PRESS DIGEST-British Business - Jan 2

Jan 2 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

The Times

- Blackstone BX.N acquired UK warehouses worth 200 million pounds ($250.62 million) before Christmas, bringing its total investment in industrial properties last year to 1 billion pounds.

- Cardiff-based Bute Energy aims to install nearly 200 wind turbines across Wales by 2030, including the recently approved Twyn Hywel wind farm, to support the country's clean energy goals.

The Guardian

- Russian gas shipments to Europe via Ukraine have ceased after an agreement signed in 2019 expired on New Year's Day, marking a significant step in Europe's move away from Russian energy.

The Telegraph

- The Post Office has been criticized for allocating 136 million pounds to legal fees for compensation schemes tied to the Horizon scandal, where sub-postmasters were wrongly imprisoned due to a flawed IT system.

Sky News

- The Post Office is proposing to increase banking fees to between 350 and 400 million pounds annually, up from 250 million pounds, to secure funding for boosting postmasters' pay.

The Independent

- Elon Musk has described Reform as the UK's "only hope," intensifying his public support of Nigel Farage's party and urging Britons to back it.

($1 = 0.7980 pounds)

(Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom)

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