PRAGUE (Reuters) - The Czech environment ministry has picked Norwegian firm DNV to assess expansion plans at a coal-fired power plant which has raised objections from the tiny Pacific nation of Micronesia. In December, the Federated States of Micronesia challenged Czech utility CEZ's plans to extend the life of three blocks at its Prunerov plant, while raising their output and ...

BERLIN (Reuters) - Roman Polanski may be under house arrest in a Swiss chalet, but the Polish-French director is set to dominate this year's Berlin film festival where his latest movie "The Ghost Writer" will be unveiled. Interest in the 76-year-old's film, one of 20 competition entries vying for awards at the February 11-21 event, has inevitably soared since ...

ZURICH (Reuters) - Swatch Group, the world's largest watchmaker by sales, said it is aiming for its best year ever in 2010 after seeing a strong pick-up in sales in January and February, easing worries that a flagging economic recovery might hit demand. "We see high double-digit sales growth in January and also in February so far and this should ...

KABUL (Reuters) - At least 28 people died and hundreds were trapped through the night in freezing cold and darkness after avalanches closed a mountain highway tunnel in Afghanistan. Passengers trapped in the Salang pass, the main route across the Hindu Kush mountains, said by telephone that they were freezing to death and being suffocated by car fumes, and had seen ...