenge finalist, unveiled its new office and lab space in Quincy Thursday.

It is moving from Boston's Innovation District.

"This is a magnificent spot," RasLabs CEO Eric Sandberg said, referring to the new office. "It was everything we were looking for, there's room to expand."

RasLabs had been working out of MassChallenge and looked for office space in the Innovation District, but did not find a good fit.

RasLabs, which makes synthetic muscles, joins Boston Scientific and Bluefin Labs, makers of underwater drones, in Quincy.

Bluefin, which came into the spotlight when its underwater drones were used in the search for the missing Malaysian airliner, was offered tax incentives to move to Quincy, Koch said.

Bluefin CEO and president David Kelly said the company chose Quincy because of a supportive Quincy government as well as "the Fore River Shipyard, which offers water access and ample factory space."

Similar tax incentives could be used in the future to draw new companies to the city.

"We use any tool or resource we can to help...the economy of our city," Koch said.

Quincy, where the unemployment rate is just 4.8 percent, according to the state, is still trying to expand its economy.

"For Quincy, or any community, it's important to do as much as you can to diversify your economy and your commercial base so you're not relying on one industry sector," said Dean Rizzo, president of the Quincy Chamber of Commerce.

Still, growing companies need more than just cheaper office space.

Part of Quincy's effort is creating an attractive ecosystem for companies, as well as a pipeline for future talent.

Quincy College has a new 1,600 square foot biotech lab, funded by the U.S. Department of Labor and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center.

Koch added: "It's been a real concerted effort to open our world a little bit."

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Co. creates machine shop in a box

A MassChallenge finalist founded in a Somerville community work center says it's created the world's first hybrid 3D printer they've dubbed a "machine shop in a box."

The Mebotics Microfactory combines the best of two types of manufacturing machine: one that starts with nothing more than a design and adds layer upon layer of material — usually plastic — to create a prototype, and one that begins with an amorphous material and chips away at it until the machine has sculpted the prototype according to the design's specifications.

"By combining the additive and the subtractive, we're able to work in a huge range of materials that a standard 3D printer can't," said Jeremy Fryer-Biggs, Mebotics' co-founder and CEO.

The result can be the difference between a plastic letter opener that breaks when you try to use it, and one made out of metal with a wooden handle that's not only functional but attractive, he said.

Fryer-Biggs has also used the Microfactory to make a custom speaker, a phone dock, woodblock prints, wax-casting chess pieces and a chess board made of exotic woods.

His fascination with building things began when he was a kid playing with Legos.

"Later on, while other kids were spending their allowances on pizza," he said, "I was buying things at Radio Shack for my next invention."

By the time Fryer-Biggs saw a 3D printer in action for the first time when he was a graduate student at Tufts University, he was hooked. After earning his master's degree in biomedical engineering in 2010, he started his own product-development company.

Sharper Image hired him to make a bagel-slicing device, but Fryer-Biggs was in no position to pay $500,000 for a new professional 3D printer. So he rented time on one.

"The client got angry because it took longer than expected," he said. "I said, 'Something's got to give.'"

At the time, Fryer-Biggs and three friends — Judah Sher, Calvin Domenico and Edison Gieswein — were helping grow a Somerville "maker space" called Artisan's Asylum, and they began kicking around the idea of making a hybrid manufacturing machine, one that, unlike most 3D printers, would be quiet, portable, clean and affordable.

In December 2012, they founded Mebotics, and over the next five months they financed the development of five versions of the Microfactory, each one a refinement over its predecessor.

The current version is a self-cleaning machine that can fit on a kitchen table, print materials in four colors and cut them. Because the Microfactory is connected to the Internet, Fryer-Biggs and his co-founders also are working on innovations that will allow people to remotely start their prints and monitor their machine's status, download content directly to it and network Microfactories together.

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Wine lovers raise a glass to direct shipping law

BOSTON — Whether it's pinot noir, merlot, chardonnay or cabernet sauvignon, wine lovers in Massachusetts will soon be able to have some of their favorite bottles shipped straight from the vineyards to their homes.

A provision in the new state budget lifts a long-standing prohibition on direct deliveries from wineries to consumers. It follows a spirited campaign by out-of-state producers and customers that recently received a major endorsement from former New England Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe, who operates a winery in Washington state.

The law won't take effect until Jan. 1, but connoisseurs in a state with one of the nation's highest per capita wine consumption rates are anxious to enjoy the convenience of ordering brands that are currently difficult or impossible to find on local store shelves.

"It definitely opens the door to us wine geeks to have, right on our doorsteps, these cool, funky, small-producers' wines," said Lorraine Martinelle, of Worcester.

Although she's made frequent trips to wine country in California and abroad, the best Martinelle said she could do was to have her favorites shipped to her friend's home in neighboring Connecticut.

According to Free the Grapes, an industry-backed group based in Napa, California, direct wine shipping occurs in all but nine other states: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota and Utah.

"It's about consumer choice," said Jeremy Benson, a spokesman for Free the Grapes, who added that wine lovers from Massachusetts had been among the most vocal of those in states with direct shipping bans.

Under the new law, domestic wine producers will initially pay $300 for a direct shipper's license, with a $150 renewal fee each subsequent year. Shippers may deliver no more than 12 cases of wine (containing no more than 9 liters per case) to each person in a year.

The wine must be for personal consumption only and cannot be resold. Wineries must report all deliveries to the state each year and pay Massachusetts excise taxes.

The American Wine Consumers Coalition complained that the new law would still prevent direct shipments of most international wines because they are only available in the U.S. through wine retailers, who remain barred from direct shipping under the law.

Resistance to direct shipping had come from liquor store owners who feared a loss of business and from those concerned that wine could easily be delivered to underage drinkers. The law requires that wine packages bear the words "contains alcohol" and be signed for at delivery by a person 21 years or older.

Violations could bring fines and license suspensions.

A 2006 law allowed some small wineries that didn't have a wholesale contract in the state to ship wine directly to consumers. But large producers objected, and a federal judge later struck down the law as unconstitutional.

Emily Murray, a Worcester resident and wine lover who said she had been frustrated by a lack of direct shipping, said the state's reluctance to lift the ban wasn't surprising, given that Massachusetts was also slow to end many of its blue laws, such as its former prohibition on Sunday liquor store sales.

Yet it may well have been Bledsoe, who played for the Patriots from 1993 to 2001 and was inducted into the team's Hall of Fame, who nudged the direct shipping effort over the goal line by visiting the Statehouse last year to push for the bill.

Bledsoe, owner of the Doubleback winery, explained to lawmakers that he was having trouble providing samples to friends, fans and former teammates in Massachusetts, including Tom Brady, who succeeded him as New England's quarterback.

"Tom actually bought the wine, and he shipped it to his dad's house" in California, Bledsoe said. But the plan went awry when Brady's father drank the wine before his son got there.

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Fired 'Opie and Anthony' host Anthony Cumia: 'I will never apologize'

Anthony Cumia, fired host of Sirius XM's "Opie and Anthony Show," defended himself today during his first post-scandal TV appearance.

Cumia was given the boot after making racially-charged comments on Twitter last week.

"I will never apologize for this; I didn't do anything wrong," Cumia said on Fox's "Red Eye" on Saturday morning, as reported by Mediaite. "I go off on tears like this. I curse. I say horrific things about people who piss me off and that's exactly what I did. Why am I going to apologize and say I am different or I changed? I haven't. It would be a phony bogus apology. If it happened again, I would do the same thing."

Cumia, who called a black woman a "pig" and "an animal" after she allegedly punched him in the face for trying to take a photo, said his comments weren't racist as he wasn't referring to all black people, just those who happen to be violent.

The radio shock jock described SiriusXM's actions as "hypocritical" because he hasn't been punished before for making similar comments on air for 10 years.

"To fire me for something on social media is kind of hypocritical, I think," Cumia said. "There wasn't even any outrage. No one approached SiriusXM and said 'Oh my God, you've got to fire him.' It was such a kneejerk reaction in this day and age."

(C) 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Voltage to the starter is key to non-starting Focus

I found a 2003 Ford Focus with 30,000 miles for my daughter's transportation needs for a few years. After driving to a destination, the engine refuses to turn over unless you wait 20-30 minutes. This only happens in summertime and it simply "clicks" like a battery problem. I've had it analyzed on the computer and got no hits. My mechanic, to his credit, doesn't want to just guess at the problem until he's more sure of the source. Can you help?

Anytime there's an intermittent no-crank issue, the question is whether or not battery voltage is reaching the starter motor. A volt meter across the battery terminals as you attempt to crank the engine will tell you the answer. If voltage immediately drops into the 10- to 12-volt range as you turn the key, current is reaching the starter motor and it is trying to crank the engine. If you can, tap the starter or solenoid with a baseball bat while attempting to crank the engine — with all due caution and safety, of course. If the engine suddenly cranks, it is likely a faulty starter motor or starter solenoid.

If, on the other hand, the volt meter shows no significant change in battery voltage as you attempt to crank the engine, no current is reaching the starter motor. There is likely a poor-quality connection or ground somewhere in the starting circuit.

In either case I'd suggest disconnecting the battery and disassembling/cleaning/resecuring every electrical and ground connection in the starting circuit.

The clutch pedal in my 1988 Dodge Ram 50 was hard to depress after 30,000 km on a replaced clutch kit. I installed a new disc, pressure plate and throw-out bearing. I examined the cable for binding and kinks but found nothing — the cable was smooth in the casing. It is still really hard to depress. I've correctly adjusted the cable free play. I even took off the cable from the transmission and manually swung the clutch fork that moves the throw-out bearing. It is smooth and easy until it contacts the pressure plate, then super resistance. When I had the transmission out I saw no binding of the throw-out bearing sliding on the spindle. Help!

I'll assume you installed a stock replacement clutch assembly — not a heavy-duty clutch that might inherently require more pedal effort to disengage. Dodge recommends lightly lubricating the input shaft splines with wheel bearing grease and the pilot bushing in the rear of the crankshaft with a multi-purpose grease to prevent the clutch disc splines from binding on the shaft.

Years ago I stumbled across an unusual cause for a very stiff clutch pedal. The bushing in the clutch pedal was binding on the shaft the clutch pedal pivots on under the dash. I discovered this only when I accidentally pushed the clutch pedal with the cable disconnected from the pedal assembly. I ended up disassembling, lightly honing, lubricating and reassembling the pedal assembly – problem solved.

Even though the cable isn't binding as you move it by hand, it could have worn a groove in its casing/housing, which may cause binding under the stress of disengaging the clutch.

If I do a fast takeoff from a stop, the transmission on my '05 Buick LeSabre clunks hard shifting through all gears. If I stop and shut the car off it is fine and won't do it again until I have to do a quick takeoff. What do you think?

When this occurs, does the SES (Service Engine Soon) lamp illuminate? Your first step is to have a scan tool check for DTC fault codes. The transmission may be dropping into "limp mode" and operating with higher hydraulic pressure to protect itself. A simple DIY approach is to add half a can of SeaFoam Trans-Tune to the transmission to clean the valve body and hydraulic components.

Paul Brand, author of "How to Repair Your Car," is an automotive troubleshooter, driving instructor and former race-car driver. Readers may write to him at: Star Tribune, 425 Portland Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn., 55488 or via email at paulbrand@startribune.com. Please explain the problem in detail and include a daytime phone number. Because of the volume of mail, we cannot provide personal replies.

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