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(Alliance News) – Rank Group PLC on Wednesday said it is reviewing various mitigating actions, including future investment plans, as it outlined the hit from the government’s betting duty changes.

The Maidenhead, England-based casino operator said the total annualised impact of the additional costs on the group’s operating profit is a reduction of around GBP40 million before mitigation.

In the financial year to June, Rank reported operating profit of GBP67.0 million.

Rank said the GBP40 million additional cost comprises: the annualised impact on the UK Digital business of the increase in the rate of Remote Gaming Duty from 21% to 40% which will cost GBP46 million offset by offset by the GBP6 million benefit arising from the abolition of bingo duty.

Rank said it is reviewing various mitigating actions for the UK Digital business in the context of “profitability, investment plans and the competitive landscape, which will inevitably be impacted as a result of the tax changes announced by the Chancellor.”

The firm said the increase to the National Minimum Wage represents an additional cost impact of GBP5.5 million.

Rank said it has a “strong balance sheet and expects to operate well within its financial covenants.”

Shares in Rank closed 12% higher at 120.00 pence each in London on Wednesday.

By Jeremy Cutler, Alliance News reporter

Comments and questions to newsroom@alliancenews.com

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ADEN, Yemen, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) — The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has pledged 1 billion U.S. dollars to support electricity and energy projects across war-ravaged Yemen, according to a report by the state-run Saba news agency on Wednesday.

The announcement was made following a meeting in Aden between Presidential Leadership Council chief Rashad Al-Alimi and UAE Ambassador Mohamed Hamad Al Zaabi, who reaffirmed Abu Dhabi’s intention to help restore Yemen’s battered power network.

Yemen has faced chronic electricity outages for more than two decades, with southern provinces like Aden experiencing blackouts that can stretch up to 12 hours a day. Damage to power plants, limited fuel supplies and fragmented authorities have left millions relying on private generators and small-scale solar systems.

The UAE’s new pledge coincided with the First National Energy Conference held in Aden, where government officials, investors, and renewable energy experts gathered to discuss long-term reforms aimed at stabilizing the grid and attracting financing to the country. ■