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MIL-OSI Global: How Putin, Xi and now Trump are ushering in a new imperial age

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Eric Storm, Senior Lecturer in General History, Leiden University

Over the past few weeks the new US president, Donald Trump, has repeatedly claimed that the United States should “take back” the Panama Canal and that it should assume control of Greenland – one way or another. He has talked of Canada becoming America’s 51st state and now he even wants to “take over” the Gaza Strip to convert it into a “Riviera” on the eastern Mediterranean.

It’s as if the US president believes that his country should be an empire. In this Trump seems to be emulating China’s Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin of Russia, leaders he has said he admires and who have themselves shown some clear imperial tendencies in recent years.

Under Putin, Russia has supported secessionist regions, such as Transnistria and Abkhazia, fought wars in Georgia and Ukraine and actively interfered in the affairs of Syria and assorted African countries. In 2022 Russia even launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, claiming that Ukraine was historically inseparable from Russia, but that hostile western influences were trying to destroy that unity.

China, meanwhile, has militarised a number of small uninhabited islands in the South China Sea. It has built 27 installations on disputed islands in the Spratly and Paracel island group that are also claimed by other countries including Vietnam, Taiwan, the Philippines and Malaysia. This has prompted a flurry of development, as other countries in the region have raced to establish their own footholds in the disputed, but very resource-rich, region.

Beijing also maintains its claim over Taiwan, which it says is an inalienable part of China which it wants to “come home”.

Empires and nation states

Most people assumed that the age of empires had been relegated to the dustbin of history. But this is by no means a straightforward proposition. Until relatively recently, the rise and fall of empires had dominated much of recorded history. Nation-states only appeared at the end of the 18th century. And as those states rose to prominence many too displayed imperial inclinations.

So the US, fresh from throwing off the yoke of the British empire, wasted little time in expanding its borders westward, acquiring – whether by conquest or purchase – large swaths of new territory in what effectively turned a small group of east coast states into a continental empire.

Meanwhile other newly minted nation-states such as Italy and Germany also aspired to acquire overseas empires and involved themselves, with varying success, building what turned out to be relatively shortlived colonial empires in Africa and elsewhere.

Most traditional dynastic empires, meanwhile, began to adopt various aspects of the nation-state model, such as conscription, legal equality and political participation. The decades following the second world war are often seen by historians as a period of decolonisation by traditional imperial powers such as Britain and France. But the transition from empire to nation-states was far from smooth. Most imperial governments hoped to transform their empires into more egalitarian commonwealths, while retaining a degree of influence.

This they did with varying degrees of success and often under extreme duress, as with France in Algeria and Vietnam, or under great economic pressure, such as with Britain and India. The real age of the nation-state didn’t begin until the 1960s.

The return of empire?

Today, the world consists of about 200 independent countries, the overwhelming majority nation-states. Nonetheless, one could argue that empires – or at least imperial tendencies – have never totally disappeared. France, for instance, frequently interfered in many of its former colonies in Africa. However, these military interventions were not meant to permanently occupy new territories.

Today, imperial tendencies seem to resurface around the world. The past, however, tends not to repeat itself. Massive wars of conquest or attempts to create new overseas empires are unlikely in the immediate future. Most imperial expansions are currently sought close to home.

What is striking is that Putin, Xi and Trump all use fierce nationalist rhetoric to justify their imperialist designs. Putin, as we have seen, claims the indivisibility of Ukraine and Russia and blames “Nazis” for trying to turn Russia’s sister state towards the west. He used it as a justification for invading Ukraine in February 2022.

Xi, in turn, often maintains that Communist China has finally overcome the century of humiliation, in which the country was the plaything of foreign powers. They both seem to yearn for past imperial greatness. The Russian Federation aims to undo the dissolution of the Soviet Union, communist China looks back to the Qing empire. Interestingly, under its increasingly authoritarian leader Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey – another regional power with imperial inclinations – similarly finds inspiration in the Ottoman Empire.

The US case seems to be more complex, but in fact is very similar. Thus, Trump argues that the Panama Canal, which has long been administered by the US, was foolishly returned to Panama by Jimmy Carter and claims that it is now controlled by China. He will, he says, return it to the US.

Trump also refers to America’s “Manifest Destiny”, the 19th-century belief that American settlers were destined to expand to the Pacific coast. These days his aspirations are northwards rather than to the west. The president also wants to plant the US flag on Mars, taking his imperial dreams into outer space.

If the US joins China and Russia in violating recognised borders, the international, rights-based order could be in danger. The signs are not very positive. Taking steps to illegally annex territories could blow up the entire international edifice.

Eric Storm does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. How Putin, Xi and now Trump are ushering in a new imperial age – https://theconversation.com/how-putin-xi-and-now-trump-are-ushering-in-a-new-imperial-age-248160

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: AI can boost economic growth, but it needs to be managed incredibly carefully

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Professor Ashley Braganza, Professor of Business Transformation, Brunel University of London

Erman Gunes / Shutterstock

The UK government’s efforts to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into public services and stimulate economic growth represents a pivotal step in the roll out of the technology in this country.

AI offers the promise of improving public services by enabling faster, more efficient processes, personalising provision of those services for the public and optimising decision-making. However, the adoption of this technology in public systems brings inherent risks, particularly in an environment characterised by rapid technological developments.

A primary concern and challenge lies in ensuring that AI adoption builds trust in public services. Mismanagement of AI can worsen inequality, lead to job losses, and erode public confidence in government and the further rollout of AI-based technologies.

Balancing these opportunities and risks requires understanding the trade offs involved, notably the tension between job creation and displacement, unconstrained benefits from the misuse of AI, and the need for fairness, transparency, equity and a capacity to be able to explain the design of algorithms.

AI has the potential to generate employment in fields such as data science, algorithm design and system maintenance. However, automating routine administrative tasks such as form processing and record management threatens to make many public sector roles redundant.

The challenge lies in maintaining efficiency and accountability while addressing inevitable job gigification. This transition will not be uniform. Workers in roles vulnerable to automation will experience immediate consequences.

The government has rightly identified the need to invest in reskilling initiatives that prepare workers for an AI-driven future. Reskilling is necessary but insufficient to fuel economic growth.

As tasks are gigified by AI technologies, traditional full-time jobs become increasingly scarce, leading to more “white collar” workers experiencing income volatility, periods of un- or underemployment and precarious living. Yet, extant financial systems are based upon patterns of monthly income and expenditure on mortgages and rent or utilities.

Financial systems need to become significantly more flexible to enable workers to align uncertain income streams with unavoidable regular expenditure on necessities such as food and internet connectivity.

Oversight is key

The risks of AI algorithm failures are particularly apparent when systems deployed in the public sector cause harm. A glaring example is the UK Post Office scandal, where inaccurate data from the Horizon IT system led to wrongful prosecutions.

This case highlights the importance of oversight in AI deployment. Without a mix of regulations, guidelines and guardrails, errors in AI systems can lead to serious consequences, particularly in sectors related to justice, welfare and resource allocation.

Government must ensure that AI-driven systems are not only efficient and accurate but also auditable. Independent bodies should oversee the design, implementation, and evaluation of AI systems to reduce risks of failure.

AI can enhance public services, but it is important to acknowledge that algorithms reflect biases inherent in their design and training data. In the public sector, these biases can have unintended and unforeseen consequences that are invidious, as they are hidden in the depths of complex computer code.

For instance, AI systems used in housing allocation can exacerbate existing inequalities if trained on biased historical data. Fairness and trust should therefore be core principles in AI development. Developers must use diverse, representative datasets and conduct bias audits throughout the process.

Citizen engagement is essential, as affected communities can provide valuable input to identify flaws and contribute to solutions that promote equity.
A key challenge for policymakers is whether AI can deliver on its promise without deepening social divisions or reinforcing discriminatory practices. Transparency in AI decision making is essential for maintaining public trust.

Citizens are more likely to trust systems when they understand how decisions are made. Governments should commit to clear, accessible communication about AI systems, allowing individuals to challenge and appeal automated decisions. While AI adoption will likely cause disruption in the early stages, these challenges can diminish over time, leading to faster, more personalised services and more meaningful work opportunities for government employees.

AI systems are dynamic, continuously evolving with the data they process and the contexts in which they operate. Governments must prioritise ongoing review and auditing of AI systems to ensure they meet public needs and ethical standards. Engaging relevant stakeholders – citizens, public sector employees and private sector partners – is essential to this process.

Transparent communication about the goals, benefits, and limitations of AI helps build public trust and ensures that AI systems remain responsive to societal needs. Independent audits conducted by multidisciplinary teams can identify flaws early and prevent harm. To fully realise AI’s potential and ensure its benefits are distributed equitably, policymakers must carefully balance efficiency, fairness, innovation, and accountability.

A strategic focus on education, ethical algorithm design and transparent governance is necessary. By investing in education, AI ethics and strong regulatory frameworks, governments can ensure that AI becomes a tool for societal progress while minimising unintended adverse consequences.

S. Asieh Hosseini Tabaghdehi works for Brunel University of London. She received funding from UKRI (ESRC) to investigate the ethical implication of digital footprint data in SMEs value creation.

Professor Ashley Braganza does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. AI can boost economic growth, but it needs to be managed incredibly carefully – https://theconversation.com/ai-can-boost-economic-growth-but-it-needs-to-be-managed-incredibly-carefully-248578

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How fast is your gut? The answer to this question is important to your health

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Nick Ilott, Senior Researcher and Lead Bioinformatician, The Oxford Centre for Microbiome Studies, University of Oxford

The sweetcorn test can help you figure out how fast your gut is. Africa Studio/ Shutterstock

Many of us pay attention to the foods we’re putting in our bodies – asking ourselves whether they’re nutritious and healthy for us. But have you ever stopped to ask yourself how fast this food is moving through your gut? The answer to this question is actually really important, as the speed that food moves through your digestive tract affects your health and wellbeing in many ways.

Once you’ve chewed up and swallowed your meal, this food begins its journey along the gastrointestinal tract – a long and winding pathway that begins at the mouth and ends at the anus. Along the way, it reaches specialist organs that churn and digest (stomach), absorb nutrients (small intestine) and absorb water and salts (large intestine).

The movement of food through the digestive tract is known as gut motility. This process is partly controlled by the trillions of bacteria present in our gut. The gut microbiome is extremely important as these bacteria help develop our immune system and break down food.

So, when we eat, we’re not just feeding ourselves – we’re feeding the micro-helpers present in the intestine. To thank us, the bacteria produce small molecules called metabolites that boost our immune system and keep our gut moving by stimulating the intestinal nerves so they contract and move the food onwards.

Without these bacteria and their metabolites, our guts would be less able to move food through the gastrointestinal tract. This could cause a build up of ingested material, leading to constipation and discomfort.

Gut transit time

The time it takes for food to pass from one end of the gastrointestinal tract to the other is called gut transit time.

Gut transit time varies from one person to the next. Recent estimates suggest it can take somewhere between 12 and 73 hours for food to pass through the body – with the average being around 23-24 hours. This variation in gut transit explains some of the gut microbiome differences seen between people – and consequently their gut health.

Many factors can also affect our natural gut transit time – including genetics, diet, and our gut microbiome.

If gut transit time is long (meaning you have slow gut motility), bacteria in the large intestine produce different metabolites. This is because, just like us, the bacteria in our guts need to be fed. These bacteria enjoy fibre. But, if gut transit time is long and fibre is taking too long to reach the large intestine, these microbial inhabitants have to switch to an alternative food source. So, they turn to protein.

The switch to protein can result in the production of toxic gases leading to health problems such as bloating and inflammation.

Slow gut transit can also cause partially digested food to get stuck in the small intestine. This has additional health consequences – such as an overgrowth of small intestinal bacteria, which can lead to symptoms such as abdominal pain, nausea and bloating.

A slow moving gut may leave you feeling bloated.
staras/ Shutterstock

Fast gut transit can negatively impact health, too.

There are many reasons that someone may experience fast transit time. For example, anxiety, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) can all cause decreased transit time and even diarrhoea.

In cases of fast transit, the resulting stool is loose with high water content. This indicates that the faecal matter has not spent enough time in the intestine, preventing sufficient absorption of water and nutrients. In cases of IBD for example, this can lead to dehydration.

Testing your gut speed

Fortunately, there’s a very simple at-home test you can do to check your gut motility. It’s called “the sweetcorn test”. And yes, it is what you’re thinking.

Don’t eat any sweetcorn for 7-10 days (the “wash-out” phase). Then you are ready to begin the test. Note down the date and time, and eat some sweetcorn – a corn on the cob or a handful of corn is sufficient. Because the outer shell of the corn is indigestible, it will pass through your gastrointestinal tract with the rest of the food you’ve eaten and will eventually be visible in your stool.

What you’ll do is keep an eye on the next few stools you pass and note down the date and time that you observe the golden treasure. It should be noted that this at-home test is not definitive – but it does represent a measure of transit time that, on average, gives similar results to more sophisticated measures.

If you pass the corn in 12 hours or less, your gut is fast. If you don’t pass it for around 48 hours of more, then your gut is slow. If you find your gut motility is on either end of the spectrum, there are fortunately things you can do to improve it.

If it’s consistently fast, it’s best to visit your doctor to see if there is an underlying cause. If it’s a little slow – but you don’t seem to be having any additional gastrointestinal symptoms such as bloating, abdominal pain, lack of appetite or nausea – eat more fruit and veg to increase the fibre you’re feeding those friendly gut bacteria, drink more water and exercise.

Following a balanced diet will help to keep your bowels moving and healthy.

Nick Ilott receives funding from the Kennedy Trust for Rheumatology Research (KTRR), GutsUK, PSC Support and supervises a PhD project jointly funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and Roche.

– ref. How fast is your gut? The answer to this question is important to your health – https://theconversation.com/how-fast-is-your-gut-the-answer-to-this-question-is-important-to-your-health-248701

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Britain has a new snake species – should climate change mean it is allowed to stay?

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Tom Major, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Herpetology, Bournemouth University

Meet north Wales’s newest resident: the Aesculapian snake (_Zamenis longissimus_). Nathan Rusli

All animals live in or seek a set of climate conditions they find tolerable. This “climate envelope” partially determines where animals are found, but the continued existence of many species now rests on the outcome of human-driven climate change.

Rising temperatures are moving the available climate niches of many species into areas which were previously too cool. While their ranges shift poleward or to higher elevations, their habitat downslope or closer to the equator shrinks, as it becomes too hot to live in.

Flying and marine animals are relatively free to follow these shifting niches. Birds and butterflies are two examples. New species arrive regularly in the UK with the warming climate and are generally met with excitement by enthusiasts and scientists alike, given that they are a natural effort by a species to make the best of a difficult situation.

However, many grounded species, including reptiles and mammals, cannot disperse through habitats split apart by roads and other human-made obstacles, or cross natural barriers like the Channel. This limits their ability to find suitable conditions and makes them vulnerable to extinction.

Nowhere to go?

Here is the dilemma for conservationists like us.

We normally focus on preserving species within their modern ranges, and have traditionally viewed species that end up outside theirs as a problem. But retaining the status quo is increasingly untenable in the face of unchecked climate change.

Should we consider conserving species that have moved, or been moved, outside of the native ranges that existed before industrial society and its greenhouse effect? Should we even consider deliberately moving species to conserve them? Introduced species that have established just outside of their native ranges, in slightly cooler climates, offer a glimpse of the likely consequences.

Our new study in north Wales focused on one such migrant. Aesculapian snakes (Zamenis longissimus) are nonvenomous reptiles that mostly eat rodents and are native to central and southern Europe, reaching almost to the Channel coast in northern France.

Two accidental introductions, one in Colwyn Bay, north Wales, and another along the Regent’s Canal in London, have allowed this species to thrive in Britain. It is not actually novel to our shores, but it disappeared during a previous ice age and has probably been absent for about 300,000 years.

While the introduced UK populations appear to be thriving, recent surveys of this snake in the southern parts of its range have discovered a rapid decline, potentially due in part to climate change.

A good neighbour

Given their status as a non-native species, we were keen to find out how Aesculapian snakes are surviving in chilly north Wales, further north than anywhere they currently occur naturally. To do this, we implanted 21 snakes with radio transmitters and spent two summers tracking them around the countryside.

Aesculapian snakes are elusive and wary of humans.
Tom Major

Our results surprised us. The snakes had a trump card which seemed to help them weather the cool climate. They were frequently entering buildings – relatively warm refuges – while they were digesting food or preparing to shed their skin. They also used garden compost bins for shelter and to incubate their eggs.

Even more surprisingly, most residents did not mind the snakes. In fact, many had no idea they had snakes as neighbours because they kept such a low profile, typically hiding in attic corners. The snakes appear to coexist with normal suburban wildlife, and there are no indications that their presence is affecting native species.

Should successfully established, innocuous immigrants be proscribed and potentially eradicated, as is currently the case? Or should they be valued and conserved in the face of current and impending climate change?

Protecting and conserving the maximum possible diversity of species and ecosystems is the heart of the conservation agenda. However, the rapid pace of change forced upon our planet requires us to rethink what is practical and desirable to achieve.

Conservation within the silos of national boundaries is an increasingly outdated way of trying to maintain the diversity underlying global ecosystems. Instead, conservationists may need to accept that the rapidly changing environment necessitate shifts in the ranges of species. And perhaps, even assist those species incapable of moving on their own.

Introductions have allowed this snake to flourish on an island it would never naturally reach.
Antonio Gandini

Unlicensed “guerrilla” releases are obviously unacceptable due to biosecurity risks (for example, the potential to introduce devastating diseases such as the amphibian-killing Bsal fungus) and other unforeseen consequences. Even legitimate reintroductions often fail, due to there being too few individual specimens, pollution or predation from invasive species.

Aesculapian snakes will be considered by the government for addition to the list of alien species of special concern, which would be grounds for eradication. It would be tragic if species such as this became extinct in parts of their natural range, while thriving introduced populations just to the north of their pre-industrial distribution are treated as undesirable aliens that must be removed.

Instead, we argue that this innocuous species should be the figurehead for new thinking in conservation biology, that incorporates the reality of impending further climate change and dispenses with the narrow constraints of national boundaries and adherence to pre-industrial distributions.

Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?

Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 40,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.

Wolfgang Wüster receives funding from the Leverhulme Trust.

Tom Major does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Britain has a new snake species – should climate change mean it is allowed to stay? – https://theconversation.com/britain-has-a-new-snake-species-should-climate-change-mean-it-is-allowed-to-stay-249043

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: The illusion of equal opportunity for minority NFL coaches

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Joseph N. Cooper, Endowed Chair of Sport Leadership and Administration, UMass Boston

On the day after the New England Patriots ended their NFL season with a miserable 4-13 record, team owner Robert Kraft fired Jerod Mayo, the team’s first Black head coach. In a press conference following his decision, Kraft explained that he put Mayo in “an untenable situation” by hiring him to lead an underperforming team.

Kraft’s assessment reflects an all-too-familiar reality for Black coaches in the NFL. Though Black players account for 53% of all NFL players, only 19% of head coaches are Black men.

At the beginning of the 2024 season, the NFL set its own league record with nine of its 32 head coaching jobs held by minorities. In addition to Mayo, Las Vegas’ Antonio Pierce, Pittsburgh’s Mike Tomlin, Tampa Bay’s Todd Bowles, Atlanta’s Raheem Morris and Houston’s DeMeco Ryans are Black. They were joined by Carolina’s Dave Canales, who is Mexican American, Miami’s biracial Mike McDaniel and the New York Jets’ Robert Saleh, who is of Lebanese descent.

By season’s end, three of those coaches were gone, including the Raiders’ Pierce. Pierce, like Mayo, was given one season to turn around a team with a losing record. Saleh was fired during the season.

In my view as a scholar of race and professional sports, the firings revealed the NFL’s double standard for Black head coaches and suggest that Black men are still valued more for their athletic prowess than their leadership skills.

During a Fox NFL Sunday show shortly after Mayo’s firing, former Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski called Mayo’s firing shocking, disappointing and “unfair.”

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith was quick to blame the race of Mayo as a factor. “They call it Black Monday for a reason,” Smith said. “Jerod Mayo was clearly not given a lengthy enough opportunity.”

A checkered history

In 1921, a year after the NFL’s inaugural season, Fritz Pollard became the first Black head coach when he was hired to lead the Akron Pros. It would take nearly 70 years before the NFL had its second Black head coach – Art Shell of the Oakland Raiders in 1989.

Since then, Black coaches have had few chances in the NFL. Even fewer have succeeded. Only two Black head coaches have won Super Bowl titles: Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts in 2007 and Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2008.

To address the lack of Black head coaches, the NFL enacted in 2003 what is known as the Rooney Rule, a hiring practice named after Dan Rooney, the former owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers who sat on the NFL’s diversity committee. The rule requires teams to include two minority candidate during the interview process for head coaching jobs and was later applied to general managers, senior executives and assistant coaches.

But even with the rule, the percentage of Black coaches has consistently been lower than the percentage of Black players. Research has shown that Black coaches are both less likely to be promoted to head coaching jobs than their white counterparts and less likely to receive a second chance after a losing season.

In fact, since the Rooney Rule was instituted in 2003, nonwhite coaches have been more than three times as likely to be fired after one season than white coaches, according to data collected by the USA Today NFL Coaches Project.

Their data did not include the scores of Black assistant coaches who are routinely overlooked for their first head coaching jobs.

Eric Bieniemy takes the field as a UCLA assistant coach during the 2024 season.
Jevone Moore/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Eric Bieniemy, for example, shared two Super Bowl championships as offensive coordinator with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2019 and 2022. Given his experience, he was widely expected by NFL analysts to earn a head coaching job.

In order to pursue that goal, Bieniemy left the Chiefs in 2023 to join the Washington Commanders and was a favorite to become the team’s next head coach. But the Commanders were sold at the end of the 2023 season, and the new owners promptly fired him.

Bieniemy is back in the NFL after being hired in February 2025 by the Chicago Bears as their running backs coach, a lower rank than his prior position as offensive coordinator.

The benefit of the doubt

In 2020, the NFL expressed its support for the Black Lives Matter movement by promoting social justice messages on end zones and players’ helmets. The NFL also hired Roc Nation, Hip-Hop mogul Jay-Z’s company, to manage its music and entertainment.

A year later, the NFL formally ended their decades-long practice of race norming in which the league routinely gave Black players lower baseline cognitive ratings than white players in legal actions related to concussions and subsequent dementia.

But those measures, much like the Rooney Rule, have not closed the racial disparities among NFL head coaches and have not stopped white coaches from appearing to be more likely to receive the benefit of the doubt.

The NFL used goal post pads in 2022 to proclaim the league’s efforts to end racism.
Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Still unresolved is a 2022 lawsuit filed by Black head coach Brian Flores. Despite posting two winning seasons during his three-year tenure, he was fired by the Miami Dolphins. Flores filed a suit against the NFL, the Miami Dolphins and two other NFL teams alleging widespread racial discrimination and hiring practices.

During an interview with reporters before the 2025 Super Bowl, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell defended the league’s diversity initiatives, saying, “We’ve proven to ourselves that it does make the NFL better.”

Goodell was quick to point out that the NFL’s diversity efforts do not mean a “quota system” in which a certain number of candidates of each race are hired.

“There’s no requirement to hire a particular individual on the basis of race or gender,” Goodell said. “This is about opening that funnel and bringing the best talent into the NFL.”

Joseph N. Cooper does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. The illusion of equal opportunity for minority NFL coaches – https://theconversation.com/the-illusion-of-equal-opportunity-for-minority-nfl-coaches-247057

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: Migration State Secretary visits Frontex to discuss return procedures
Source: Government of Sweden

Migration State Secretary visits Frontex to discuss return procedures – Government.se
Article from Ministry of Justice

Published 07 February 2025

On 30–31 January, State Secretary Anders Hall took part in an informal meeting of the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA) in Warsaw, Poland. In conjunction with the meeting, Mr Hall paid a visit to Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.

State Secretary Anders Hall and Frontex’s Deputy Executive Director for Returns and Operations Lars Gerdes.

Photo: Frontex

At the meeting of the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA) in Warsaw, where State Secretary Anders Hall met with Poland’s Minister of the Interior and Administration Tomasz Siemoniak.

Photo: The Chancellery of the Prime Minister / PAP S.A

Frontex is the EU Border and Coast Guard Agency that supports EU Member States with issues such as enforcing return decisions. Frontex provides support to EU Member States at all stages of a return procedure: everything from obtaining travel documents and contact with relevant third countries, to offering funded and chartered flights and reintegration assistance.

At the meeting, discussions centred on the EU Agency’s cooperation with Swedish government agencies, something that Frontex considers a success. Over the past two years, Swedish government agencies have increasingly started using Frontex’s services in their work on return procedures. This enhanced cooperation has increased the number of return operations organised by Sweden together with Frontex.

“The Government’s priority is to increase the returns of those who have received an expulsion order. That’s why it’s positive that Frontex is verifying that the work of the Government and its agencies is yielding results. Achieving an effective return procedure is a prerequisite for a responsible and well-functioning migration policy,” says Mr Hall.

At the meeting with Frontex, Mr Hall met with Frontex’s Deputy Executive Director for Returns and Operations Lars Gerdes and Head of Sector Return Operations/Head of Unit Return Operations and Voluntary Returns Mauro Petriaggi.
MIL OSI Europe News –
February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI United Nations: UNECE Team of Specialists on Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) Traceability
Source: United Nations Economic Commission for Europe

This session explores the global context in which policies requiring value-chain traceability and data disclosure are increasing across the globe, and it is not clear how textile brand and retailers best meet their new needs. Many garment and footwear industry actors realise these require a step-change in practices and see significant challenges ahead. In parallel, Individual sustainability goals in textile and other sectors may imply traceability fatigue for the supply chain if practices are not aligned. Interoperability of systems appears key, and achievable, for successfully meeting brand and retailer challenges.

Agenda (time indicated in CET)

12:15-12:30: Opening and Welcome
- Christian Hudson, Chair of the ToS
- Maria Teresa Pisani, Chief ad Interim, Trade Facilitation Section, ECTD, UNECE
12:30-13:15: Traceability needs and challenges, and way ahead on harmonizing approaches to value chain traceability in the garment and footwear sector
- Matthias Altmann, UNECE-UN/CEFACT Expert
- Open discussion with ToS members (tour de table)
13:15-13:30: Reflections on next steps and G7 ACT actions on traceability
- Christian Hudson, Chair of the ToS
- Maria Teresa Pisani, Chief ad Interim, Trade Facilitation Section, ECTD, UNECE
13:30-13:45: Questions & answers

MIL OSI United Nations News –
February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI: MREL and MDIV Earn FundGrade A+® Ratings For 2024

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

TORONTO, Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Middlefield is pleased to announce that two of its core ETFs—Middlefield Real Estate Dividend ETF (MREL) and Middlefield Sustainable Global Dividend ETF (MDIV)—have been awarded the Fundata FundGrade A+® rating for 2024. This prestigious distinction is given to Canadian investment funds that have consistently delivered the best risk-adjusted returns over an entire calendar year.

“Receiving the FundGrade A+® award for both MREL and MDIV reflects our disciplined investment approach and commitment to delivering consistent, risk-adjusted returns for our investors,” said Dean Orrico, President and CEO of Middlefield. “Real estate and dividend-focused equities help create more resilient portfolios by providing reliable income streams, managing risk, and enhancing stability. In light of the current uncertain market backdrop, we believe these strategies are excellent diversifiers for investor portfolios, and we look forward to building on this success in 2025.”

About the Award-Winning Funds

Middlefield Real Estate Dividend ETF (MREL)
MREL is designed to provide investors with stable monthly income and long-term capital appreciation by investing in a diversified portfolio of high-quality global real estate companies. Since its launch in 2011, the fund has taken an actively managed approach, leveraging the expertise of Middlefield’s investment team to identify leading real estate businesses with growing cash flows and increasing dividends. For the second consecutive year, MREL has earned the FundGrade A+® rating, reinforcing its consistent performance and ability to navigate various market cycles.

Middlefield Sustainable Global Dividend ETF (MDIV)
MDIV is a high-conviction portfolio of global companies diversified across geographies and industries, with a focus on businesses that pay and grow dividends. Since its inception in 2013, the fund has prioritized large capitalization, high quality companies with durable business models and a strong track record of earnings growth.

Additionally, Middlefield’s flagship North American fund, Income Plus Class, finished 2024 with a Fundata FundGrade A® rating, which is awarded to funds that substantially outperform their peers, ranking in the top 10% of their category.

Learn more about MREL
Learn more about MDIV
Learn more about Income Plus

For any questions or media requests, please contact Cassandra Coleman at ccoleman@middlefield.com.

Founded in 1979, Middlefield is a Toronto-based asset manager specializing in innovative investment solutions. Over the past 45 years, we have developed a disciplined investment process across six core equity income mandates: Real Estate, Healthcare, Innovation, Infrastructure, Energy, and Diversified Income. We focus on high-quality companies with strong cash flow and dividend growth potential.

Our investment solutions include award-winning ETFs and Mutual Funds, designed to meet the needs of advisors, institutional investors, and individual investors. Backed by a dedicated team, we strive to deliver superior returns through expertise and disciplined portfolio management.

Disclosure: FundGrade A+^® is used with permission from Fundata Canada Inc., all rights reserved. The annual FundGrade A+^® Awards are presented by Fundata Canada Inc. to recognize the “best of the best” among Canadian investment funds. The FundGrade A+^® calculation is supplemental to the monthly FundGrade ratings and is calculated at the end of each calendar year. The FundGrade rating system evaluates funds based on their risk-adjusted performance, measured by Sharpe Ratio, Sortino Ratio, and Information Ratio. The score for each ratio is calculated individually, covering all time periods from 2 to 10 years. The scores are then weighted equally in calculating a monthly FundGrade. The top 10% of funds earn an A Grade; the next 20% of funds earn a B Grade; the next 40% of funds earn a C Grade; the next 20% of funds receive a D Grade; and the lowest 10% of funds receive an E Grade. To be eligible, a fund must have received a FundGrade rating every month in the previous year. The FundGrade A+^® uses a GPA-style calculation, where each monthly FundGrade from “A” to “E” receives a score from 4 to 0, respectively. A fund’s average score for the year determines its GPA. Any fund with a GPA of 3.5 or greater is awarded a FundGrade A+^® Award. For more information, see www.FundGradeAwards.com. Although Fundata makes every effort to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the data contained herein, the accuracy is not guaranteed by Fundata.

Performance for Funds: Middlefield Real Estate Dividend ETF (MREL) won the 2024 FundGrade A+® in the Real Estate Equity Category, out of 29 funds. The FundGrade A+® performance start date was 12/31/2014 and the FundGrade A+® performance end date was 12/31/2024. Performance for the fund for the period ended December 31, 2024 is as follows: 7.0% (1 year), -3.4% (3 years), 3.4% (5 years), 6.3% (10 years) and since inception 7.2% (since inception – April 20, 2011). Middlefield Sustainable Global Dividend ETF (MDIV) won the 2024 FundGrade A+® in the Global Dividend & Income Equity Category, out of 39 funds. The FundGrade A+® performance start date was 12/31/2014 and the FundGrade A+® performance end date was 12/31/2024. Performance for the fund for the period ended December 31, 2024 is as follows: 43.7% (1 year), 13.1% (3 years), 14.0% (5 years), 11.8% (10 years) and since inception 12.6% (since inception – March 22, 2013).

Disclaimer: Please consult your advisor and read the prospectus document before investing. There may be commissions, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses associated with ETF investments. The indicated rates of return are the historical annual compounded total returns including changes in unit value and reinvestment of all distributions and does not take into account sales, redemption, distribution or optional charges or income taxes payable by any securityholder that would have reduced returns. ETFs are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

The MIL Network –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI: Wearable Devices Introduces AI-Powered LLM for Next-Level Gesture Control

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

The Large MUAP Models (LMM) AI-powered neural gesture technology enables personalized, intuitive interactions for the AI and XR era

Yokneam Illit, Israel, Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Wearable Devices Ltd. (the “Company” or “Wearable Devices”) (Nasdaq: WLDS, WLDSW), an award-winning pioneer in artificial intelligence (“AI”)-based wearable gesture control technology, is proud to announce a groundbreaking advancement in human-computer interaction: Large MUAP Models (“LMM”). Building on the success of LLMs in natural language processing, Wearable Devices is actively developing LMMs with the goal to revolutionize how we interact with digital devices, aiming to offer personalized, intuitive gesture control powered by neural data.

While still in development, this innovative technology, as previously announced, holds immense potential to redefine human-device interaction.

The LMM Revolution: Decoding the Neural Alphabet

Just as LLMs unlocked the power of language for AI, LMMs aim to unlock the power of neural gestures for seamless, natural interactions. By decoding Motor Unit Action Potentials (MUAPs)—the body’s language for communicating with muscles—Wearable Devices has created a new paradigm for gesture control. LMMs are harnessing the potential of big data to enable devices to understand and predict user intentions with unprecedented speed and precision, making interactions faster and more intuitive than ever before.

Personalized Gestures for a Natural User Experience

At the heart of LMMs is personalization. The technology learns from individual users, creating a unique neural profile that will enable gestures tailored to each person’s natural movements. Whether it’s a subtle thumb swipe to select an option or a pinch-to-zoom gesture in augmented reality, LMMs will make interactions feel effortless and intuitive. “With LMMs, we are decoding the neural alphabet, potentially unlocking a strategically vital technology that fuses human neurology with AI. This breakthrough has the potential to create sci-fi-like superhuman abilities, giving a fundamental edge to whoever masters it first,” said Guy Wagner, Chief Scientific Officer of Wearable Devices.

Wearable Devices’ flagship products, such as the Mudra Band for Apple Watch and the Mudra Link for universal device control, are already demonstrating the power of neural interfaces. These devices allow users to control their digital environments with simple, natural gestures. LMMs have the potential to make our current technology user-personalized, paving the way for a future where wearable technology is seamlessly integrated into our daily lives.

The Future of AI and XR: Powered by Neural Gestures

As spatial computing becomes the next computing platform, LMMs will provide the intuitive, natural interactions needed to unlock its full potential. Wearable Devices is focused on developing this technology and plans to seek collaboration with leading companies to integrate LMMs into next-generation extended reality (XR) platforms, ensuring that users can interact with their digital environments in ways that feel as natural as moving their hands.

“The future of XR and AI interactions is here, and it starts with your wrist,” added Mr. Wagner. “With LMMs, we are not just imagining the future—we are building it.”

About Wearable Devices Ltd.

Wearable Devices Ltd. is a pioneering growth company revolutionizing human-computer interaction through its AI-powered neural input technology for both consumer and business markets. Leveraging proprietary sensors, software, and advanced AI algorithms, the Company’s innovative products, including the Mudra Band for iOS and Mudra Link for Android, enable seamless, touch-free interaction by transforming subtle finger and wrist movements into intuitive controls. These groundbreaking solutions enhance gaming, and the rapidly expanding AR/VR/XR landscapes. The Company offers a dual-channel business model: direct-to-consumer sales and enterprise licensing. Its flagship Mudra Band integrates functional and stylish design with cutting-edge AI to empower consumers, while its enterprise solutions provide businesses with the tools to deliver immersive and interactive experiences. By setting the input standard for the XR market, Wearable Devices is redefining user experiences and driving innovation in one of the fastest-growing tech sectors. Wearable Devices’ ordinary shares and warrants trade on the Nasdaq under the symbols “WLDS” and “WLDSW,” respectively.

Forward-Looking Statement Disclaimer

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are intended to be covered by the “safe harbor” created by those sections. Forward-looking statements, which are based on certain assumptions and describe our future plans, strategies and expectations, can generally be identified by the use of forward-looking terms such as “believe,” “expect,” “may,” “should,” “could,” “seek,” “intend,” “plan,” “goal,” “estimate,” “anticipate” or other comparable terms. For example, we are using forward-looking statements when we discuss the benefits and advantages of our devices and technology, including the potential of LMMs, and that we are focused on developing this technology and plan to seek collaboration with leading companies to integrate LMMs into next-generation XR platforms. All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this press release regarding our strategies, prospects, financial condition, operations, costs, plans and objectives are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Our actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, the following: the trading of our ordinary shares or warrants and the development of a liquid trading market; our ability to successfully market our products and services; the acceptance of our products and services by customers; our continued ability to pay operating costs and ability to meet demand for our products and services; the amount and nature of competition from other security and telecom products and services; the effects of changes in the cybersecurity and telecom markets; our ability to successfully develop new products and services; our success establishing and maintaining collaborative, strategic alliance agreements, licensing and supplier arrangements; our ability to comply with applicable regulations; and the other risks and uncertainties described in our annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2023, filed on March 15, 2024 and our other filings with the SEC. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

Investor Relations Contact

Michal Efraty
IR@wearabledevices.co.il

The MIL Network –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI: Small Cap Growth Virtual Investor Conference: Presentations Now Available for Online Viewing

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

NEW YORK, Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Virtual Investor Conferences, the leading proprietary investor conference series, today announced the presentations from the Small Cap Growth Virtual Investor Conference, held February 6th are now available for online viewing.

REGISTER NOW AT: https://bit.ly/3Eu7J6w

The company presentations will be available 24/7 for 90 days. Investors, advisors, and analysts may download investor materials from the company’s resource section.

Select companies are accepting 1×1 management meeting requests through February 11^th

February 6^th

To facilitate investor relations scheduling and to view a complete calendar of Virtual Investor Conferences, please visit www.virtualinvestorconferences.com.

About Virtual Investor Conferences^®

Virtual Investor Conferences (VIC) is the leading proprietary investor conference series that provides an interactive forum for publicly traded companies to seamlessly present directly to investors.

Providing a real-time investor engagement solution, VIC is specifically designed to offer companies more efficient investor access. Replicating the components of an on-site investor conference, VIC offers companies enhanced capabilities to connect with investors, schedule targeted one-on-one meetings and enhance their presentations with dynamic video content. Accelerating the next level of investor engagement, Virtual Investor Conferences delivers leading investor communications to a global network of retail and institutional investors.

Media Contact:
OTC Markets Group Inc. +1 (212) 896-4428, media@otcmarkets.com

Virtual Investor Conferences Contact:
John M. Viglotti
SVP Corporate Services, Investor Access
OTC Markets Group
(212) 220-2221
johnv@otcmarkets.com

The MIL Network –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: California wildfires force students to think about the connections between STEM and society

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Erika Dyson, Professor of Religous Studies, Harvey Mudd College

Satellite imagery shows the front line of the Palisades fire in Los Angeles on Jan. 11, 2025. Maxar Technologies/Contributor

Uncommon Courses is an occasional series from The Conversation U.S. highlighting unconventional approaches to teaching.

Title of course:

“STEM & Social Impact: Climate Change”

What prompted the idea for the course?

Harvey Mudd College’s mission is to educate STEM students – short for science, technology, engineering and math – so they have a “clear understanding of the impact of their work on society.” But the “impact” part of our mission has been the most challenging to realize.

When our college revised its “Core Curriculum” in 2020, our faculty decided we should create a new required impact course for all students.

What does the course explore?

The course is taught by a team of eight instructors who share their own disciplinary perspectives and help students critically analyze proposed interventions for increasing wildfire risks.

Our instructors teach biology, chemistry, computer science and mathematics.

The class also includes scholars focused on media studies, political science religious studies and science, technology and society.

The course focuses on California wildfires so students can think critically about the ways STEM and social values shape each other.

For example, in 1911, U.S. Forest Service deputy F. E. Olmsted applied the Social Darwinist idea of “survival of the fittest” to forest management. Reflecting the prevailing views of his era, he believed that competition was the driving force behind biology, economics and human progress – where the strong thrive and the weak fail.

Olmsted said it was good forestry and good economics to let the forests grow unchecked. This policy would yield straight and tall “merchantable timber” suitable for sale and the needs of industry.

He also rejected “light burning,” which Native Americans had used for centuries to manage forest ecosystems and reduce the flammable undergrowth.

We live with the consequences of such reasoning 100 years later. Fires speed through overgrown land at alarming rates and release enormous amounts of carbon and other particulate matter into the atmosphere.

Why is this course relevant now?

Climate change is arguably the most pressing concern of our time. And wildfires are particularly relevant to those of us in fire-prone areas like Southern California.

Public distrust of science is increasing. Consequently, society needs skilled STEM practitioners who can understand and communicate how scientific interventions will have different consequences and appeal to different stakeholders.

For example, Los Angeles first responders have been using drones for search and rescue and to gather real-time information about fire lines since at least 2015.

But the public is not always comfortable with drones flying over populated areas.

The Los Angeles Fire Department has fielded enough citizen concerns about “snooping drones” and government concerns about data collection that it developed strict drone policies in consultation with regulators and the American Civil Liberties Union.

The course’s focus on writing, critical thinking and climate change science prepares students to participate in public discussions about such interventions.

By making students consider the impact of their future work, we also hope they will be proactive about the careers they want to pursue, whether it involves climate change or not.

What’s a critical lesson from the course?

Not everyone benefits in the same way from a single innovation.

For example, low-income and rural Americans are less likely to benefit from the lower operating costs and lower pollution of electric vehicles. That’s because inadequate investment in public charging infrastructure makes owning them less practical.

The course’s interdisciplinary approach helps to expose these kinds of structural inequities. We want students to get in the habit of asking questions about any technological solution.

They include questions like: Who is likely to benefit, and how? Who has historically wielded power in this situation? Whose voices are being included? What assumptions have been made? Which values are being prioritized?

What materials does the course feature?

We combine popular and scholarly sources.

Students watch two documentaries about the 2018 Camp Fire in Paradise, California, which killed 85 people.

The 2018 Camp Fire caused an estimated $US12.5 billion in damages.
AP Photo/Noah Berger

They analyze wildfire data using the Pandas library, an open-source data manipulation library for the Python computer programming language.

They also read a Union of Concerned Scientists report examining fossil fuel companies’ culpability for increased risk of wildfires. And they analyze the environmental historian William Cronon’s classic indictment of the environmentalist movement for romanticizing an idea of a pristine “wilderness” while absolving themselves of the responsibility to protect the rest of nature – humans, cities, farms, industries.

We also examine poetry by Ada Limón, indigenous ecology and Engaged Buddhism.

What will the course prepare students to do?

The final assignment for the course asks students to critically analyze a proposed intervention dealing with growing California wildfire risk using the disciplinary tools they have learned.

For example, they could choose the increased deployment of “beneficial fires” to reduce flammable biomass in forests.

For this intervention, we expect that students would address topics like the historical erasure of Indigenous knowledge of prescribed burning, financial liabilities associated with controlled burning, and scientific research on the efficacy of beneficial fires.

Darryl Yong is a professor at Harvey Mudd College and co-directs Math for America Los Angeles. His work has been funded by the National Science Foundation.

Erika Dyson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. California wildfires force students to think about the connections between STEM and society – https://theconversation.com/california-wildfires-force-students-to-think-about-the-connections-between-stem-and-society-248286

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How AI can help in the creative design process

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Tilanka Chandrasekera, Professor of Interior Design, Oklahoma State University

A student works on a design in a fashion merchandising lab. Fashion Merchandising Labs at Oklahoma State University, CC BY-ND

Generative artificial intelligence tools can help design students by making hard tasks easier, cutting down on stress, and allowing the students more time to explore innovative ideas, according to new research I published with my colleagues in the International Journal of Architectural Computing.

I study how people think about design and use technology, and my research focuses on how tools such as AI can help make the design process more efficient and creative.

Why it matters

Our study found that AI design tools didn’t just make the designs better – they also made the process easier and less stressful for students.

Imagine trying to come up with a cool idea in response to a design assignment, but it’s hard to picture it in your head. These tools step in and quickly show what your idea could look like, so you can focus on being creative instead of worrying about little details. This made it easier for students to brainstorm and come up with new ideas. The AI tools also made more design variations by introducing new and unexpected details, such as natural shapes and textures.

A design fueled by artificial intelligence: The left image is the result of the text-to-image technology, and the image on the right is the design completed by the student.
Oklahoma State University, CC BY-ND

A design by a student without using artificial intelligence.
Oklahoma State University, CC BY-ND

How we did our work

My colleagues and I worked with 40 design students and split them into two groups.

One group used AI to help design urban furniture, such as benches and seating for public spaces, while the other group didn’t use AI. The AI tool created pictures of the first group’s design ideas from simple text descriptions. Both groups refined their ideas by either sketching them by hand or with design software.

Next, the two groups were given a second design task. This time, neither group was allowed to use AI. We wanted to see whether the first task helped them learn how to develop a design concept.

My colleagues and I evaluated the students’ creativity on three criteria: the novelty of their ideas, the effectiveness of their designs in solving the problem, and the level of detail and completeness in their work. We also wanted to see how hard the tasks felt for them, so we measured something called cognitive load using a well-known tool called the NASA task load index. This tool checks how much mental effort and frustration the students experienced.

The group of students who used AI in the first task had an easier time in the second task, feeling less overwhelmed compared with those who didn’t use AI.

The final designs of the AI group also showed a more creative design process in the second task, likely because they learned from using AI in the first task, which helped them think and develop better ideas.

What’s next

Future research will look at how AI tools can be used in more parts of design education and how they might affect the way professionals work.

One challenge is making sure students don’t rely too much on AI, which could hurt their ability to think critically and solve problems on their own.

Another goal is to make sure as many design students as possible have access to these tools.

The Research Brief is a short take on interesting academic work.

Tilanka Chandrasekera receives funding from external funding agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF)

– ref. How AI can help in the creative design process – https://theconversation.com/how-ai-can-help-in-the-creative-design-process-244718

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Video: HANG a MORTAR! | U.S. Army

Source: US Army (video statements)

: DMD

About the U.S. Army:
The Army Mission – our purpose – remains constant: To deploy, fight and win our nation’s wars by providing ready, prompt & sustained land dominance by Army forces across the full spectrum of conflict as part of the joint force.

Interested in joining the U.S. Army?
Visit: spr.ly/6001igl5L

Connect with the U.S. Army online:
Web: https://www.army.mil
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/USarmy/
X: https://www.twitter.com/USArmy
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/usarmy/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/us-army
#USArmy #Soldiers #Military #Mortar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dk15LMyqLIs

MIL OSI Video –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: UK to drive international cooperation on irregular migration as host of Western Balkans Summit
Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

The UK will host Western Balkans leaders for the Berlin Process Summit in Autumn 2025.
UK to host major summit with Western Balkans leaders in Autumn 2025.

Summit will boost cooperation with Western Balkans partners to tackle irregular migration along key transit routes, delivering on the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change.

Diplomat Karen Pierce appointed as the UK’s Special Envoy to the Western Balkans.

The UK will host leaders of the six Western Balkans countries and other European leaders later this year for a crucial international Summit to support stability, security and economic co-operation in the region.

It will also focus on how to work together to combat the region being used as a transit route for irregular migration, with the Government focussed on using every tool at its disposal to control the UK’s borders.

Known formally as the Berlin Process, the Summit will strengthen cooperation with European partners to help deliver on the UK Government’s strategy to strengthen borders, smash the gangs, and get those with no right to be here returned to their countries.

As one of the UK’s most experienced diplomats, Dame Karen Pierce DCMG has been appointed the UK Special Envoy to the Western Balkans, charged with driving forward the UK’s strategic objectives across the region, including preparations for the Summit.

The summit comes as the UK develops a world first sanctions regime to snare people smugglers upstream.

Foreign Secretary, David Lammy said:

The Western Balkans is of long-standing importance to the UK, and our partnerships in the region are central to our efforts to tackle irregular migration and bear down on the evil trade in human lives. Hosting the Berlin Process in the UK demonstrates our commitment to European Security, and to delivering on the Government’s Plan for Change.

With her experience and expertise, Dame Karen Pierce is the ideal person to drive this important work forward. I would like to thank Lord Peach for his personal dedication and service in advancing UK interests in the Western Balkans over the past 3 years.

Minister for Border Security and Asylum, Angela Eagle said:

Co-operation is key if we want to stop people making dangerous journeys to the UK. Which is why, through the Border Security Command, we are rebuilding strong relationships across Europe and beyond to address the common challenge of irregular migration and secure our borders.

This government has already agreed new deals to increase operational co-operation on organised immigration crime with countries including North Macedonia, Serbia, and Kosovo. Our international work, alongside a stronger immigration enforcement approach being taken in the UK, will ensure we are breaking the business model of the people-smuggling gangs at every level.

The UK’s hosting of the Summit in partnership with Germany underlines this government’s commitment to resetting its relationships with Europe, and the latest step in the government’s strategy to build enduring partnerships to bear down on criminal groups facilitating irregular migration.

The announcement follows the Prime Minister hosting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the weekend.

Last month, the Foreign Secretary visited Tunisia to boost support for projects to tackle the drivers of small boat arrivals in Europe and the UK.

In January, the UK also announced plans for the world’s first sanctions regime to take down people smuggling rings and starve them of illicit finance fuelling their operations.

With three NATO allies present in the region, the Western Balkans is of critical importance for UK and European security. The risk of instability increasing: regional tensions are aided by malign

Russian influence and there is an urgent need to crack down on criminal gangs who have made the region into a major transit route for irregular migration across Europe.

The UK’s Special Envoy will also contribute to wider missions of the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change, including working to disrupt organised crime groups to make Britain’s streets safer and promote opportunities for British businesses to deliver economic growth.

Before serving as British Ambassador to the United States, Dame Karen Pierce was the UK’s Permanent Representative to the UN in New York – the first female officer to hold each position.

She will take up her new position in the Spring, taking over from Air Chief Marshal The Lord Peach KG GBE KCB DL.

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Published 7 February 2025
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
February 8, 2025

MIL-OSI: Byrna Technologies Reports Record Results for Fiscal Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2024

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

ANDOVER, Mass., Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Byrna Technologies Inc. (“Byrna” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: BYRN), a personal defense technology company specializing in the development, manufacture, and sale of innovative less-lethal personal security solutions, today reported select financial results for its fiscal fourth quarter (“Q4 2024”) and full year ended November 30, 2024.

Fiscal Fourth Quarter 2024 and Recent Operational Highlights

Surpassed 500,000 launchers sold since inception, just five and a half years after the sale of Byrna’s first launcher in June 2019.
Increased launcher production in the first fiscal quarter of 2025 by 33% to 24,000 launchers a month to meet growing market demand and support operational growth.
Recently opened a new U.S.-based ammunition manufacturing facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana, as part of a re-shoring initiative, significantly expanding Byrna’s domestic production capacity and enhancing the Company’s supply chain for its payload ammunition.
Continued to generate a highly accretive return on ad spend (ROAS) above 5.0X through the celebrity endorsement program for the full year 2024 period, leading to a record $28.0 million of sales for the fourth quarter of 2024.
Added Megyn Kelly, Charlie Kirk, and Lara Trump as celebrity influencers to continue amplifying brand awareness and further support the normalization of its less-lethal solutions, while continuing to optimize marketing spend for maximum impact.
Partnered with the United States Concealed Carry Association (USCCA), gaining access to nearly one million USCCA members to promote less-lethal solutions while introducing Byrna customers to USCCA’s training, education, and self-defense liability insurance offerings.
Opened retail stores in the Greater Nashville Area, Scottsdale, Arizona, and Salem, New Hampshire. Byrna plans to open the Fort Wayne, Indiana store in the coming months.
Signed a Letter of Intent to launch a pilot store-within-a-store program at eleven Sportsman’s Warehouse locations, expanding Byrna’s retail footprint.

Fiscal Fourth Quarter 2024 Financial Results
Results compare Q4 2024 to the 2023 fiscal fourth quarter ended November 30, 2023 unless otherwise indicated.

Net revenue for Q4 2024 was $28.0 million, compared to $15.6 million in the fiscal fourth quarter of 2023 (“Q4 2023”). The 79% year-over-year increase was primarily due to the transformational shift in Byrna’s advertising strategy implemented in September 2023 and the resulting normalization of Byrna and the less-lethal space generally.

Gross profit for Q4 2024 was $17.6 million (63% of net revenue), up from $9.0 million (58% of net revenue) in Q4 2023. The increase in gross profit was driven by the increase in the proportion of sales made through the high-margin direct-to-consumer (DTC) channels (Byrna.com and Amazon.com), a reduction in component costs driven through an intensive cost reduction effort focused on “design for manufacturability” spearheaded by Byrna’s engineering team, and the economies of scale resulting from increased production volumes.

Operating expenses for Q4 2024 were $13.5 million, compared to $9.7 million for Q4 2023, an increase of 39%. The increase in operating expenses was driven by an increase in variable selling costs (such as freight and third-party processing fees), increased marketing spend tied to the Company’s celebrity endorsement strategy, and higher payroll expenses in marketing and engineering as the Company has scaled to handle increased sales and production volumes.

Net income for Q4 2024 was $9.7 million, compared to a net loss of ($0.8) million for Q4 2023, a $10.5 million improvement. This increase was driven by higher revenue and a $5.6 million income tax benefit. The tax benefit arose from the release of tax valuation allowances related to net operating loss carryforwards incurred in earlier years and other tax assets.

Adjusted EBITDA¹, a non-GAAP metric reconciled below, for Q4 2024 totaled $5.2 million, compared to $0.4 million in Q4 2023.

Cash and cash equivalents at November 30, 2024 totaled $16.8 million compared to $20.5 million at November 30, 2023. The change in cash and cash equivalents is primarily due to an $8.9 million investment in short-term marketable securities to earn a higher yield on Byrna’s unused cash. Adding cash and short-term marketable securities, total funds available were $25.7 million, an increase of $5.2 million compared to November 30, 2023. Inventory at November 30, 2024 totaled $20.0 million compared to $13.9 million at November 30, 2023. The Company has no current or long-term debt.

Fiscal Year 2024 Financial Results
Results compare the 2024 fiscal year ended November 30, 2024 to the 2023 fiscal year ended November 30, 2023 unless otherwise indicated.

Net revenue for FY 2024 was $85.8 million, a 101% increase from $42.6 million in the fiscal year ended November 30, 2023 (“FY 2023”), driven by the Company’s strategic shift in advertising, increased brand normalization, and higher DTC sales

Gross profit for FY 2024 was $52.8 million (62% of net revenue), compared to $23.6 million (56% of net revenue) for FY 2023. The increase in gross profit margin was primarily due to a greater proportion of sales through high-margin DTC channels, lower component costs, and economies of scale.

Operating expenses for FY 2024 were $46.1 million, compared to $31.4 million for FY 2023, reflecting a 47% increase to support growth. The increase was driven by higher variable selling costs, expanded marketing efforts, and additional personnel in marketing and engineering.

Net income for FY 2024 was $12.8 million, compared to a net loss of ($8.2) million for FY 2023, a $21.0 million improvement. The increase in net income was driven by higher revenue and included a $5.7 million income tax benefit due to the full release of U.S. tax valuation allowances.

Adjusted EBITDA¹ for FY 2024 totaled $11.5 million, compared to a negative ($2.0) million for FY 2023. The increase in adjusted EBITDA was primarily due to an increase in revenue.

Management Commentary
Byrna CEO Bryan Ganz stated: “The fourth quarter was the culmination of a remarkable year for Byrna. We successfully generated a record $28.0 million in revenue while also expanding our gross margins to 62.8%. This success allowed us to deliver a 101% increase in revenue from the full year 2023 to 2024 and underscores the overall growth in brand recognition and normalization of the less-lethal space.

“Our marketing strategy, anchored by the continued success of our celebrity influencer program, has continued to be instrumental in driving DTC sales and expanding brand awareness. For 2024, the program maintained a highly accretive return on ad spend (ROAS) above 5.0X, underscoring the effectiveness of this approach in normalizing less-lethal solutions. Building on this foundation, we have been adding a more robust, multi-channel marketing strategy that now includes traditional media such as cable and broadcast networks. This diversification complements our influencer program, which recently welcomed prominent voices like Megyn Kelly, Charlie Kirk, and Lara Trump.

As we execute across multiple channels, we will continue to be disciplined in evaluating partnerships and optimizing ad spend to maximize impact and ROAS. We have prioritized celebrity endorsers who demonstrate strong ROAS and have discontinued partnerships that did not meet our minimum ROAS requirements. To date, the celebrity endorsers who were initially successful have continued to perform well, while those we discontinued never met our ROAS benchmarks. Unfortunately, we did lose one very successful celebrity endorser, Governor Mike Huckabee, due to his appointment as U.S. ambassador to Israel.

“In addition to expanding our online DTC reach, we are making strides in building our brick-and-mortar footprint. With four company-owned stores up and running, we are optimistic that these stores will validate the company-owned store model and open the way to a rollout of Byrna company-owned stores in key markets throughout the United States. Given the high gross margins and the relatively inexpensive operating costs, we believe that these stores can contribute meaningfully to Byrna’s bottom line as they ramp up over the coming quarters. We are also pleased to announce that we have signed a letter of intent to partner with Sportsman’s Warehouse to launch a store-within-a-store model at 11 locations across the United States. Each of these Sportsman’s Warehouse locations will convert their existing archery range into a firing range for customers to experience our launchers, similar to our company-owned stores and premier dealers. If the initial pilot program is successful, Byrna expects to be in 90 more stores by the end of the year, accelerating the rate of our brick-and-mortar presence across the United States.

“To ensure our production keeps pace with our growth initiatives, we have successfully increased launcher production to 24,000 units as of January at our Fort Wayne, Indiana launcher production facility. Additionally, we have begun producing payload ammunition at a new facility in Fort Wayne, located four miles from our launcher production facility. This state-of-the-art manufacturing facility will house eight advanced dousing and welding machines capable of producing both .68 and .61 caliber payload rounds for our existing launchers as well as our anticipated new Compact Launcher. We will also be able to produce .61 caliber fin-tail payload rounds for our Pepper and Max 12-gauge less-lethal rounds. Once fully operational later this year, these eight machines will collectively produce up to 10 million rounds per month, including 1.5 million fin-tail rounds for the 12-gauge platform. We believe the combination of Byrna Pepper and Max 12-gauge rounds, coupled with the Sportsman’s “store-within-a-store” partnership, will help spur the sale of our less-lethal 12-gauge rounds.

The onshoring of ammunition production is part of Byrna’s larger ‘Made in America’ strategy. We remain committed to exiting China by mid-year and aim to source nearly 100% of the components for the Byrna SD, LE, and CL models from U.S. suppliers by the end of 2025. We expect that this transition will insulate us from any potential tariffs, create well-paying jobs for American workers, reduce lead times, and eliminate the risks associated with unreliable foreign suppliers. We expect it will also allow us to market the Byrna as ‘Made in America!’

“Our momentum has carried into the new fiscal year with a strong holiday season in December, including $1.4 million in total product sales on Cyber Monday alone. International adoption has also been robust, particularly in Argentina, where the Cordoba Province committed to purchasing 1.7 million rounds of payload ammunition. This order, which will be shipped in 200,000-round monthly increments through the balance of 2025, reflects the extensive deployment of the 13,500 Byrna launchers purchased by the Cordoba Police Department to apprehend dangerous criminals and maintain the peace.

“Looking ahead, we remain optimistic about our trajectory. The ongoing success of our marketing efforts has resulted in less-lethal becoming a much more widely accepted personal self-defense category. This is allowing us to advertise on an increasing number of cable and social media platforms. We believe that the market for less-lethal weapons among gun owners in the U.S. is in the tens of millions of consumers. This expanding market, along with our growing online presence, expanding retail presence, and increasing international opportunities, reinforces our confidence in the long-term demand for less-lethal weapons as a whole and for Byrna specifically. While the first quarter historically experiences a seasonal slowdown in consumer spending, we expect to achieve strong year-over-year growth as we continue executing our strategic initiatives. We believe that Byrna is well-positioned to generate additional cash and expand profitability in 2025 and beyond.”

Conference Call
The Company’s management will host a conference call today, February 7, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. Eastern time (6:00 a.m. Pacific time) to discuss these results, followed by a question-and-answer period.

Toll-Free Dial-In: 877-709-8150
International Dial-In: +1 201-689-8354
Confirmation: 13750859

Please call the conference telephone number 5-10 minutes prior to the start time of the conference call. An operator will register your name and organization. If you have any difficulty connecting with the conference call, please contact Gateway Group at 949-574-3860.

The conference call will be broadcast live and available for replay here and via the Investor Relations section of Byrna’s website.

About Byrna Technologies Inc.
Byrna is a technology company specializing in the development, manufacture, and sale of innovative less-lethal personal security solutions. For more information on the Company, please visit the corporate website here or the Company’s investor relations site here. The Company is the manufacturer of the Byrna® SD personal security device, a state-of-the-art handheld CO2 powered launcher designed to provide a less-lethal alternative to a firearm for the consumer, private security, and law enforcement markets. To purchase Byrna products, visit the Company’s e-commerce store.

Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the securities laws. All statements contained in this news release, other than statements of current and historical fact, are forward-looking. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as “plans,” “expects,” “intends,” “anticipates,” and “believes” and statements that certain actions, events or results “may,” “could,” “would,” “should,” “might,” “occur,” or “be achieved,” or “will be taken.” Forward-looking statements include descriptions of currently occurring matters which may continue in the future. Forward-looking statements in this news release include but are not limited to our statements related to our expected sales during 2025, our ability to scale production lines, Byrna’s ability to remain self-sustaining, profitable and cash flow positive, Byrna’s ability to open new retail locations and realize revenue growth from them, the expected scale, timing and benefits of Byrna’s store-within-a-store partnership with Sportsman’s Warehouse, the benefits and continued success of Byrna’s celebrity endorser strategy, Byrna’s ability to re-shore production and cease purchasing parts from China on the anticipated timeline, the expected benefits of re-shoring production, the anticipated growth and potential size of the U.S. less-lethal market, and Byrna’s positioning for sustained growth in 2025 and 2026. Forward-looking statements are not, and cannot be, a guarantee of future results or events. Forward-looking statements are based on, among other things, opinions, assumptions, estimates, and analyses that, while considered reasonable by the Company at the date the forward-looking information is provided, inherently are subject to significant risks, uncertainties, contingencies, and other factors that may cause actual results and events to be materially different from those expressed or implied.

Any number of risk factors could affect our actual results and cause them to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements in this news release, including, but not limited to, disappointing market responses to current or future products or services; prolonged, new, or exacerbated disruption of our supply chain; the further or prolonged disruption of new product development; production or distribution disruption or delays in entry or penetration of sales channels due to inventory constraints, competitive factors, increased transportation costs or interruptions, including due to weather, flooding or fires; prototype, parts and material shortages, particularly of parts sourced from limited or sole source providers; determinations by third party controlled distribution channels, including Amazon, not to carry or reduce inventory of the Company’s products; determinations by advertisers or social media platforms, or legislation that prevents or limits marketing of some or all Byrna products; the loss of marketing partners; increases in marketing expenditure may not yield expected revenue increases; potential cancellations of existing or future orders including as a result of any fulfillment delays, introduction of competing products, negative publicity, or other factors; product design or manufacturing defects or recalls; litigation, enforcement proceedings or other regulatory or legal developments; changes in consumer or political sentiment affecting product demand; regulatory factors including the impact of commerce and trade laws and regulations; and future restrictions on the Company’s cash resources, increased costs and other events that could potentially reduce demand for the Company’s products or result in order cancellations. The order in which these factors appear should not be construed to indicate their relative importance or priority. We caution that these factors may not be exhaustive; accordingly, any forward-looking statements contained herein should not be relied upon as a prediction of actual results. Investors should carefully consider these and other relevant factors, including those risk factors in Part I, Item 1A, (“Risk Factors”) in the Company’s most recent Form 10-K and Part II, Item 1A (“Risk Factors”) in the Company’s most recent Form 10-Q, should understand it is impossible to predict or identify all such factors or risks, should not consider the foregoing list, or the risks identified in the Company’s SEC filings, to be a complete discussion of all potential risks or uncertainties, and should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, except as required by applicable law.

Investor Contact:
Tom Colton and Alec Wilson
Gateway Group, Inc.
949-574-3860
BYRN@gateway-grp.com

-Financial Tables to Follow-

BYRNA TECHNOLOGIES INC. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss) (Amounts in thousands except share and per share data) (Unaudited)

	For the Three Months Ended						For the Twelve Months Ended
	November 30,						November 30,
		2024			2023			2024			2023
Net revenue	$	27,979		$	15,640		$	85,756		$	42,644
Cost of goods sold		10,417			6,596			32,984			18,997
Gross profit		17,561			9,044			52,772			23,647
Operating expenses		13,468			9,729			46,101			31,437
INCOME (LOSS) FROM OPERATIONS		4,094			(684	)		6,671			(7,790	)
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)
Foreign currency transaction loss		(195	)		(32	)		(576	)		(270	)
Interest income		141			168			1,024			693
Loss from joint venture		–			22			(42	)		(603	)
Other income (expense)		1			27			7			(57	)
INCOME (LOSS) BEFORE INCOME TAXES		4,040			(499	)		7,084			(8,027	)
Income tax benefit		5,634			(330	)		5,708			165
NET INCOME (LOSS)	$	9,674		$	(829	)	$	12,792		$	(8,192	)

Foreign currency translation adjustment for the period		(133	)		205			342			(436	)
Unrealized gain (loss) on marketable securities		65			–			65			–
COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)	$	9,606		$	(624	)	$	13,199		$	(8,628	)

Basic net income (loss) per share	$	0.43		$	(0.04	)	$	0.57		$	(0.37	)
Diluted net income (loss) per share	$	0.41		$	(0.04	)	$	0.55		$	(0.37	)

Weighted-average number of common shares outstanding – basic		22,514,644			21,991,313			22,504,938			21,919,624
Weighted-average number of common shares outstanding – diluted		23,754,328			21,991,313			23,139,549			21,919,624

BYRNA TECHNOLOGIES INC. Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Amounts in thousands, except share and per share data)

	November 30,
		2024			2023
ASSETS
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	$	16,829		$	20,498
Accounts receivable, net		2,630			2,945
Marketable Securities		8,904			—
Inventory, net		19,972			13,890
Prepaid expenses and other current assets		2,623			868
Total current assets		50,958			38,201

Deposits for equipment		2,665			1,163
Right-of-use-asset, net		2,452			1,805
Property and equipment, net		3,408			3,803
Intangible assets, net		3,337			3,583
Goodwill		2,258			2,258
Loan to joint venture	—				1,473
Deferred tax asset		5,837
Other assets		1,007			28
TOTAL ASSETS	$	71,922		$	52,314
LIABILITIES
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	$	13,108		$	6,158
Operating lease liabilities, current		539			644
Deferred revenue		1,791			1,844
Line of credit		—			—
Notes payable, current		—			—
Total current liabilities		15,438			8,646

Notes payable, non-current
Deferred revenue, non-current		17			91
Operating lease liabilities, non-current		2,098			1,258
Total Liabilities		17,553			9,995

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (NOTE 19)

Preferred stock, $0.001 par value, 5,000,000 shares authorized, no shares issued		—			—
Common stock, $0.001 par value, 50,000,000 shares authorized. 24,168,014 shares issued and 22,002,027 outstanding as of November 30, 2024 and, 24,018,612 shares issued and 21,852,625 outstanding as of November 30, 2023		24			24
Additional paid-in capital		133,030			130,426
Treasury stock (2,165,987 shares purchased as of November 30, 2024 and 2023)		(21,253	)		(17,500	)
Accumulated deficit		(56,783	)		(69,575	)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss		(649	)		(1,056	)

Total Stockholders’ Equity		54,369			42,319

TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY	$	71,922		$	52,314

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In addition to providing financial measurements based on generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (GAAP), we provide an additional financial metric that is not prepared in accordance with GAAP (non-GAAP) with presenting non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA. Management uses this non-GAAP financial measure, in addition to GAAP financial measures, to understand and compare operating results across accounting periods, for financial and operational decision making, for planning and forecasting purposes and to evaluate our financial performance. We believe that this non-GAAP financial measure helps us to identify underlying trends in our business that could otherwise be masked by the effect of certain expenses that we exclude in the calculations of the non-GAAP financial measure.

Accordingly, we believe that this non-GAAP financial measure reflects our ongoing business in a manner that allows for meaningful comparisons and analysis of trends in the business and provides useful information to investors and others in understanding and evaluating our operating results, enhancing the overall understanding of our past performance and future prospects.

This non-GAAP financial measure does not replace the presentation of our GAAP financial results and should only be used as a supplement to, not as a substitute for, our financial results presented in accordance with GAAP. There are limitations in the use of non-GAAP measures, because they do not include all the expenses that must be included under GAAP and because they involve the exercise of judgment concerning exclusions of items from the comparable non-GAAP financial measure. In addition, other companies may use other non-GAAP measures to evaluate their performance, or may calculate non-GAAP measures differently, all of which could reduce the usefulness of our non-GAAP financial measure as a tool for comparison.

Adjusted EBITDA

Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net (loss) income as reported in our condensed consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive (loss) income excluding the impact of (I) depreciation and amortization; (ii) income tax provision (benefit); (iii) interest income (expense); (iv) stock-based compensation expense, (v) impairment loss, and (vi) one time, non-recurring other expenses or income. Our Adjusted EBITDA measure eliminates potential differences in performance caused by variations in capital structures (affecting finance costs), tax positions, the cost and age of tangible assets (affecting relative depreciation expense) and the extent to which intangible assets are identifiable (affecting relative amortization expense). We also exclude certain one-time and non-cash costs. Reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net (loss) income, the most directly comparable GAAP measure, is as follows (in thousands):

		For the Three Months Ended						For the Twelve Months Ended
		November 30,						November 30,
			2024			2023			2024			2023
Net Income (Loss)		$	9,673		$	(829	)	$	12,792		$	(8,192	)

Adjustments:
	Interest income		(141	)		(168	)		(1,024	)		(693	)
	Income tax benefit		(5,634	)		330			(5,708	)		165
	Depreciation and amortization		378			341			1,491			1,262
Non-GAAP EBITDA		$	4,276		$	(326	)	$	7,551		$	(7,458	)

Stock-based compensation expense			788			686			3,403			5,375
Severance/Separation/Officer recruiting			93			30			524			82
Non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA		$	5,157		$	390		$	11,478		$	(2,001	)

¹ See non-GAAP financial measures at the end of this press release for a reconciliation and a discussion of non-GAAP financial measures.

The MIL Network –

February 8, 2025

MIL-OSI: Arq Provides Update on Transformational GAC Project

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

Construction of Arq’s GAC production facility remains on schedule, with initial production expected in Q1 2025

Customer negotiations for GAC contracts progressing well

GAC production ramp-up set to begin in H1 2025, with full run-rate of 25 million pounds targeted for H2 2025

GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo., Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Arq, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARQ) (the “Company” or “Arq”), a producer of activated carbon and other environmentally efficient carbon products for use in purification and sustainable materials, today provided an update on the continued execution of its Granular Activated Carbon (“GAC”) project.

GAC Production and Ramp-Up Timeline

Arq confirmed that initial production of its proprietary GAC at the Red River facility (“Red River”) remains on track to commence in Q1 2025, in line with most recent guidance. Following first production, the Company expects a ramp-up period to reach full production capacity of 25 million pounds annual run-rate of GAC in H2 2025. Once full run-rate capacity is achieved, the Company will have greater visibility on potential additional capacity enhancements.

GAC Customer Engagement & Contract Update

Arq continues to make meaningful progress in commercial discussions for GAC and continues to engage with a range of customers and testing opportunities. As noted on its Q3 2024 earnings call, in addition to PFAS-related customers, discussions with biogas and other industrial customers are advancing positively, with early pricing indications indicating a strong commercial opportunity. Given the need for in-situ pilot testing as a condition to securing long-term contracts from these customers, Arq has elected to strategically hold back additional contract commitments to diversify end-use markets and focus on profitability over volumes. The Company is planning to match its contracting and sales with the production ramp-up timeline in H2 2025.

Capital Expenditures & Cost Management

Arq reported capital expenditures related to its GAC expansion at Red River in Q4 2024 were slightly above expectations, bringing full-year 2024 capex for this project to approximately $80 million. The Company attributes this recent increase to several factors, including the need for additional external professional services, increased small-bore piping needs, and a commitment to maintaining previously communicated timelines. Given knowledge and experience gained from the first phase of construction, the Company does not anticipate similar cost overruns for a second phase of GAC development at the site. Arq continues to evaluate opportunities for additional cost optimization and efficiency gains as the Company scales production.

Commencement of Legal Proceedings

The Company announced today that it had commenced legal proceedings against its design firm for the GAC expansion project at Red River. The Company believes that the design firm was negligent and breached its contract with the Company and as a direct result of this negligence and breach of contract, the Company suffered a material increase in costs and time delays associated with the project versus original forecasts. The Company is seeking damages related to the increased costs and delays it believes resulted from such negligence and contractual breaches. Because of prior actions by the Company to bring certain professional services in-house and to other parties, including those previously disclosed, the Company believes there will be no impact on product performance and as noted above, GAC production is expected to commence in Q1 2025.

Q4 & FY 2024 Earnings Conference Call

Arq will release its Q4 and full-year 2024 financial results on March 5, 2025. The Company will provide separately additional details related to its earnings conference call, as well as its participation in upcoming investor conferences in the near term.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which provides a “safe harbor” for such statements in certain circumstances. When used in this press release, the words “can,” “will,” “may,” “intends,” “expects,” “continuing,” “believes,” similar expressions and any other statements that are not historical facts are intended to identify those assertions as forward-looking statements. All statements that address activities, events or developments that the Company intends, expects or believes may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements or expectations regarding: the estimated costs and timing associated with capital improvements at our facilities and the related anticipated production capacities, the expected timing for commercial production of the Company’s GAC products, potential future capacity enhancements at the Company’s facilities, anticipated commercial opportunities in various GAC markets, cost optimization and efficiency efforts associated with future phases of the Company’s GAC project and the Company’s GAC product performance. . These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Actual events or results could differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors including, but not limited to, the Company’s ability to maintain relationships with customers, suppliers and others with whom it does business and meet supply requirements, or its results of operations and business generally; risks related to diverting management’s attention from the Company’s ongoing business operations; changes in construction costs or availability of construction materials; our inability to effectively manage construction and startup of the Red River facility or Corbin facility; our inability to ramp up our operations to effectively address recent and expected growth in our business; the timing and cost of capital expenditures and the resultant impact to our liquidity and cash flows; our inability to obtain required financing or obtain financing on terms that are favorable to us; opportunities for additional sales of our activated carbon products and end-market diversification; the Company’s ability to meet customer supply requirements; the rate of coal-fired power generation in the United States; timing and scope of new and pending regulations and any legal challenges to or extensions of compliance dates of them; impact of competition; availability, cost of and demand for alternative energy sources and other technologies; technical, start up and operational difficulties; competition within the industries in which the Company operates; loss of key personnel; ongoing effects of the inflation and macroeconomic uncertainty, including from the lingering effects of the pandemic and armed conflicts around the world, and such uncertainty’s effect on market demand and input costs, as well as other factors relating to our business, as described in our filings with the SEC, with particular emphasis on the risk factor disclosures contained in those filings. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and to consult filings we have made and will make with the SEC for additional discussion concerning risks and uncertainties that may apply to our business and the ownership of our securities. In addition to causing our actual results to differ, the factors listed above may cause our intentions to change from those statements of intention set forth in this press release. Such changes in our intentions may also cause our results to differ. We may change our intentions, at any time and without notice, based upon changes in such factors, our assumptions, or otherwise. The forward-looking statements speak only as to the date of this press release and the Company disclaims any duty to update such statements unless required by law.

About Arq

Arq (NASDAQ: ARQ) is a diversified, environmental technology Company with products that enable a cleaner and safer planet while actively reducing our environmental impact. As the only vertically integrated producer of activated carbon products in North America, we deliver a reliable domestic supply of innovative, hard-to-source, high-demand products. We apply our extensive expertise to develop groundbreaking solutions to remove harmful chemicals and pollutants from water, land and air. Learn more at: www.arq.com.

Source: Arq, Inc.

Investor Contact:
Anthony Nathan, Arq
Marc Silverberg, ICR
investors@arq.com

The MIL Network –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI: CLEAR Launches New Lanes at Portland International Airport

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

PORTLAND, ORE. and NEW YORK, Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, CLEAR (NYSE: YOU), the secure identity company, is launching its identity verification technology at Portland International Airport (PDX), bringing frictionless and predictable travel experiences to Oregon. CLEAR’s launch at PDX is expected to create 53 jobs and generate over $3 million annually in local economic impact.

“We are thrilled to welcome CLEAR, a world class service, to a world class airport! This valuable addition is now available to travelers at PDX, meeting the growing demand for convenience while upholding the city’s commitment to consumer rights and responsible technology use,” said Portland Metro Chamber President and CEO Andrew Hoan. “Technology should make life easier for all, and CLEAR’s approach at PDX reflects that balance—enhancing the traveler experience while respecting local policies and the rights of the public. Welcome CLEAR to Portland, and we look forward to seeing it benefit our community.”

“When we opened our new main terminal last summer, we often got asked: Will CLEAR be coming to PDX? Today, we’re excited to deliver that option for our travelers,” said Dan Pippenger, Chief Aviation Officer at Port of Portland. “With the addition of CLEAR, we’re continuing to improve and streamline the travel experience while maintaining the highest standards of safety and security.”

“We’re thrilled to bring CLEAR to Portland and help PDX travelers experience a smoother, more predictable journey,” said CLEAR CEO Caryn Seidman-Becker. “We share PDX’s dedication to enhancing the customer experience and are excited to be part of making travel to and from Oregon faster and easier.”

Today’s launch represents continued growth in CLEAR’s national footprint, where it serves a total of 59 airports with its opt-in CLEAR Plus membership and over 27 million Members. Members use CLEAR’s network of dedicated lanes to seamlessly and securely verify their identity with their eyes or fingerprints, replacing the need to take out their wallet and driver’s license. After verification, a CLEAR Ambassador escorts Members through the dedicated lane and directly to TSA physical security, with the goal of saving them time waiting in line at the security checkpoint.

CLEAR Plus – an opt-in membership that provides access to CLEAR’s expedited identity verification lanes – costs a little more than $16 a month billed annually, with preferred pricing available for Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Alaska Airlines and American Express Members. Newly enrolling active military, veterans, and government officials are also eligible for discounted memberships, and additional family Members can be added to an existing CLEAR Plus account for $119 per adult per year.

About Port of Portland
With three airports, four marine terminals, and five business parks, the Port of Portland is an economic engine for transforming the region into a place where everyone is welcome, empowered, and connected to the opportunity to find a good job or grow their business. The Port works to pull down barriers and provide access to people and local businesses who have been left out of the region’s economic growth—including people of color, low-income workers, and people with disabilities. Collectively, the Port leads big projects in the region, including expanding PDX airport and making it more accessible and efficient; transforming a former marine terminal into a site for innovation in the housing construction and mass timber industries; and providing more options for Pacific Northwest businesses to send their products around the world. For more information, visit www.PortofPortland.com.

About CLEAR (NYSE: YOU)
CLEAR’s mission is to create frictionless experiences. With over 27 million Members and a growing network of partners across the world, CLEAR’s identity platform is transforming the way people live, work, and travel. Whether you are traveling, at the stadium, or on your phone, CLEAR connects you to the things that make you, you – making everyday experiences easier, more secure, and friction-free. CLEAR is committed to privacy done right. Members are always in control of their own information, and we never sell Member data. For more information, visit clearme.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This release may contain statements that constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that any and such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or results and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results, developments and events may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those described in the Company’s filings within the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the sections titled “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10- K. The Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained herein.

Contact
CLEAR
media@clearme.com

This press release was published by a CLEAR® Verified individual.

The MIL Network –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Multiple Joe and the Juice bars closed in quick succession after mouse infestations found in the latest round of council enforcement | Westminster City Council

Source: City of Westminster

Two locations of Joe and the Juice have been fined £40,000 each after serious breaches of food safety and hygiene regulations after mice infestations were found. Fines, costs victim surcharges totalling £95,900 were handed down at Westminster Magistrates Court on the 22^nd January 2025.

The popular juice and coffee bar on Garrick Street was shut by Westminster City Council due to a widespread mouse infestation being discovered in June 2023. Upon inspection the premises, mouse droppings were found in boxes of bread used for their much-loved sandwiches. As the inspection continued environmental health officers found evidence of the rodent droppings on napkins intended for customers.

This presented a clear danger to consumers given mice can carry diseases such as Leptospirosis and food poisoning bacteria such as Campylobacter and Salmonella transmitted through their saliva, droppings and urine.

Additionally, an inspection of Joe and The Juice on Davies Street in December 2023 by the local authority’s environmental health team revealed equally poor standards of hygiene and cleanliness. Upon inspection, officers found bread stored on trays had been gnawed by mice, as well as droppings in storage and front of house serving areas. They also found food crumbs below shelving likely to encourage the infestation.

Both cases were serious enough to be served Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notices which temporarily closed both locations with the two branches pleaded guilty at the first opportunity to two offences under food hygiene regulations.

Cllr Aicha Less, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Children and Public Protection said:

Customers should have peace of mind that the kitchen and cafes they enjoy have the highest standards of hygiene and cleanliness. However, the details of these cases are truly shocking and fall well below the standards we expect of food businesses in Westminster.

“The severity of these fines demonstrates how seriously we take food hygiene, and residents and visitors can be reassured that the council will take meaningful action to keep them safe.

“We continue to work closely with all food and hospitality businesses to make sure the very highest standards of cleanliness are maintained.”

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Home Park/Life Centre travel advice for this weekend

Source: City of Plymouth

People travelling to, through and from Milehouse this coming Sunday (9 February) are warned the area will be exceptionally busy, due to the Plymouth Argyle home game against Liverpool and the Devon County ASA swimming championships at the Plymouth Life Centre.

Our advice to anyone planning to visit Home Park, the Life Centre or Central Park is to allow extra time for their journeys, use public transport and park in the city centre where possible.

The Milehouse Park and Ride and Plymouth Life Centre car parks are likely to be full by mid-morning.

Argyle fans should check the PAFC Travel Guide for advice on getting to and from the ground. Further match guidance can also be found on the Plymouth Argyle website.

In addition to the match-day shuttle buses operated by Plymouth Citybus, there are a number of bus services that run along Alma Road and Outland Road, providing easy access to Central Park, Home Park and the Life Centre. Details of these services can be found on our bus journey planning page.

Outland Road

34        Plymouth Citybus                every hour
61        Plymouth Citybus                every hour

Alma Road

10        Plymouth Citybus                every two hours
11        Plymouth Citybus                every two hours
12        Plymouth Citybus                every two hours
16        Plymouth Citybus                every hour
43        Plymouth Citybus                every 30 minutes
50        Plymouth Citybus                every 30 minutes
2          Stagecoach South West     every 30 minutes
70        Plymouth Citybus                every two hours

If you need to travel by car, consider car sharing with friends or family. Please use car parks in or around the city centre and do not park irresponsibly on site or in neighbouring streets. Our parking enforcement team will be patrolling the area and issuing penalty charge notices.

Beryl e-bikes also offer a convenient and eco-friendly travel option and there are docking stations near the Life Centre. Please be aware there are also lane closures on Alma Road due to ongoing gas pipe upgrade works. Footways along Alma Road will be kept open

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Artist’s work brings colour and emotion to Leicester Museum

Source: City of Leicester

A MAJOR retrospective of the work of a renowned local artist opens at Leicester Museum & Art Gallery next weekend.

Satta Hashem, who was born in Iraq in 1959, studied mural painting and decorative arts in Leningrad (now St Petersburg), before moving to Sweden and settling in the UK.

Since moving to Leicester in 2000, the artist has created hundreds of paintings and drawings that reflect a broad range of themes – from his response to the US occupation of Iraq in 2003, to his compassion for the victims of war and sectarianism, and his exploration of colour to represent moments in his daily life.

From Saturday 15 February, more than 80 pieces of Satta Hashem’s work will be on display at Leicester Museum, making it one of the most comprehensive exhibitions ever of the artist’s work.

His stunning portraits evoke the earliest depictions of the human face found in masks from the ancient civilisation of Sumer – now part of modern-day Iraq. These historical influences are referenced in the exhibition by a number of ancient Sumerian artefacts, kindly loaned by the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford.

In addition to paintings, drawings and murals, the retrospective will also include book and magazine illustrations, rare archive material and samples of the artist’s sketchbooks.

A World of Colour & Emotion: Satta Hashem opens at Leicester Museum & Art Gallery on Saturday 15 February and continues until Sunday 29 June.

Admission is free of charge.

More information about what’s on at Leicester Museum is available at leicestermuseums.org/museum-art-gallery

Picture caption: Untitled No 10, 2023: Satta Hashem

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI China: Chinese museums receive about 72.65M visits during Spring Festival week

Source: China State Council Information Office 3

Museums across China received approximately 72.65 million visits from Jan. 29 to Feb. 4 this year, the first seven days of the Chinese new year, according to data released by the National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA) on Friday.

The average daily number of visits increased by 12.84% compared to the previous year, the NCHA added.

In addition, the country’s 55 national archaeological site parks recorded nearly 5.17 million visits during the same period.

China has experienced a steady rise in museum visits in recent years. By the end of August 2024, the country had 6,833 officially registered museums — covering history, art, science, archaeology and more.

MIL OSI China News –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Sowing the Seeds of Change in Danbury Schools

Source: US State of Connecticut

Gardens welcome students, employees, and visitors at all of Danbury’s schools, thanks to Anne Mead, the director of family, school, and community partnerships for Danbury Public Schools, and the many people and organizations she works with on the school garden initiatives. Her role includes working with partners and developing strategies for families to engage with the schools.

Mead ’06 (BGS) has a master’s and doctoral degree in educational and organizational systems and the Danbury Schools recruited her to lead the partnerships initiatives in 2008.

Mead is a UConn Extension Master Gardener volunteer and collaborates with this program and UConn Extension’s Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) in her work with Danbury Schools.

“I came into the district with a farm and garden approach to schools, and we have gardens at many schools now. We have a Farm to School Institute team and are implementing the 3C’s classroom, curriculum, and cafeteria,” she says.

Students have opportunities for experiential learning through the gardens, including planting, watering, and caring for the plants. This fosters their education, and nutrition awareness as they harvest produce from the garden and help prepare healthy meals.

Mead’s Extension involvement began as a child, growing up in Redding. Her mother was an avid gardener and healthy cook; a 4-H leader, as well as a cookbook committee member. Mead always loved gardening because of this early introduction. She and her husband live in Danbury and have extensive gardens on their property as well.

During the pandemic, Mead enrolled in UConn Extension’s Master Gardener Program and earned her certification.

“The Master Gardeners brought my horticultural understanding to a different level intellectually because of the amount of knowledge you walk away with; you understand the whys, permaculture, and wind patterns.” She also recently became an Advanced Master Gardener.

In addition to the skills and knowledge she has gained, Mead also appreciates the community connections Extension programming provides. She helps families who visit the Master Gardeners at the farmers market, providing resources and recommendations on types of vegetables to grow and scaling up their garden each year. She continues volunteering with the program and helping people with gardening and food choices, in addition to her role with the schools.

“I encourage everyone to visit an Extension location; there is one in every county,” Mead says. “Talk to the program coordinator and graduates, spend some time volunteering with the Master Gardeners or sit in on a class. Look at the projects in your community. Becoming a Master Gardener is one way to become informed and spend time in your community.”

Mead’s building in the Danbury School System is connected to the elementary school building, and this year, she received a grant from the Connecticut Master Gardener Association to add a pollinator garden for butterflies and insects on their playscape. She also serves on the district’s health and wellness committee, and they are developing healthier snacks, cutting down on highly processed, sugar-laden foods, and adding more fresh fruits and vegetables to the menus. The 3- to 5-year-olds participate in making the meals and then filling their plates.

“Anne Mead is a dynamic partner. She brings in-depth knowledge about greater Danbury and coupled with her knowledge of public education, especially understanding the needs of area students and their families, exemplifies how Extension increases its reach even further as we support and help grow these important initiatives,” Bonnie Burr, the assistant director of UConn Extension says.

One of her next projects will be helping bring a Green Academy to Danbury High School’s Wall to Wall Academy. This will include gardening aspects and career pathways, and she’s excited to incorporate her horticultural knowledge and Master Gardener experiences in this new initiative.

The gardening and nutrition projects are one aspect of Mead’s work with Danbury Public Schools, but the impact is far-reaching.

“We hope to see much better nutrition,” Mead shares. “Gardening with the students is a time without a lot of competition and very little technology, they can be themselves in the garden. The parents are participating too, and it’s building a sense of community with the youth and families.”

Follow UConn CAHNR on social media

MIL OSI USA News –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: Forssmed: We must not forget the lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic
Source: Government of Sweden

“Our capacity to manage a pandemic is better today than it was in 2020. However, a crisis requires more than preparedness in the form of regulatory frameworks,” writes Minister for Social Affairs and Public Health Jakob Forssmed (Christian Democrats).

This week marks five years since the first COVID-19 case was reported in Sweden. In this short time, society has undergone a comprehensive crisis and long since returned to normality. But for the people and families in our country, COVID-19 has left lasting scars in the form of grief and loss. Many lost their lives and many still experience long-term health issues as a result of COVID-19. Long-term isolation and loneliness have also left deep scars.

Sweden could face a new crisis

Other crises and difficulties have arisen in place of the pandemic, and seemingly part of human nature – in our country at least – is the wish to leave the preceding crisis behind us. But we must not forget the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic, because unfortunately, we cannot rule out that Sweden will be faced with another pandemic – it is actually very likely that we will. That is why I am grateful for all the efforts that we are currently undertaking and that have been undertaken within the Government Offices to ensure that Sweden is better equipped to deal with any future pandemics.

A few examples:
- Inquiry Chair Professor Jan Albert has been tasked with reviewing the regulation of communicable diseases to better adapt it to situations of extensive spread of infectious diseases. He will also submit information for a strategy for future pandemic management, including analyses of issues of allocation of responsibilities in the event of another pandemic.
- The Public Health Agency of Sweden has been tasked with ensuring continued access to vaccines for the population in the event of an influenza pandemic. Currently, the avian influenza H5N1 has caused extensive outbreaks globally among both tame and wild animals in a short period of time. There are cases of the infection passing from animals to humans as well.
- The Public Health Agency of Sweden has also been tasked with ensuring continued access to antiviral medicines in the event of a pandemic.
- The National Board of Health and Welfare has been tasked with establishing a national collaboration structure for health and welfare’s supply preparedness of medical care products and any other equipment required to ensure the provision of proper care, together with the Medical Products Agency, the Swedish eHealth Agency, the Public Health Agency of Sweden and the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions.
- The Public Health Agency of Sweden’s mandate in relation to communication and information for the public has been clarified. The Agency plays a natural role in the dissemination of information and communication to the public.
Critical flaws in pandemic management

Important measures have been taken within the Public Health Agency of Sweden as well, including building a stronger system for surveillance of communicable diseases. This system includes increased epidemiological and microbiological surveillance with a higher degree of automation than previously.

The Agency is also working to integrate its different surveillance systems and automate the collection of data on infectious diseases within the health policy platform. This will enable real-time data sharing between national and regional actors, gathered within a shared user interface with different authorisation levels and tools to analyse cases of illness and outbreaks.

The Agency was tasked with strengthening its capacity to discover and analyse viruses spread via wastewater. All the above will ensure that we are better equipped to manage a pandemic today than in 2020. There were critical flaws at that time, which the COVID-19 Commission has highlighted.

But the COVID-19 Commission also points out that crisis management requires more than preparedness in the form of regulatory frameworks. It also requires a capacity to act in an entirely new set of circumstances where one does not have all the answers. One needs to be able to be act proactively and with force in peacetime crisis situations as well as in wartime and when there is a risk of war. In relation to this, the Government has made changes to the instructions to the Public Health Agency of Sweden to include a clear expectation for the Agency to act.

Sweden is better equipped

A clear conclusion from the pandemic is the requirement for clear political responsibility. The Government governs the state in times of crisis as well and that responsibility cannot be handed over to public authorities. Finally, it is important to remember what was perhaps the COVID-19 Commission’s main conclusion – everything centres around our society, values and people.

Sweden made it through the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the errors in management and initial passivity. This was achieved by virtue of a strong sense of duty, particularly among health and social care staff, caring for others and a fundamental trust in society. These assets, together with all the initiatives taken by the Government and public authorities, mean that Sweden is now much better equipped should another pandemic befall our country.
MIL OSI Europe News –
February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/ARAB EMIRATES – Jubilee in the Vicariate of Southern Arabia, Bishop Martinelli: our being a “Church of migrants” helps us to place all our hope in Christ

Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

Friday, 7 February 2025

photo Paolo Andrea Valente

Abu Dhabi (Agenzia Fides) – The Church in the Vicariate of Southern Arabia is a “Church of migrants”, where the common experience of being migrant is to feel that there is always “something missing or lacking”, starting from their homeland and their distant loved ones. But this perception should be “an opportunity”, first of all for us to open up to each other, and, at the same time, “this condition” brings out the source and the dynamism of Christian hope, “a hope that does not disappoint us because it is rooted in the love of Christ, an irrevocable love, a love forever”.This is what Capuchin Franciscan Bishop Paolo Martinelli, Apostolic Vicar of Southern Arabia, writes in his pastoral letter addressed to the Catholic communities present in the Vicariate of Southern Arabia, which includes Oman, Yemen and the United Arab Emirates, on the occasion of the Ordinary Jubilee of the Catholic Church.Bishop Martinelli points to the characteristic factors – pilgrimage and hope – that characterize the Jubilee period, highlighting the many things that migrants and pilgrims have in common: “Today we are called to be pilgrims of hope” because “a pilgrim goes through the adversities of life knowing that God never abandons him or her. Being pilgrims, reminds us that we are migrants. And like a pilgrim, a migrant is also always on the move”.“We live in this part of the world, far from our homes and our countries of origin. We are a Church of migrants, we come from over a hundred different nations. Our life here depends on the condition of our jobs and on many circumstances that are not in our control. Precisely in these situations of being migrants, we are called to live with a greater passion, the role of being the pilgrims of hope”, said the Bishop, citing the Bull “Spes non confundit” (n. 13), in which the Pope calls for “signs of hope for migrants who leave their homelands behind in search of a better life for themselves and for their families. Their expectations must not be frustrated by prejudice and rejection”.Being a migrant, continues Martinelli, “always means dealing with limitations”, such as the absence of families. “Even if we have a lot of help, we cannot have everything that we have in our countries of origin” and this makes us all understand “the temporariness of life”.“I I invite you to live your reality of being migrants in this land of Arabia as part of your pilgrimage, towards the Kingdom of Heaven, continually supported by Christian hope. We are made for eternal happiness; let us not be deceived by the temporary goods,” the Apostolic Vicar continued.“Mass migration,” the Apostolic Vicar wrote, “is changing the face of societies and face of the Church. Being aware of this epochal change, being migrants and pilgrims of hope leads us to live intensely and in harmony, our being a Church composed of people who come from many different countries and at the same time promote peace and solidarity in social life. In this way, united in diversity, we can be a prophetic sign of the Kingdom of God.”Bishop Martinelli also recalls that this year marks 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, which gave us “the Creed, which we recite every Sunday. It is still recognized today by all the Churches and denominations of Christianity. Celebrating the Nicene Creed has a great ecumenical value, it pushes us to work for the promotion of unity among all Christians”.“I invite you to live with great vigor this Holy Year of hope. I encourage you to participate in the programs and the events of our vicariate, especially in the churches declared as shrines for the jubilee (vedi Fides 10/1/2025) and in some of the international events planned in Rome”, concluded the Apostolic Vicar of Southern Arabia. (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 7/2/2025)
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MIL OSI Europe News –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/PHILIPPINES – “State of food emergency” while the country is in electoral campaign

Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

Foto di Eduardo Prim su Unsplash

Manila (Agenzia Fides) – The state of “food emergency” declared by the Philippine government to counter the “rice crisis” – due to an “extraordinary” increase in the price of the country’s staple food – “is an economic problem, but it also has political implications: we are in the electoral campaign, with a view to the elections in May, and the rice issue will influence this period. It will be used by politicians to capitalize on the consensus for or against President Marcos”, underlines Antonio Ledesma, Archbishop Emeritus of Cagayan de Oro on the island of Mindanao, in an interview with Fides.“In Mindanao”, says the Jesuit, “there is discontent at the moment, but people can still buy rice at the market. Of course, this is an important issue and we are in a precarious balance”. “There are farmers who have a low income from growing rice for sale,” the Archbishop continued. “Their situation overlaps with the problem of imports, since domestic demand in the Philippines cannot be met by local production. Making the country self-sufficient in rice needs and finding measures to achieve this is an open and protracted problem.These are all issues that affect the common good, but they are now entering the electoral campaign and are in danger of being instrumentalized,” he explains.The declaration of rice food emergency was signed on February 4 and allows for the release of rice stocks from the National Food Authority (NFA) to stabilize prices “and ensure that rice, a staple food for millions of Filipinos, remains accessible to consumers,” said Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. A release of 300,000 tons of rice, about 30,000 per month, is planned for a period of 10 months to stabilize the market through lower prices. The NFA will start selling its rice stocks in selected markets to government-controlled companies at a price of 36 pesos per kilo, while rice currently sells between 50 and 60 pesos per kilo. This will benefit both consumers and local farmers as rice will be available at a lower price. The food safety emergency will remain in effect until it is lifted by the department. In this regard, Laurel stressed that food prices have remained high despite the decline in global rice prices and the reduction of tariffs on imported rice in July 2024. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), rice inflation reached 4.2 percent at the end of 2024, with a steady increase. In this situation, welfare programs for the sale of cheaper rice in centers and outlets under the “Rice for all” program were launched to help the country’s citizens, especially from the poorer sections of the population. In the Catholic communities, to support the food security of the poorest, the “Pondo ng Pinoy” program is active, an anti-poverty initiative that was first launched in the Diocese of Manila in 2004 and has now spread to 30 dioceses. The basis of the program is the formula “a little for many”, in which as many people as possible are invited to donate 25 cents every day as a gesture of charity towards those in need. (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 7/2/2025)
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MIL OSI Europe News –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Makeover for 19th century Coventry summerhouses

Source: City of Coventry

Cllr Akhtar and Nicholas Dutton, Historic England

The renovation and restoration of three 19th Century summerhouses in Coventry is well underway.

The Grade II listed summer houses are within the Grade II* Registered Park and Garden at Stoney Road Allotments in Cheylesmore.

The summerhouses had fallen into disrepair and are the last remaining plots of the Park Gardens, established 200 years ago.

It is one of only four remaining detached Victorian town gardens that are listed on Historic England’s Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest.

Historic England has provided a £250k grant for the restoration of the buildings. Railway Heritage Trust has also made a contribution, while support has also been provided by Network Rail.

Cllr Naeem Akhtar, Cabinet Member with responsibility for heritage said:

“It’s wonderful to see the work that is being done and I am really looking forward to returning once the restoration is completed.

“We are really grateful to Historic England for their generous support. We also value the support of the Railway Heritage Trust and Network Rail.

“There has been a lot of interest in this project, and it highlights the value we have for a wide range of heritage buildings in the city.”

The site is still actively used as allotments and sub-tenanted by the Stoney Road Gardens Association (SRGA).

Louise Brennan, Historic England Regional Director (Midlands) said:

“It is amazing to see the original features of the gardens restored.

“The Heritage at Risk funding has meant that three of the grade II listed Summerhouses have received complete repairs to the building structures, including replacement roofs, new windows and doors, reconstruction of walls with lime mortar and original bricks, timber frame restoration, and other internal repairs.

“And it’s brilliant that it’s all been achieved using traditional methods and materials, restoring the summerhouses to their original form.”

The renovation is expected to be completed by the spring.

Published: Friday, 7th February 2025

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Coast Guard medevacs snorkeler in distress in Atlantic Ocean waters north of Dominican Republic

Source: United States Coast Guard

02/07/2025 07:04 AM EST

A Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen MH-60T Jayhawk helicopter aircrew conducted a medevac for a snorkeler from the motor vessel Sea Hunter in Atlantic Ocean waters, approximately 70 nautical miles north of Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, Wednesday. The snorkeler was a 70-year-old man, U.S. citizen, who experienced a near drowning event while snorkeling off the motor vessel Sea Hunter. “This mission presented a significant challenge, as time was of the essence and required meticulous planning of fuel, communications, and extensive coordination between Sector San Juan and the Sea Hunter crew,” said Lt. William Boardman, Coast Guard MH-60T Jayhawk aircraft commander for the case. “Our team worked efficiently on scene to ensure a safe return to Puerto Rico. The patient was successfully transferred to Emergency Medical Service personnel and transported to a higher level of care. A huge thank you to everyone involved.”

For more breaking news follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

MIL Security OSI –

February 8, 2025

MIL-OSI: Plains All American Reports Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year 2024 Results; Provides Update on Efficient Growth Initiatives and Announces 2025 Guidance

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

HOUSTON, Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. (Nasdaq: PAA) and Plains GP Holdings (Nasdaq: PAGP) today reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 results, announced 2025 guidance and provided the following highlights:

2024 Results

Fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 Net income attributable to PAA of $36 million and $772 million, respectively, and 2024 Net cash provided by operating activities of $726 million and $2.49 billion, respectively
Delivered strong fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA above the top-end of guidance with $729 million and $2.78 billion, respectively
Generated full-year 2024 Adjusted Free Cash Flow (excluding changes in Assets & Liabilities; including impact from legal settlements) of $1.17 billion and exited the year with leverage at 3.0x
Net income for the quarter includes the impact of a $225 million charge resulting from the write-off of a receivable for Line 901 insurance proceeds and $140 million of non-cash charges related to the write-down of two U.S. NGL terminals

Efficient Growth Initiatives

Closed all three previously announced bolt-on acquisitions for approximately $670 million net to PAA, including the acquisition of Ironwood Midstream Energy
Closed on previously announced purchase of approximately 12.7 million units, or 18%, of its Series A Preferred Units for a purchase price of approximately $330 million
Continue pursuing a long runway of synergistic and strong return bolt-on opportunities across the asset footprint

2025 Outlook

Expect full-year 2025 Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA of $2.80 – $2.95 billion
Announced distribution increase of $0.25 per unit payable February 14, 2025, representing a 20% aggregate increase in the annualized distribution versus 2024 levels (new annual distribution of $1.52 per unit)
In January, successfully raised $1 billion in aggregate senior unsecured notes at 5.95% due 2035
Anticipate leverage ratio to be at or below the low-end of leverage target range of 3.25x to 3.75x, continuing to provide significant balance sheet optionality and flexibility
Expect to generate approximately $1.15 billion of Adjusted Free Cash Flow (excluding changes in Assets & Liabilities), which is reduced by approximately $580 million for previously announced bolt-on transactions closed in the first quarter
Remain focused on disciplined capital investments, anticipating full-year 2025 Growth Capital of +/- $400 million and Maintenance Capital of +/- $240 million net to PAA

“We continue delivering strong financial and operating results and increasing return of capital to unitholders. As evidenced by our recently announced acquisitions, we have the ability to leverage our integrated asset base and financial strength to drive accretive transactions and deliver value to our customers and unitholders,” said Plains Chairman and CEO Willie Chiang. “We remain confident entering 2025, with strong operational momentum and focus on executing our efficient growth strategy. Our strong performance and positive outlook combined with the contribution from recent bolt-on acquisitions continues driving meaningful cash flow and underpins increasing returns to unitholders all while maintaining capital discipline and financial flexibility.”

Plains All American Pipeline

Summary Financial Information (unaudited)
(in millions, except per unit data)

	Three Months Ended December 31,					%			Twelve Months Ended December 31,				%
*GAAP Results*	2024			2023		Change			2024		2023		Change
Net income attributable to PAA	$	36		$	312		(88	)%	$	772	$	1,230		(37	)%
Diluted net income/(loss) per common unit	$	(0.04	)	$	0.35		(111	)%	$	0.73	$	1.40		(48	)%
Diluted weighted average common units outstanding		704			701		—	%		702		699		—	%
Net cash provided by operating activities	$	726		$	1,011		(28	)%	$	2,490	$	2,727		(9	)%
Distribution per common unit declared for the period	$	0.3800		$	0.3175		20	%	$	1.3325	$	1.1200		19	%

	Three Months Ended December 31,					%			Twelve Months Ended December 31,				%
*Non-GAAP Results* ⁽¹⁾	2024			2023		Change			2024		2023		Change
Adjusted net income attributable to PAA	$	357		$	355		1	%	$	1,318	$	1,250		5	%
Diluted adjusted net income per common unit	$	0.42		$	0.42		—	%	$	1.51	$	1.42		6	%
Adjusted EBITDA	$	867		$	875		(1	)%	$	3,326	$	3,167		5	%
Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA ⁽²⁾	$	729		$	737		(1	)%	$	2,779	$	2,711		3	%
Implied DCF per common unit and common unit equivalent	$	0.64		$	0.68		(6	)%	$	2.49	$	2.46		1	%
Adjusted Free Cash Flow	$	365		$	710	**			$	1,247	$	1,798		(31	)%
Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions	$	79		$	458	**			$	102	$	809		(87	)%
Adjusted Free Cash Flow (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) ⁽³⁾	$	134		$	402		**		$	1,173	$	1,604		(27	)%
Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) ⁽³⁾	$	(152	)	$	150	**			$	28	$	615		(95	)%


**	Indicates that variance as a percentage is not meaningful.
⁽¹⁾	See the section of this release entitled “Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Selected Items Impacting Comparability” and the tables attached hereto for information regarding our Non-GAAP financial measures, including their reconciliation to the most directly comparable measures as reported in accordance with GAAP, and certain selected items that PAA believes impact comparability of financial results between reporting periods.
⁽²⁾	Excludes amounts attributable to noncontrolling interests in the Plains Oryx Permian Basin LLC joint venture, Cactus II Pipeline LLC and Red River Pipeline LLC.
⁽³⁾	Fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 Adjusted Free Cash Flow (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) includes the negative impact of a $225 million charge resulting from the write-off of a receivable for Line 901 insurance proceeds.

Summary of Selected Financial Data by Segment (unaudited)
(in millions)

	Segment Adjusted EBITDA
	Crude Oil			NGL
Three Months Ended December 31, 2024	$	569		$	154
Three Months Ended December 31, 2023	$	563		$	169
*Percentage change in Segment Adjusted EBITDA versus 2023 period*	1		%	(9		)%

	Segment Adjusted EBITDA
	Crude Oil			NGL
Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2024	$	2,276		$	480
Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2023	$	2,163		$	522
*Percentage change in Segment Adjusted EBITDA versus 2023 period*	5		%	(8		)%

Fourth-quarter 2024 Crude Oil Segment Adjusted EBITDA increased 1% versus comparable 2023 results primarily due to higher tariff volumes on our pipelines, tariff escalations and contributions from acquisitions. These items were partially offset by fewer market-based opportunities, as well as an increase in estimated costs for long-term environmental remediation obligations.

Fourth-quarter 2024 NGL Segment Adjusted EBITDA decreased 9% versus comparable 2023 results primarily due to lower weighted average frac spreads in the fourth quarter of 2024.

Plains GP Holdings

PAGP owns an indirect non-economic controlling interest in PAA’s general partner and an indirect limited partner interest in PAA. As the control entity of PAA, PAGP consolidates PAA’s results into its financial statements, which is reflected in the condensed consolidating balance sheet and income statement tables attached hereto.

Conference Call and Webcast Instructions

PAA and PAGP will hold a joint conference call at 9:00 a.m. CT on Friday, February 7, 2025 to discuss fourth-quarter performance and related items.

To access the internet webcast, please go to https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/xp2zqt6q/.

Alternatively, the webcast can be accessed on our website at https://ir.plains.com/news-events/events-presentations. Following the live webcast, an audio replay will be available on our website and will be accessible for a period of 365 days. Slides will be posted prior to the call at the above referenced website.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Selected Items Impacting Comparability

To supplement our financial information presented in accordance with GAAP, management uses additional measures known as “non-GAAP financial measures” in its evaluation of past performance and prospects for the future and to assess the amount of cash that is available for distributions, debt repayments, common equity repurchases and other general partnership purposes. The primary additional measures used by management are Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA, Implied Distributable Cash Flow (“DCF”), Adjusted Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions.

Our definition and calculation of certain non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly-titled measures of other companies. Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA, Implied DCF and certain other non-GAAP financial performance measures are reconciled to Net Income, and Adjusted Free Cash Flow, Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions and certain other non-GAAP financial liquidity measures are reconciled to Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities (the most directly comparable measures as reported in accordance with GAAP) for the historical periods presented in the tables attached to this release, and should be viewed in addition to, and not in lieu of, our Consolidated Financial Statements and accompanying notes. In addition, we encourage you to visit our website at www.plains.com (in particular the section under “Financial Information” entitled “Non-GAAP Reconciliations” within the Investor Relations tab), which presents a reconciliation of our commonly used non-GAAP and supplemental financial measures. We do not reconcile non-GAAP financial measures on a forward-looking basis as it is impractical to do so without unreasonable effort.

Non-GAAP Financial Performance Measures

Adjusted EBITDA is defined as earnings before (i) interest expense, (ii) income tax (expense)/benefit, (iii) depreciation and amortization (including our proportionate share of depreciation and amortization, including write-downs related to cancelled projects and impairments, of unconsolidated entities), (iv) gains and losses on asset sales, asset impairments and other, net, (v) gains and losses on investments in unconsolidated entities and (vi) interest income on promissory notes by and among PAA and certain Plains entities, and (vii) adjusted for certain selected items impacting comparability. Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA excludes the portion of Adjusted EBITDA that is attributable to noncontrolling interests.

Management believes that the presentation of Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA and Implied DCF provides useful information to investors regarding our performance and results of operations because these measures, when used to supplement related GAAP financial measures, (i) provide additional information about our core operating performance and ability to fund distributions to our unitholders through cash generated by our operations and (ii) provide investors with the same financial analytical framework upon which management bases financial, operational, compensation and planning/budgeting decisions. We also present these and additional non-GAAP financial measures, including adjusted net income attributable to PAA and basic and diluted adjusted net income per common unit, as they are measures that investors, rating agencies and debt holders have indicated are useful in assessing us and our results of operations. These non-GAAP financial performance measures may exclude, for example, (i) charges for obligations that are expected to be settled with the issuance of equity instruments, (ii) gains and losses on derivative instruments that are related to underlying activities in another period (or the reversal of such adjustments from a prior period), gains and losses on derivatives that are either related to investing activities (such as the purchase of linefill) or purchases of long-term inventory, and inventory valuation adjustments, as applicable, (iii) long-term inventory costing adjustments, (iv) items that are not indicative of our core operating results and/or (v) other items that we believe should be excluded in understanding our core operating performance. These measures may be further adjusted to include amounts related to deficiencies associated with minimum volume commitments whereby we have billed the counterparties for their deficiency obligation and such amounts are recognized as deferred revenue in “Other current liabilities” in our Consolidated Financial Statements. We also adjust for amounts billed by our equity method investees related to deficiencies under minimum volume commitments. Such amounts are presented net of applicable amounts subsequently recognized into revenue. Furthermore, the calculation of these measures contemplates tax effects as a separate reconciling item, where applicable. We have defined all such items as “selected items impacting comparability.” Due to the nature of the selected items, certain selected items impacting comparability may impact certain non-GAAP financial measures, referred to as adjusted results, but not impact other non-GAAP financial measures. We do not necessarily consider all of our selected items impacting comparability to be non-recurring, infrequent or unusual, but we believe that an understanding of these selected items impacting comparability is material to the evaluation of our operating results and prospects.

Although we present selected items impacting comparability that management considers in evaluating our performance, you should also be aware that the items presented do not represent all items that affect comparability between the periods presented. Variations in our operating results are also caused by changes in volumes, prices, exchange rates, mechanical interruptions, acquisitions, divestitures, investment capital projects and numerous other factors. These types of variations may not be separately identified in this release, but will be discussed, as applicable, in management’s discussion and analysis of operating results in our Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Non-GAAP Financial Liquidity Measures

Management uses the non-GAAP financial liquidity measures Adjusted Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions to assess the amount of cash that is available for distributions, debt repayments, common equity repurchases and other general partnership purposes. Adjusted Free Cash Flow is defined as Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities, less Net Cash Provided by/(Used in) Investing Activities, which primarily includes acquisition, investment and maintenance capital expenditures, investments in unconsolidated entities and the impact from the purchase and sale of linefill, net of proceeds from the sales of assets and further impacted by distributions to and contributions from noncontrolling interests and proceeds from the issuance of related party notes. Adjusted Free Cash Flow is further reduced by cash distributions paid to our preferred and common unitholders to arrive at Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions.

We also present these measures and additional non-GAAP financial liquidity measures as they are measures that investors have indicated are useful. We present the Adjusted Free Cash Flow (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) for use in assessing our underlying business liquidity and cash flow generating capacity excluding fluctuations caused by timing of when amounts earned or incurred were collected, received or paid from period to period. Adjusted Free Cash Flow (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) is defined as Adjusted Free Cash Flow excluding the impact of “Changes in assets and liabilities, net of acquisitions” on our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. Adjusted Free Cash Flow (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) is further reduced by cash distributions paid to our preferred and common unitholders to arrive at Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities).


PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (in millions, except per unit data)

	Three Months Ended December 31,						Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023			2024			2023
REVENUES	$	12,402		$	12,698		$	50,073		$	48,712

COSTS AND EXPENSES
Purchases and related costs		11,227			11,558			45,560			44,531
Field operating costs ⁽¹⁾		578			363			1,768			1,425
General and administrative expenses		93			87			381			350
Depreciation and amortization		258			273			1,026			1,048
(Gains)/losses on asset sales, asset impairments and other, net		159			(9	)		160			(152	)
Total costs and expenses		12,315			12,272			48,895			47,202

OPERATING INCOME		87			426			1,178			1,510

OTHER INCOME/(EXPENSE)
Equity earnings in unconsolidated entities		154			92			452			369
Gain on investments in unconsolidated entities, net		15			—			15			28
Interest expense, net ⁽²⁾		(112	)		(97	)		(430	)		(386	)
Other income, net ⁽²⁾		20			17			65			102

INCOME BEFORE TAX		164			438			1,280			1,623
Current income tax expense ⁽³⁾		(52	)		(41	)		(195	)		(145	)
Deferred income tax benefit		7			2			28			24

NET INCOME		119			399			1,113			1,502
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests		(83	)		(87	)		(341	)		(272	)
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO PAA	$	36		$	312		$	772		$	1,230

NET INCOME/(LOSS) PER COMMON UNIT:
Net income/(loss) allocated to common unitholders — Basic and Diluted	$	(27	)	$	248		$	514		$	976
Basic and diluted weighted average common units outstanding		704			701			702			699
Basic and diluted net income/(loss) per common unit	$	(0.04	)	$	0.35		$	0.73		$	1.40


⁽¹⁾	Field operating costs include $225 million and $345 million for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, respectively, resulting from adjustments related to the Line 901 incident that occurred in May 2015, including the write-off of a receivable for Line 901 insurance proceeds in the fourth quarter of 2024 and settlements in the third quarter of 2024.
⁽²⁾	PAA and certain Plains entities have issued promissory notes by and among such entities to facilitate financing. “Interest expense, net” and “Other income, net” each include $17 million and $48 million for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024, respectively, related to interest on such notes. These amounts offset and do not impact Net Income or Non-GAAP metrics such as Adjusted EBITDA, Implied DCF and Adjusted Free Cash Flow.
⁽³⁾	The increase in current income tax expense for the 2024 periods was largely associated with Canadian withholding tax on dividends from our Canadian entities to other Plains entities driven by timing of dividend payments.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET DATA (in millions)

	December 31, 2024		December 31, 2023
ASSETS
Current assets (including Cash and cash equivalents of $348 and $450, respectively)	$	4,802	$	4,913
Property and equipment, net		15,424		15,782
Investments in unconsolidated entities		2,811		2,820
Intangible assets, net		1,677		1,875
Linefill		968		976
Long-term operating lease right-of-use assets, net		332		313
Long-term inventory		280		265
Other long-term assets, net		268		411
Total assets	$	26,562	$	27,355

LIABILITIES AND PARTNERS’ CAPITAL
Current liabilities	$	4,950	$	5,003
Senior notes, net		7,141		7,242
Other long-term debt, net		72		63
Long-term operating lease liabilities		313		274
Other long-term liabilities and deferred credits		990		1,041
Total liabilities		13,466		13,623

Partners’ capital excluding noncontrolling interests		9,813		10,422
Noncontrolling interests		3,283		3,310
Total partners’ capital		13,096		13,732
Total liabilities and partners’ capital	$	26,562	$	27,355

DEBT CAPITALIZATION RATIOS
(in millions)

	December 31, 2024			December 31, 2023
Short-term debt	$	408		$	446
Long-term debt		7,213			7,305
Total debt	$	7,621		$	7,751

Long-term debt	$	7,213		$	7,305
Partners’ capital excluding noncontrolling interests		9,813			10,422
Total book capitalization excluding noncontrolling interests (“Total book capitalization”)	$	17,026		$	17,727
Total book capitalization, including short-term debt	$	17,434		$	18,173

Long-term debt-to-total book capitalization		42	%		41	%
Total debt-to-total book capitalization, including short-term debt		44	%		43	%

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
COMPUTATION OF BASIC AND DILUTED NET INCOME/(LOSS) PER COMMON UNIT ⁽¹⁾ (in millions, except per unit data)

	Three Months Ended December 31,						Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023			2024			2023
Basic and Diluted Net Income/(Loss) per Common Unit
Net income attributable to PAA	$	36		$	312		$	772		$	1,230
Distributions to Series A preferred unitholders		(44	)		(44	)		(175	)		(173	)
Distributions to Series B preferred unitholders		(19	)		(20	)		(78	)		(76	)
Amounts allocated to participating securities		(1	)		(1	)		(10	)		(10	)
Other		1			1			5			5
Net income/(loss) allocated to common unitholders	$	(27	)	$	248		$	514		$	976

Basic and diluted weighted average common units outstanding ^{(2) (3)}		704			701			702			699

Basic and diluted net income/(loss) per common unit	$	(0.04	)	$	0.35		$	0.73		$	1.40


⁽¹⁾	We calculate net income/(loss) allocated to common unitholders based on the distributions pertaining to the current period’s net income. After adjusting for the appropriate period’s distributions, the remaining undistributed earnings or excess distributions over earnings, if any, are allocated to common unitholders and participating securities in accordance with the contractual terms of our partnership agreement in effect for the period and as further prescribed under the two-class method.
⁽²⁾	The possible conversion of our Series A preferred units was excluded from the calculation of diluted net income/(loss) per common unit for each of the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 as the effect was antidilutive.
⁽³⁾	Our equity-indexed compensation plan awards that contemplate the issuance of common units are considered potentially dilutive unless (i) they become vested only upon the satisfaction of a performance condition and (ii) that performance condition has yet to be satisfied. Equity-indexed compensation plan awards that are deemed to be dilutive are reduced by a hypothetical common unit repurchase based on the remaining unamortized fair value, as prescribed by the treasury stock method in guidance issued by the FASB.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED CASH FLOW DATA (in millions)

	Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2024
	2024			2023
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Net income	$	1,113		$	1,502
Reconciliation of net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization		1,026			1,048
(Gains)/losses on asset sales, asset impairments and other, net		160			(152	)
Deferred income tax benefit		(28	)		(24	)
Change in fair value of Preferred Distribution Rate Reset Option		—			(58	)
Equity earnings in unconsolidated entities		(452	)		(369	)
Distributions on earnings from unconsolidated entities		505			458
Gain on investments in unconsolidated entities, net		(15	)		(28	)
Other		107			156
Changes in assets and liabilities, net of acquisitions		74			194
Net cash provided by operating activities		2,490			2,727

CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES
Net cash used in investing activities ⁽¹⁾		(1,504	)		(702	)

CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Net cash used in financing activities ⁽¹⁾		(1,077	)		(1,976	)

Effect of translation adjustment		(11	)		—

Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash		(102	)		49

Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning of period		450			401
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash, end of period	$	348		$	450


⁽¹⁾	PAA and certain Plains entities have issued promissory notes by and among such entities to facilitate financing. For the twelve months ended December 31, 2024, “Net cash used in investing activities” includes a cash outflow of $629 million associated with our investment in related party notes. An equal and offsetting cash inflow associated with our issuance of related party notes is included in “Net cash used in financing activities.”

CAPITAL EXPENDITURES
(in millions)

	Net to PAA ⁽¹⁾								Consolidated
	Three Months Ended December 31,				Twelve Months Ended December 31,				Three Months Ended December 31,				Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024		2023		2024		2023		2024		2023		2024		2023
Investment capital expenditures:
Crude Oil	$	55	$	75	$	214	$	245	$	80	$	100	$	300	$	334
NGL		41		14		115		65		41		14		115		65
Total Investment capital expenditures		96		89		329		310		121		114		415		399
Maintenance capital expenditures		68		58		242		214		73		63		261		231
	$	164	$	147	$	571	$	524	$	194	$	177	$	676	$	630


⁽¹⁾	Excludes expenditures attributable to noncontrolling interests.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
NON-GAAP RECONCILIATIONS (in millions, except per unit and ratio data)

Computation of Basic and Diluted Adjusted Net Income Per Common Unit ⁽¹⁾:

	Three Months Ended December 31,						Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023			2024			2023
Basic and Diluted Adjusted Net Income per Common Unit
Net income attributable to PAA	$	36		$	312		$	772		$	1,230
Selected items impacting comparability – Adjusted net income attributable to PAA ⁽²⁾		321			43			546			20
Adjusted net income attributable to PAA	$	357		$	355		$	1,318		$	1,250
Distributions to Series A preferred unitholders		(44	)		(44	)		(175	)		(173	)
Distributions to Series B preferred unitholders		(19	)		(20	)		(78	)		(76	)
Amounts allocated to participating securities		(1	)		(1	)		(11	)		(10	)
Other		1			1			5			5
Adjusted net income allocated to common unitholders	$	294		$	291		$	1,059		$	996

Basic and diluted weighted average common units outstanding ^{(3) (4)}		704			701			702			699

Basic and diluted adjusted net income per common unit	$	0.42		$	0.42		$	1.51		$	1.42


⁽¹⁾	We calculate adjusted net income allocated to common unitholders based on the distributions pertaining to the current period’s net income. After adjusting for the appropriate period’s distributions, the remaining undistributed earnings or excess distributions over earnings, if any, are allocated to the common unitholders and participating securities in accordance with the contractual terms of our partnership agreement in effect for the period and as further prescribed under the two-class method.
⁽²⁾	See the “Selected Items Impacting Comparability” table for additional information.
⁽³⁾	The possible conversion of our Series A preferred units was excluded from the calculation of diluted adjusted net income per common unit for each of the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 as the effect was antidilutive.
⁽⁴⁾	Our equity-indexed compensation plan awards that contemplate the issuance of common units are considered potentially dilutive unless (i) they become vested only upon the satisfaction of a performance condition and (ii) that performance condition has yet to be satisfied. Equity-indexed compensation plan awards that are deemed to be dilutive are reduced by a hypothetical common unit repurchase based on the remaining unamortized fair value, as prescribed by the treasury stock method in guidance issued by the FASB.

Net Income/(Loss) Per Common Unit to Adjusted Net Income Per Common Unit Reconciliation:

	Three Months Ended December 31,					Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023		2024		2023
Basic and diluted net income/(loss) per common unit	$	(0.04	)	$	0.35	$	0.73	$	1.40
Selected items impacting comparability per common unit ⁽¹⁾		0.46			0.07		0.78		0.02
Basic and diluted adjusted net income per common unit	$	0.42		$	0.42	$	1.51	$	1.42


⁽¹⁾	See the “Selected Items Impacting Comparability” and the “Computation of Basic and Diluted Adjusted Net Income/(Loss) Per Common Unit” tables for additional information.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA and Implied DCF Reconciliation:

	Three Months Ended December 31,						Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023			2024			2023
Net Income	$	119		$	399		$	1,113		$	1,502
Interest expense, net of certain items ⁽¹⁾		95			97			382			386
Income tax expense		45			39			167			121
Depreciation and amortization		258			273			1,026			1,048
(Gains)/losses on asset sales, asset impairments and other, net		159			(9	)		160			(152	)
Gain on investments in unconsolidated entities, net		(15	)		—			(15	)		(28	)
Depreciation and amortization of unconsolidated entities ⁽²⁾		26			20			84			87
Selected items impacting comparability – Adjusted EBITDA ⁽³⁾		180			56			409			203
Adjusted EBITDA	$	867		$	875		$	3,326		$	3,167
Adjusted EBITDA attributable to noncontrolling interests		(138	)		(138	)		(547	)		(456	)
Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA	$	729		$	737		$	2,779		$	2,711

Adjusted EBITDA	$	867		$	875		$	3,326		$	3,167
Interest expense, net of certain non-cash items ⁽⁴⁾		(92	)		(92	)		(365	)		(367	)
Maintenance capital		(73	)		(63	)		(261	)		(231	)
Investment capital of noncontrolling interests ⁽⁵⁾		(24	)		(24	)		(86	)		(87	)
Current income tax expense		(52	)		(41	)		(195	)		(145	)
Distributions from unconsolidated entities in excess of/(less than) adjusted equity earnings ⁽⁶⁾		—			(15	)		11			(37	)
Distributions to noncontrolling interests ⁽⁷⁾		(114	)		(97	)		(425	)		(333	)
Implied DCF	$	512		$	543		$	2,005		$	1,967
Preferred unit cash distributions paid ⁽⁷⁾		(63	)		(64	)		(254	)		(241	)
Implied DCF Available to Common Unitholders	$	449		$	479		$	1,751		$	1,726

Weighted Average Common Units Outstanding		704			701			702			699
Weighted Average Common Units and Common Unit Equivalents		775			772			773			770

Implied DCF per Common Unit ⁽⁸⁾	$	0.64		$	0.68		$	2.49		$	2.47
Implied DCF per Common Unit and Common Unit Equivalent ⁽⁹⁾	$	0.64		$	0.68		$	2.49		$	2.46

Cash Distribution Paid per Common Unit	$	0.3175		$	0.2675		$	1.2700		$	1.0700
Common Unit Cash Distributions ⁽⁷⁾	$	223		$	188		$	891		$	748
Common Unit Distribution Coverage Ratio	2.01x			2.55x			1.97x			2.31x

Implied DCF Excess	$	226		$	291		$	860		$	978


⁽¹⁾	Represents “Interest expense, net” as reported on our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations, net of interest income associated with promissory notes by and among PAA and certain Plains entities.
⁽²⁾	Adjustment to exclude our proportionate share of depreciation and amortization expense (including write-downs related to cancelled projects and impairments) of unconsolidated entities.
⁽³⁾	See the “Selected Items Impacting Comparability” table for additional information.
⁽⁴⁾	Amount excludes certain non-cash items impacting interest expense such as amortization of debt issuance costs and terminated interest rate swaps.
⁽⁵⁾	Investment capital expenditures attributable to noncontrolling interests that reduce Implied DCF available to PAA common unitholders.
⁽⁶⁾	Comprised of cash distributions received from unconsolidated entities less equity earnings in unconsolidated entities (adjusted for our proportionate share of depreciation and amortization, including write-downs related to cancelled projects and impairments, and selected items impacting comparability of unconsolidated entities).
⁽⁷⁾	Cash distributions paid during the period presented.
⁽⁸⁾	Implied DCF Available to Common Unitholders for the period divided by the weighted average common units outstanding for the period.
⁽⁹⁾	Implied DCF Available to Common Unitholders for the period, adjusted for Series A preferred unit cash distributions paid, divided by the weighted average common units and common unit equivalents outstanding for the period. Our Series A preferred units are convertible into common units, generally on a one-for-one basis and subject to customary anti-dilution adjustments, in whole or in part, subject to certain minimum conversion amounts.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
Net Income Per Common Unit to Implied DCF Per Common Unit and Common Unit Equivalent Reconciliation:

	Three Months Ended December 31,					Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023		2024		2023
Basic net income/(loss) per common unit	$	(0.04	)	$	0.35	$	0.73	$	1.40
Reconciling items per common unit ^{(1) (2)}		0.68			0.33		1.76		1.07
Implied DCF per common unit	$	0.64		$	0.68	$	2.49	$	2.47

Basic net income/(loss) per common unit	$	(0.04	)	$	0.35	$	0.73	$	1.40
Reconciling items per common unit and common unit equivalent ^{(1) (3)}		0.68			0.33		1.76		1.06
Implied DCF per common unit and common unit equivalent	$	0.64		$	0.68	$	2.49	$	2.46


⁽¹⁾	Represents adjustments to Net Income to calculate Implied DCF Available to Common Unitholders. See the “Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA and Implied DCF Reconciliation” table for additional information.
⁽²⁾	Based on weighted average common units outstanding for the period of 704 million, 701 million, 702 million and 699 million, respectively.
⁽³⁾	Based on weighted average common units outstanding for the period, as well as weighted average Series A preferred units outstanding of 71 million for each of the periods presented.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities to Non-GAAP Financial Liquidity Measures Reconciliation:

	Three Months Ended December 31,						Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023			2024			2023
Net cash provided by operating activities	$	726		$	1,011		$	2,490		$	2,727
Adjustments to reconcile Net cash provided by operating activities to Adjusted Free Cash Flow:
Net cash used in investing activities ⁽¹⁾		(264	)		(257	)		(1,504	)		(702	)
Cash contributions from noncontrolling interests		17			53			57			106
Cash distributions paid to noncontrolling interests ⁽²⁾		(114	)		(97	)		(425	)		(333	)
Proceeds from the issuance of related party notes ⁽¹⁾		—			—			629			—
Adjusted Free Cash Flow ⁽³⁾	$	365		$	710		$	1,247		$	1,798
Cash distributions ⁽⁴⁾		(286	)		(252	)		(1,145	)		(989	)
Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions ⁽³⁾⁽⁵⁾	$	79		$	458		$	102		$	809

	Three Months Ended December 31,						Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023			2024			2023
Adjusted Free Cash Flow ⁽³⁾	$	365		$	710		$	1,247		$	1,798
Changes in assets and liabilities, net of acquisitions ⁽⁶⁾		(231	)		(308	)		(74	)		(194	)
Adjusted Free Cash Flow (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) ⁽⁷⁾⁽⁸⁾	$	134		$	402		$	1,173		$	1,604
Cash distributions ⁽⁴⁾		(286	)		(252	)		(1,145	)		(989	)
Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) ⁽⁷⁾⁽⁸⁾	$	(152	)	$	150		$	28		$	615


⁽¹⁾	PAA and certain Plains entities have issued promissory notes by and among such entities to facilitate financing. “Proceeds from the issuance of related party notes” has an equal and offsetting cash outflow associated with our investment in related party notes, which is included as a component of “Net cash used in investing activities.”
⁽²⁾	Cash distributions paid during the period presented.
⁽³⁾	Management uses the non-GAAP financial liquidity measures Adjusted Free Cash Flow and Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions to assess the amount of cash that is available for distributions, debt repayments, common equity repurchases and other general partnership purposes. Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions shortages, if any, may be funded from previously established reserves, cash on hand or from borrowings under our credit facilities or commercial paper program.
⁽⁴⁾	Cash distributions paid to preferred and common unitholders during the period.
⁽⁵⁾	Excess Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions is retained to establish reserves for future distributions, capital expenditures, debt reduction and other partnership purposes. Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions shortages may be funded from previously established reserves, cash on hand or from borrowings under our credit facilities or commercial paper program.
⁽⁶⁾	See the “Condensed Consolidated Cash Flow Data” table.
⁽⁷⁾	Management uses the non-GAAP financial liquidity measures Adjusted Free Cash Flow (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) and Adjusted Free Cash Flow after Distributions (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) to assess the underlying business liquidity and cash flow generating capacity excluding fluctuations caused by timing of when amounts earned or incurred were collected, received or paid from period to period.
⁽⁸⁾	Fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 Adjusted Free Cash Flow (Excluding Changes in Assets & Liabilities) includes the negative impact of a $225 million charge resulting from the write-off of a receivable for Line 901 insurance proceeds.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
SELECTED ITEMS IMPACTING COMPARABILITY (in millions)

	Three Months Ended December 31,						Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023			2024			2023
Selected Items Impacting Comparability: ⁽¹⁾
Derivative activities and inventory valuation adjustments ⁽²⁾	$	(6	)	$	43		$	(85	)	$	(101	)
Long-term inventory costing adjustments ⁽³⁾		17			(62	)		9			(35	)
Deficiencies under minimum volume commitments, net ⁽⁴⁾		41			(8	)		31			(12	)
Equity-indexed compensation expense ⁽⁵⁾		(8	)		(8	)		(36	)		(36	)
Foreign currency revaluation ⁽⁶⁾		1			(11	)		17			(8	)
Line 901 incident ⁽⁷⁾		(225	)		(10	)		(345	)		(10	)
Transaction-related expenses ⁽⁸⁾		—			—			—			(1	)
Selected items impacting comparability – Adjusted EBITDA	$	(180	)	$	(56	)	$	(409	)	$	(203	)
Gain on investments in unconsolidated entities, net		15			—			15			28
Gains/(losses) on asset sales, asset impairments and other, net ⁽⁹⁾		(159	)		9			(160	)		152
Tax effect on selected items impacting comparability		3			4			13			13
Aggregate selected items impacting noncontrolling interests		—			—			(5	)		(10	)
Selected items impacting comparability – Adjusted net income attributable to PAA	$	(321	)	$	(43	)	$	(546	)	$	(20	)


⁽¹⁾	Certain of our non-GAAP financial measures may not be impacted by each of the selected items impacting comparability. See the “Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA and Implied DCF Reconciliation” and “Computation of Basic and Diluted Adjusted Net Income Per Common Unit” table for additional details on how these selected items impacting comparability affect such measures.
⁽²⁾	We use derivative instruments for risk management purposes and our related processes include specific identification of hedging instruments to an underlying hedged transaction. Although we identify an underlying transaction for each derivative instrument we enter into, there may not be an accounting hedge relationship between the instrument and the underlying transaction. In the course of evaluating our results, we identify differences in the timing of earnings from the derivative instruments and the underlying transactions and exclude the related gains and losses in determining adjusted results such that the earnings from the derivative instruments and the underlying transactions impact adjusted results in the same period. In addition, we exclude gains and losses on derivatives that are related to (i) investing activities, such as the purchase of linefill, and (ii) purchases of long-term inventory. We also exclude the impact of corresponding inventory valuation adjustments, as applicable. For applicable periods, we excluded gains and losses from the mark-to-market of the embedded derivative associated with the Preferred Distribution Rate Reset Option of our Series A preferred units.
⁽³⁾	We carry crude oil and NGL inventory that is comprised of minimum working inventory requirements in third-party assets and other working inventory that is needed for our commercial operations. We consider this inventory necessary to conduct our operations and we intend to carry this inventory for the foreseeable future. Therefore, we classify this inventory as long-term on our balance sheet and do not hedge the inventory with derivative instruments (similar to linefill in our own assets). We treat the impact of changes in the average cost of the long-term inventory (that result from fluctuations in market prices) and write-downs of such inventory that result from price declines as a selected item impacting comparability.
⁽⁴⁾	We, and certain of our equity method investees, have certain agreements that require counterparties to deliver, transport or throughput a minimum volume over an agreed upon period. Substantially all of such agreements were entered into with counterparties to economically support the return on capital expenditure necessary to construct the related asset. Some of these agreements include make-up rights if the minimum volume is not met. We record a receivable from the counterparty in the period that services are provided or when the transaction occurs, including amounts for deficiency obligations from counterparties associated with minimum volume commitments. If a counterparty has a make-up right associated with a deficiency, we defer the revenue attributable to the counterparty’s make-up right and subsequently recognize the revenue at the earlier of when the deficiency volume is delivered or shipped, when the make-up right expires or when it is determined that the counterparty’s ability to utilize the make-up right is remote. We include the impact of amounts billed to counterparties for their deficiency obligation, net of applicable amounts subsequently recognized into revenue or equity earnings, as a selected item impacting comparability. We believe the inclusion of the contractually committed revenues associated with that period is meaningful to investors as the related asset has been constructed, is standing ready to provide the committed service and the fixed operating costs are included in the current period results.
⁽⁵⁾	Our total equity-indexed compensation expense includes expense associated with awards that will be settled in units and awards that will be settled in cash. The awards that will be settled in units are included in our diluted net income per unit calculation when the applicable performance criteria have been met. We consider the compensation expense associated with these awards as a selected item impacting comparability as the dilutive impact of the outstanding awards is included in our diluted net income per unit calculation, as applicable. The portion of compensation expense associated with awards that will be settled in cash is not considered a selected item impacting comparability.
⁽⁶⁾	During the periods presented, there were fluctuations in the value of the Canadian dollar to the U.S. dollar, resulting in the realization of foreign exchange gains and losses on the settlement of foreign currency transactions as well as the revaluation of monetary assets and liabilities denominated in a foreign currency. The associated gains and losses are not integral to our results and were thus classified as a selected item impacting comparability.
⁽⁷⁾	Includes costs recognized during the period related to the Line 901 incident that occurred in May 2015. For the 2024 periods, includes the write-off of a receivable for Line 901 insurance proceeds in the fourth quarter of 2024 and the impact of settlements in the third quarter of 2024.
⁽⁸⁾	Includes expenses associated with the Rattler Permian Transaction.
⁽⁹⁾	For the 2024 periods, primarily includes non-cash charges related to the write-down of two U.S. NGL terminals. For the twelve months ended December 31, 2023 primarily includes gains related to the sale of our Keyera Fort Saskatchewan facility.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA BY SEGMENT (in millions)

	Three Months Ended December 31, 2024						Three Months Ended December 31, 2023
	Crude Oil			NGL			Crude Oil			NGL
Revenues ⁽¹⁾	$	11,959		$	535		$	12,187		$	623
Purchases and related costs ⁽¹⁾		(11,019	)		(300	)		(11,306	)		(364	)
Field operating costs ⁽²⁾⁽³⁾		(503	)		(75	)		(274	)		(89	)
Segment general and administrative expenses ^{(2) (}⁴⁾		(74	)		(19	)		(68	)		(19	)
Equity earnings in unconsolidated entities		154			—			92			—

Other segment items: ⁽⁵⁾
Depreciation and amortization of unconsolidated entities		26			—			20			—
Derivative activities and inventory valuation adjustments		(16	)		22			(52	)		9
Long-term inventory costing adjustments		(9	)		(8	)		58			4
Deficiencies under minimum volume commitments, net		(41	)		—			8			—
Equity-indexed compensation expense		8			—			8			—
Foreign currency revaluation		(4	)		(1	)		18			5
Line 901 incident		225			—			10			—
Segment amounts attributable to noncontrolling interests ⁽⁶⁾		(137	)		—			(138	)		—
Segment Adjusted EBITDA	$	569		$	154		$	563		$	169

Maintenance capital expenditures	$	48		$	25		$	39		$	24


⁽¹⁾	Includes intersegment amounts.
⁽²⁾	Field operating costs and Segment general and administrative expenses include equity-indexed compensation expense.
⁽³⁾	Field operating costs for the three months ended December 31, 2024 include higher expenses related to (i) $225 million resulting from the write-off of a receivable for Line 901 insurance proceeds and (ii) an increase in estimated costs for long-term environmental remediation obligations.
⁽⁴⁾	Segment general and administrative expenses reflect direct costs attributable to each segment and an allocation of other expenses to the segments. The proportional allocations by segment require judgment by management and are based on the business activities that exist during each period.
⁽⁵⁾	Represents adjustments utilized by our CODM in the evaluation of segment results. Many of these adjustments are also considered selected items impacting comparability when calculating consolidated non-GAAP financial measures such as Adjusted EBITDA. See the “Selected Items Impacting Comparability” table for additional discussion.
⁽⁶⁾	Reflects amounts attributable to noncontrolling interests in the Permian JV, Cactus II Pipeline LLC and Red River Pipeline LLC.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA BY SEGMENT (in millions)

	Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2024						Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2023
	Crude Oil			NGL			Crude Oil			NGL
Revenues ⁽¹⁾	$	48,720		$	1,724		$	47,174		$	1,935
Purchases and related costs ⁽¹⁾		(45,033	)		(898	)		(43,805	)		(1,123	)
Field operating costs ⁽²⁾⁽³⁾		(1,440	)		(328	)		(1,053	)		(372	)
Segment general and administrative expenses ^{(2) (}⁴⁾		(298	)		(83	)		(271	)		(79	)
Equity earnings in unconsolidated entities		452			—			369			—

Other segment items: ⁽⁵⁾
Depreciation and amortization of unconsolidated entities		84			—			87			—
Derivative activities and inventory valuation adjustments		5			80			17			142
Long-term inventory costing adjustments		1			(10	)		22			13
Deficiencies under minimum volume commitments, net		(31	)		—			12			—
Equity-indexed compensation expense		36			—			35			1
Foreign currency revaluation		(22	)		(5	)		19			5
Line 901 incident		345			—			10			—
Transaction-related expenses		—			—			1			—
Segment amounts attributable to noncontrolling interests ⁽⁶⁾		(543	)		—			(454	)		—
Segment Adjusted EBITDA	$	2,276		$	480		$	2,163		$	522

Maintenance capital expenditures	$	183		$	78		$	145		$	86


⁽¹⁾	Includes intersegment amounts.
⁽²⁾	Field operating costs and Segment general and administrative expenses include equity-indexed compensation expense.
⁽³⁾	Field operating costs for the twelve months ended December 31, 2024 include higher expenses related to (i) $225 million resulting from the write-off of a receivable for Line 901 insurance proceeds, (ii) $120 million associated with settlements related to the Line 901 incident that occurred in May 2015 and (iii) an increase in estimated costs for long-term environmental remediation obligations.
⁽⁴⁾	Segment general and administrative expenses reflect direct costs attributable to each segment and an allocation of other expenses to the segments. The proportional allocations by segment require judgment by management and are based on the business activities that exist during each period.
⁽⁵⁾	Represents adjustments utilized by our CODM in the evaluation of segment results. Many of these adjustments are also considered selected items impacting comparability when calculating consolidated non-GAAP financial measures such as Adjusted EBITDA. See the “Selected Items Impacting Comparability” table for additional discussion.
⁽⁶⁾	Reflects amounts attributable to noncontrolling interests in the Permian JV, Cactus II Pipeline LLC and Red River Pipeline LLC.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
OPERATING DATA BY SEGMENT

	Three Months Ended December 31,				Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024		2023		2024		2023
Crude Oil Segment Volumes
Crude oil pipeline tariff (by region) ⁽¹⁾
Permian Basin ⁽²⁾		6,846		6,710		6,731		6,356
South Texas / Eagle Ford ⁽²⁾		421		411		403		410
Mid-Continent ⁽²⁾		478		503		506		507
Gulf Coast ⁽²⁾		214		250		218		260
Rocky Mountain ⁽²⁾		461		452		474		372
Western		259		237		256		214
Canada		349		340		346		341
Total crude oil pipeline tariff ^{(1) (2)}		9,028		8,903		8,934		8,460

Commercial crude oil storage capacity ^{(2) (3)}		72		72		72		72

Crude oil lease gathering purchases ⁽¹⁾		1,661		1,518		1,586		1,452

NGL Segment Volumes ⁽¹⁾
NGL fractionation		138		127		132		115
NGL pipeline tariff		224		188		213		180
Propane and butane sales		127		125		92		86


⁽¹⁾	Average volumes in thousands of barrels per day calculated as the total volumes (attributable to our interest for assets owned by unconsolidated entities or through undivided joint interests) for the period divided by the number of days in the period. Volumes associated with assets acquired during the period represent total volumes for the number of days we actually owned the assets divided by the number of days in the period.
⁽²⁾	Includes volumes (attributable to our interest) from assets owned by unconsolidated entities.
⁽³⁾	Average monthly capacity in millions of barrels calculated as total volumes for the period divided by the number of months in the period.

PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P. AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
NON-GAAP SEGMENT RECONCILIATIONS (in millions)

Supplemental Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA Reconciliation:

	Three Months Ended December 31,				Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024		2023		2024		2023
Crude Oil Segment Adjusted EBITDA	$	569	$	563	$	2,276	$	2,163
NGL Segment Adjusted EBITDA		154		169		480		522
Adjusted other income, net ⁽¹⁾		6		5		23		26
Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA ⁽²⁾	$	729	$	737	$	2,779	$	2,711


⁽¹⁾	Represents “Other income, net” as reported on our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations, excluding interest income on promissory notes by and among PAA and certain Plains entities, as well as other income, net attributable to noncontrolling interests, adjusted for selected items impacting comparability. See the “Selected Items Impacting Comparability” table for additional information.
⁽²⁾	See the “Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA and Implied DCF Reconciliation” table for reconciliation to Net Income.

PLAINS GP HOLDINGS AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (in millions, except per share data)

	Three Months Ended December 31, 2024									Three Months Ended December 31, 2023
				Consolidating									Consolidating
	PAA			Adjustments ⁽¹⁾			PAGP			PAA			Adjustments ⁽¹⁾			PAGP
REVENUES	$	12,402		$	—		$	12,402		$	12,698		$	—		$	12,698

COSTS AND EXPENSES
Purchases and related costs		11,227			—			11,227			11,558			—			11,558
Field operating costs		578			—			578			363			—			363
General and administrative expenses		93			1			94			87			1			88
Depreciation and amortization		258			—			258			273			—			273
(Gains)/losses on asset sales, asset impairments and other, net		159			—			159			(9	)		—			(9	)
Total costs and expenses		12,315			1			12,316			12,272			1			12,273

OPERATING INCOME		87			(1	)		86			426			(1	)		425

OTHER INCOME/(EXPENSE)
Equity earnings in unconsolidated entities		154			—			154			92			—			92
Gain on investments in unconsolidated entities, net		15			—			15			—			—			—
Interest expense, net		(112	)		17			(95	)		(97	)		—			(97	)
Other income, net		20			(17	)		3			17			—			17

INCOME BEFORE TAX		164			(1	)		163			438			(1	)		437
Current income tax expense		(52	)		—			(52	)		(41	)		—			(41	)
Deferred income tax (expense)/benefit		7			(2	)		5			2			(16	)		(14	)

NET INCOME		119			(3	)		116			399			(17	)		382
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests		(83	)		(44	)		(127	)		(87	)		(243	)		(330	)
NET INCOME/(LOSS) ATTRIBUTABLE TO PAGP	$	36		$	(47	)	$	(11	)	$	312		$	(260	)	$	52

Basic and diluted weighted average Class A shares outstanding								197									196

Basic and diluted net income/(loss) per Class A share							$	(0.05	)							$	0.27


⁽¹⁾	Represents the aggregate consolidating adjustments necessary to produce consolidated financial statements for PAGP.

PLAINS GP HOLDINGS AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (in millions, except per share data)

	Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2024									Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2023
				Consolidating									Consolidating
	PAA			Adjustments ⁽¹⁾			PAGP			PAA			Adjustments ⁽¹⁾			PAGP
REVENUES	$	50,073		$	—		$	50,073		$	48,712		$	—		$	48,712

COSTS AND EXPENSES
Purchases and related costs		45,560			—			45,560			44,531			—			44,531
Field operating costs		1,768			—			1,768			1,425			—			1,425
General and administrative expenses		381			6			387			350			6			356
Depreciation and amortization		1,026			—			1,026			1,048			3			1,051
(Gains)/losses on asset sales, asset impairments and other, net		160			—			160			(152	)		—			(152	)
Total costs and expenses		48,895			6			48,901			47,202			9			47,211

OPERATING INCOME		1,178			(6	)		1,172			1,510			(9	)		1,501

OTHER INCOME/(EXPENSE)
Equity earnings in unconsolidated entities		452			—			452			369			—			369
Gain on investments in unconsolidated entities, net		15			—			15			28			—			28
Interest expense, net		(430	)		48			(382	)		(386	)		—			(386	)
Other income, net		65			(48	)		17			102			—			102

INCOME BEFORE TAX		1,280			(6	)		1,274			1,623			(9	)		1,614
Current income tax expense		(195	)		—			(195	)		(145	)		—			(145	)
Deferred income tax (expense)/benefit		28			(37	)		(9	)		24			(68	)		(44	)

NET INCOME		1,113			(43	)		1,070			1,502			(77	)		1,425
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests		(341	)		(626	)		(967	)		(272	)		(955	)		(1,227	)
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO PAGP	$	772		$	(669	)	$	103		$	1,230		$	(1,032	)	$	198

Basic and diluted weighted average Class A shares outstanding								197									195

Basic and diluted net income per Class A share							$	0.52								$	1.01


⁽¹⁾	Represents the aggregate consolidating adjustments necessary to produce consolidated financial statements for PAGP.

PLAINS GP HOLDINGS AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEET DATA (in millions)

	December 31, 2024							December 31, 2023
			Consolidating							Consolidating
	PAA		Adjustments ⁽¹⁾			PAGP		PAA		Adjustments ⁽¹⁾			PAGP
ASSETS
Current assets	$	4,802	$	(26	)	$	4,776	$	4,913	$	3		$	4,916
Property and equipment, net		15,424		—			15,424		15,782		—			15,782
Investments in unconsolidated entities		2,811		—			2,811		2,820		—			2,820
Intangible assets, net		1,677		—			1,677		1,875		—			1,875
Deferred tax asset		—		1,220			1,220		—		1,239			1,239
Linefill		968		—			968		976		—			976
Long-term operating lease right-of-use assets, net		332		—			332		313		—			313
Long-term inventory		280		—			280		265		—			265
Other long-term assets, net		268		—			268		411		—			411
Total assets	$	26,562	$	1,194		$	27,756	$	27,355	$	1,242		$	28,597

LIABILITIES AND PARTNERS’ CAPITAL
Current liabilities	$	4,950	$	(26	)	$	4,924	$	5,003	$	2		$	5,005
Senior notes, net		7,141		—			7,141		7,242		—			7,242
Other long-term debt, net		72		—			72		63		—			63
Long-term operating lease liabilities		313		—			313		274		—			274
Other long-term liabilities and deferred credits		990		—			990		1,041		—			1,041
Total liabilities		13,466		(26	)		13,440		13,623		2			13,625

Partners’ capital excluding noncontrolling interests		9,813		(8,462	)		1,351		10,422		(8,874	)		1,548
Noncontrolling interests		3,283		9,682			12,965		3,310		10,114			13,424
Total partners’ capital		13,096		1,220			14,316		13,732		1,240			14,972
Total liabilities and partners’ capital	$	26,562	$	1,194		$	27,756	$	27,355	$	1,242		$	28,597


⁽¹⁾	Represents the aggregate consolidating adjustments necessary to produce consolidated financial statements for PAGP.

PLAINS GP HOLDINGS AND SUBSIDIARIES FINANCIAL SUMMARY (unaudited)
COMPUTATION OF BASIC AND DILUTED NET INCOME/(LOSS) PER CLASS A SHARE (in millions, except per share data)

	Three Months Ended December 31,					Twelve Months Ended December 31,
	2024			2023		2024		2023
Basic and Diluted Net Income/(Loss) per Class A Share
Net income/(loss) attributable to PAGP	$	(11	)	$	52	$	103	$	198
Basic and diluted weighted average Class A shares outstanding		197			196		197		195

Basic and diluted net income/(loss) per Class A share	$	(0.05	)	$	0.27	$	0.52	$	1.01

Forward-Looking Statements

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this release consist of forward-looking statements that involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from results or outcomes anticipated in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, the following:

general economic, market or business conditions in the United States and elsewhere (including the potential for a recession or significant slowdown in economic activity levels, the risk of persistently high inflation and supply chain issues, the impact of global public health events, such as pandemics, on demand and growth, and the timing, pace and extent of economic recovery) that impact (i) demand for crude oil, drilling and production activities and therefore the demand for the midstream services we provide and (ii) commercial opportunities available to us;
declines in global crude oil demand and/or crude oil prices or other factors that correspondingly lead to a significant reduction of North American crude oil and NGL production (whether due to reduced producer cash flow to fund drilling activities or the inability of producers to access capital, or both, the unavailability of pipeline and/or storage capacity, the shutting-in of production by producers, government-mandated pro-ration orders, or other factors), which in turn could result in significant declines in the actual or expected volume of crude oil and NGL shipped, processed, purchased, stored, fractionated and/or gathered at or through the use of our assets and/or the reduction of the margins we can earn or the commercial opportunities that might otherwise be available to us;
fluctuations in refinery capacity and other factors affecting demand for various grades of crude oil and NGL and resulting changes in pricing conditions or transportation throughput requirements;
unanticipated changes in crude oil and NGL market structure, grade differentials and volatility (or lack thereof);
the effects of competition and capacity overbuild in areas where we operate, including downward pressure on rates, volumes and margins, contract renewal risk and the risk of loss of business to other midstream operators who are willing or under pressure to aggressively reduce transportation rates in order to capture or preserve customers;
the successful operation of joint ventures and joint operating arrangements we enter into from time to time, whether relating to assets operated by us or by third parties, and the successful integration and future performance of acquired assets or businesses;
the availability of, and our ability to consummate, acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures or other strategic opportunities and realize benefits therefrom;
environmental liabilities, litigation or other events that are not covered by an indemnity, insurance or existing reserves;
negative societal sentiment regarding the hydrocarbon energy industry and the continued development and consumption of hydrocarbons, which could influence consumer preferences and governmental or regulatory actions that adversely impact our business;
the occurrence of a natural disaster, catastrophe, terrorist attack (including eco-terrorist attacks) or other event that materially impacts our operations, including cyber or other attacks on our or our service providers’ electronic and computer systems;
weather interference with business operations or project construction, including the impact of extreme weather events or conditions (including wildfires and drought);
the impact of current and future laws, rulings, legislation, governmental regulations, executive orders, trade policies, tariffs, accounting standards and statements, and related interpretations that (i) prohibit, restrict or regulate the development of oil and gas resources and the related infrastructure on lands dedicated to or served by our pipelines, (ii) negatively impact our ability to develop, operate or repair midstream assets, or (iii) otherwise negatively impact our business or increase our exposure to risk;
negative impacts on production levels in the Permian Basin or elsewhere due to issues associated with (or laws, rules or regulations relating to) hydraulic fracturing and related activities (including wastewater injection or disposal), including earthquakes, subsidence, expansion or other issues;
the pace of development of natural gas or other infrastructure and its impact on expected crude oil production growth in the Permian Basin;
the refusal or inability of our customers or counterparties to perform their obligations under their contracts with us (including commercial contracts, asset sale agreements and other agreements), whether justified or not and whether due to financial constraints (such as reduced creditworthiness, liquidity issues or insolvency), market constraints, legal constraints (including governmental orders or guidance), the exercise of contractual or common law rights that allegedly excuse their performance (such as force majeure or similar claims) or other factors;
loss of key personnel and inability to attract and retain new talent;
disruptions to futures markets for crude oil, NGL and other petroleum products, which may impair our ability to execute our commercial or hedging strategies;
the effectiveness of our risk management activities;
shortages or cost increases of supplies, materials or labor;
maintenance of our credit ratings and ability to receive open credit from our suppliers and trade counterparties;
our inability to perform our obligations under our contracts, whether due to non-performance by third parties, including our customers or counterparties, market constraints, third-party constraints, supply chain issues, legal constraints (including governmental orders or guidance), or other factors or events;
the incurrence of costs and expenses related to unexpected or unplanned capital or maintenance expenditures, third-party claims or other factors;
failure to implement or capitalize, or delays in implementing or capitalizing, on investment capital projects, whether due to permitting delays, permitting withdrawals or other factors;
tightened capital markets or other factors that increase our cost of capital or limit our ability to obtain debt or equity financing on satisfactory terms to fund additional acquisitions, investment capital projects, working capital requirements and the repayment or refinancing of indebtedness;
the amplification of other risks caused by volatile or closed financial markets, capital constraints, liquidity concerns and inflation;
the use or availability of third-party assets upon which our operations depend and over which we have little or no control;
the currency exchange rate of the Canadian dollar to the United States dollar;
inability to recognize current revenue attributable to deficiency payments received from customers who fail to ship or move more than minimum contracted volumes until the related credits expire or are used;
significant under-utilization of our assets and facilities;
increased costs, or lack of availability, of insurance;
fluctuations in the debt and equity markets, including the price of our units at the time of vesting under our long-term incentive plans;
risks related to the development and operation of our assets; and
other factors and uncertainties inherent in the transportation, storage, terminalling and marketing of crude oil, as well as in the processing, transportation, fractionation, storage and marketing of NGL as discussed in the Partnerships’ filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Plains:

PAA is a publicly traded master limited partnership that owns and operates midstream energy infrastructure and provides logistics services for crude oil and natural gas liquids (“NGL”). PAA owns an extensive network of pipeline gathering and transportation systems, in addition to terminalling, storage, processing, fractionation and other infrastructure assets serving key producing basins, transportation corridors and major market hubs and export outlets in the United States and Canada. On average, PAA handles over 8 million barrels per day of crude oil and NGL.

PAGP is a publicly traded entity that owns an indirect, non-economic controlling general partner interest in PAA and an indirect limited partner interest in PAA, one of the largest energy infrastructure and logistics companies in North America.

PAA and PAGP are headquartered in Houston, Texas. For more information, please visit www.plains.com.

Contacts:

Blake Fernandez
Vice President, Investor Relations
(866) 809-1291

Michael Gladstein
Director, Investor Relations
(866) 809-1291

The MIL Network –

February 8, 2025

MIL-OSI: Danske Mortgage Bank Plc: Annual Report 2024 and Auditor’s report 2024

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

Attached Danske Mortgage Bank Plc’s Annual Report 2024 and Auditor’s Report 2024.

The Annual Report is reported in pdf and also in accordance with the European Single Electronic Format (ESEF) reporting requirements in Extensible Hypertext Markup Language (XHTML). Independent Auditor’s reasonable assurance report has been given in Finnish of the XHTML report.

Annual Report and Auditor’s Report can be found from the company’s webpages https://danskebank.com/investor-relations/debt/danske-mortgage-bank

Danske Mortgage Bank Plc

Contact: Janne Lassila, CEO, Danske Mortgage Bank Plc, tel. +358 (0) 40 515 8911

Attachments

The MIL Network –

February 8, 2025
MIL-OSI: Fourth Star Launches Immersive Media Streaming Platform
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

San Francisco, CA , Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Fourth Star, the cutting-edge virtual reality immersive media streaming platform, is officially available to the public. This innovative platform transforms traditional entertainment by enabling users to seamlessly watch standard 2D, 180 and 360 immersive media content and movies. Fourth Star redefines how audiences engage with immersive storytelling, offering an unparalleled first-person centric perspective on entertainment.

“Fourth Star is more than just a platform – it’s a revolution in entertainment,” said Greg Simon, Co-Founder & CEO of Fourth Star. “We’ve created an immersive experience where users can not only consume content but also actively participate in it. Our vision is to transform how people experience media content and movies in a way that has never been done before.”

A New Era of Interactive Entertainment
The largest immersive media streaming platform available on Sidequest, users can explore nearly forty unique environments, interact with AI-driven crew, and experience entertainment in an entirely new way. Whether socializing in the Café, customizing avatars in private Apartments or Ships, or stepping directly into a movie’s storyline, Fourth Star offers a groundbreaking approach to digital engagement.

“The combination of VR, AI, and blockchain in Fourth Star sets a new standard for immersive entertainment,” said Craig Wiltshire, CTO of Fourth Star.”Our vision is to seamlessly integrate all three technologies into the user experience. We are redefining the entertainment experience from passive observation to active creation.”

Built for Content Partners
Fourth Star is a self-serve platform designed for content partners of all sizes, from individual creators to blockbuster studios. Content partners can set up an account, create content channels, and begin monetizing their work immediately. No integration is required, allowing for seamless onboarding and instant access to a global audience. The Creator Portal empowers partners to distribute and profit from their immersive media with ease, making Fourth Star a truly open and accessible metaverse for digital entertainment.

Key Features of Fourth Star
- VR Streaming Platform – Users can access nearly forty environments and own their own luxury apartments and ships all equipped with an immersive media streaming entertainment hub.
- Social & Customization – Connect with others in dynamic social hubs, personalize your avatar, and invite your friends to your own luxury apartment and ship.
- Player Portal – Users can access the web-based marketplace to explore content, invite friends,
- Creator Portal – Set up an account, create content channels, and begin monetizing your work immediately. No integration is required, allowing for seamless onboarding and instant access to a global audience.
- Blockchain Integration – The FSTR token, built on the Polygon blockchain, powers the ecosystem, providing secure transactions and exclusive rewards.
- AI-Powered Companions – Coming soon
FSTR: The Utility Token Powering Fourth Star
FSTR serves as the primary ecosystem currency within the Fourth Star platform, enabling users to purchase Apartments, Ships, AI Companions, and exclusive content. Token holders benefit from:
- VIP Access – Exclusive events, early screenings, and red carpet experiences.
- Discounts – 25% savings on in-app purchases (IAPs) and entertainment content.
FSTR can be purchased today to unlock the above benefits and more at the Probit Global Exchange using this link: https://tinyurl.com/35jbbcxb

A New Paradigm in Entertainment
Fourth Star is designed to deliver the future of entertainment through merging cinematic storytelling with interactive gaming, offering:
- A seamless transition from passive to interactive experiences.
- A thriving community for players, creators, and investors.
- Advanced AI integration for interactive AI characters.
- Don’t just watch the star in the movie, become the star.
Availability and Access
Fourth Star is now live and available for users worldwide on Sidequest. Whether you’re an explorer, content creator large to small, storyteller, or entertainment enthusiast, Fourth Star provides an immersive space to experience digital entertainment like never before.

About Fourth Star
Fourth Star was established in 2022 with platform design and environmental modeling. In 2023, focus turned to closed alpha and beta testing, alongside workshops with content creators. By Q1 2024, we launched the open beta, gathering feedback and introducing creators. In Q2 2024, we launched the FSTR, sold ships and apartments, and developed our creator and partner reward systems. In 2025, we’ll be launching ‘Genevieve’, an AI-powered comprehensive marketing system, advanced AI tools enabling the generation of immersive content and interactive storylines, AI companions, a creator reward system introducing virtual asset rentals, and interactive gamified blockbuster films.

Join Fourth Star
Ready to explore the next frontier of entertainment?

Website: https://www.fourthstar.com/
Telegram: https://t.me/fourthstarhq
X/Twitter: https://x.com/fourthstarhq
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@fourthstarmetaverse?si=-9iy08EVubLrzFp1

Media Contact:
Greg Simon
CEO and Co-Founder
greg@fourthstar.com
XVerse Inc. (DBA Fourth Star)

The MIL Network –
February 8, 2025

Blog

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A checkered history

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State Secretary Anders Hall and Frontex’s Deputy Executive Director for Returns and Operations Lars Gerdes.

At the meeting of the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA) in Warsaw, where State Secretary Anders Hall met with Poland’s Minister of the Interior and Administration Tomasz Siemoniak.

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Sweden could face a new crisis

Critical flaws in pandemic management

Sweden is better equipped