Berkshire News Briefs - 3/18/17

7 Enlightening Lessons From Berkshire Hathaway’s 2016 Annual Report

Just the lesson headings:

Lesson #1 - Book Value is an Imperfect Measure of Intrinsic Value
Lesson #2 – Dilution Destroys Shareholder Value
Lesson #3 – Buffett is Bullish on the American Economy
Lesson #4 – Bargain Hunting Combined with Long Holding Periods Create Substantial Value
Lesson #5 – Share Repurchases Build Value, Regardless of What the Skeptics Say
Lesson #6 – Cheap Leverage is an Incredible Advantage
Lesson #7 – Berkshire Has an Invisible Stake in Bank of America

BNSF agrees to clean up coal, petcoke emitted from rail cars

BNSF Railway Co. will clean up coal and petroleum coke in waterways, fund a study of rail-car covers and pay $1 million for environmental projects in Washington state, according to consent decree filed in U.S. District Court. [...]

Under the decree, BNSF will pay for the cleanup of Pacific Northwest waterways that were polluted by coal or petroleum coke that spilled from open-topped rail cars.

In addition, BNSF will pay $1 million for environmental projects in the Bellingham, Puget Sound, Columbia River and Spokane River areas. The Class I also will clean up areas of the Columbia River and its tributaries that have been littered with coal and petroleum coke from BNSF trains.

Moreover, the decree requires the railroad to fund a study about covers for rail cars carrying coal and petroleum coke. [...]

Additionally, BNSF denies any violations of the Clean Water Act, and the U.S. District Court judge did not find any specific violations. [...]

NV Energy seeks approval for rooftop solar alternative with Apple ties

Recall Berkshire Hathaway Energy subsidiary NV Energy's feud with Solar City over net metering in Nevada from last year...

NV Energy is seeking approval from state regulators for a renewable energy program that is aimed at providing an alternative to rooftop solar via energy sources based in the state, including one in conjunction with Apple. [...]

The Subscription Solar program allows NV Energy customers to subscribe each month to at least 100-kilowatt hour blocks of solar energy generated from within the state. The energy will be provided by the company’s Boulder Solar I facility, which has set aside 10 megawatts for the program, as well as the Techren II facility, which is a joint venture with Apple. The latter has set aside 5 megawatts for the program and will be online by 2019. [...]

The program will allow residential customers and, eventually, small to mid-size businesses to meet as much as 100 percent of their energy needs with renewable energy. NV Energy cited rooftop solar as a key factor in the creation of the program. [...]

KITCO Fiber Optics Joins Marmon Aerospace & Defense LLC

Marmon Aerospace & Defense LLC, a Marmon/Berkshire Hathaway company, today announced the acquisition of KITCO Fiber Optics of Virginia Beach, VA, a highly-respected leader in the specialty, military, and aerospace fiber optic industries. Terms were not disclosed.

While KITCO will continue to operate as an independent business, its products complement those of Marmon Aerospace & Defense. Together, the two businesses will offer defense industry customers unique, focused product and service capabilities for electrical, electronic, fiber optic, and communication solutions. Their collective resources will enable continued growth and innovation for both Marmon and KITCO in service to the U.S. defense industry. [...]

Dairy Queen Celebrates First Day of Spring With Free Cone Day on March 20

Drones have delivered products and pizzas. Now drones are delivering cones – for a good cause. To kick off Free Cone Day on March 20th, which is also the first day of Spring, DQ® enlisted the help of a drone to deliver cones to a few lucky fans. It was the first time the Berkshire Hathaway company has delivered cones by drone. For the rest of us, we can get our free cone at DQ all day on Monday, March 20th. Participating locations also will be collecting donations for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, which raises funds to help save and improve the lives of kids treated at 170 children’s hospitals across the U.S. and Canada. [...]

Buffett's pay rises; Berkshire urges rejection of shareholder proposals

Warren Buffett's compensation for running Berkshire Hathaway Inc. edged up 4.0 percent last year to $487,881 reflecting the higher cost of keeping the world's second-richest person safe. [...]

Berkshire said Buffett's salary in 2016 was $100,000, the same amount he has received for more than a quarter century, while the cost of providing him with home and personal security services rose to $387,881 last year from $370,244. [...]

Barack Obama Grabs Lunch with Billionaire Warren Buffett at Omaha Country Club

Former president Barack Obama made a quick stop in Omaha, Nebraska, Sunday afternoon to grab lunch with billionaire investor Warren Buffett, the Omaha World-Herald reported. The two were joined by Buffett’s daughter Susie Buffett for lunch in a private room at the Happy Hollow country club, where Warren Buffett is a member. [...]

While Susie Buffett remained quiet about the topics of conversation at the lunch meeting, some sources speculated the Obama visit was an effort to raise funds from the elder Buffett for his presidential library or other charities. [...]