IBT Staff Reporter

You see, I had a mental block. I associated cold calling with the worst of what selling was all about -- the going to war concept where you put on your armor and play a word and mind game with someone you've never met.

The other day, I got a call from Brian, who was a first time visitor to my website. He told me during our conversation, I see other people at work playing the old numbers game.

Italy's installed wind power capacity rose more than 30 percent last year to 4,850 megawatts, boosted by record installation, industry associations said on Friday.

Cold calling the old way is a painful struggle. But you can make it a productive and positive experience by changing your mindset and cold calling the new way.

Britain has awarded energy companies the rights to develop the world's biggest offshore wind project in hopes the country will become a leader in the emerging industry, which is vital to slash carbon emissions.

Three rockets were fired on Friday at a building leased as the site of a future U.S. consulate in the western Afghan city of Herat, police said.

If you can design a swearing internet xylophone you may end up with your own BBC comedy show one day -- just ask Brian Limmy Limond.

Shares in First Solar Inc,, one of the early stars of the emerging solar power sector, have had a choppy ride lately, raising a question for investors: Is it a tech play or something more down-to-earth?

And we'll continue believing that we're always just one new sales technique away from the breakthrough we're looking for.

Bank of America Corp will likely pay some employees at its investment bank at levels significantly above last year, although there will be no record payouts, a spokesman for the bank said on Friday.

The Dow and the S&P 500 edged lower on Friday from 15-month highs after hopes for a quick turnaround in the labor market were knocked by an unexpectedly weak employment report.

Shares in German solar company Conergy soared on Friday, boosted by statements that negotiations with peer MEMC aimed at an amicable agreement in an ongoing wafer contract dispute were progressing.

European Union carbon emissions futures rose on Friday, as financial players who had sold permits short bought them back and as technical levels pointed toward consolidation, traders said.

Chinese photovoltaic cell maker Solarfun Power Holdings Co Ltd said on Friday it would increase its production capacity this year, anticipating higher demand.

U.S. electric sports carmaker Tesla Motors will partner with Japan's Panasonic Corp for the next generation of lithium-ion batteries, the companies said on Thursday.

The shares of Chinese solar power companies JA Solar Holdings Co Ltd and Solarfun Power Holdings Co Ltd rose as much as 13 percent on Wednesday after an analyst raised price estimates for the companies.

The nuclear power plant utilization rate at Japan's 10 nuclear power companies rose to its highest in more than three years in December as many companies boosted output for peak winter demand, helping cut the need for thermal fuel.

Google Inc has asked the main U.S. energy regulator for authority to buy and sell electricity in the wholesale market to help manage its huge energy needs, as the Internet giant's big data centers soak up large amounts of power.

United Parcel Service Inc raised its fourth-quarter profit forecast on Friday but said it was cutting another 1,800 management and administrative jobs.

Suppliers for Apple Inc's new tablet computer have begun shipping touchscreen panels and will start delivering aluminum casings for it next month, sources said, implying a second-quarter product launch.

The U.S. unemployment rate will likely decline only gradually, giving the Federal Reserve room to keep interest rates low until the economic recovery becomes self-sustaining, a top Federal Reserve policymaker said on Friday.

Canada-listed coal miner SouthGobi Energy Resources has secured Asia's top sovereign wealth funds, China Investment Corp (CIC) and Temasek, as cornerstone investors in its planned $400 million Hong Kong IPO this month, a source told Reuters on Friday.

Abu Dhabi-based Aabar Investments (AABAR.AD) wants to acquire 70 percent of Arabtec (ARTC.DU) through convertible bonds, Aabar said, in a $1.7 billion deal which would provide both cash and potential new contracts for the Dubai builder.

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has agreed to sell non-core asset management businesses to funds firm Aberdeen as part of its overhaul following the government rescue.

Billions of dollars of natural gas assets in Western Canada could change hands this year as energy income trusts convert into corporations and raise capital for acquisitions, bankers and portfolio managers say.

Novartis AG (NOVN.VX) is likely to disappoint loan and bond market hopes of a $16 billion financing bonanza from its take-out of U.S. eyecare firm Alcon Inc (ACL.N), opting instead for cheaper ultra-short-term commercial debt.

New York office landlord SL Green Realty Corp on Friday will become the owner of a 21-story downtown office next to the World Trade Center site, following a foreclosure auction after the prior owner, Sapir Organization, defaulted on the mortgage.

Mortgage lenders must check better if borrowers can repay home loans, a global forum of regulators said on Friday in a wide-ranging report aimed at plugging regulatory gaps uncovered by the credit crunch.

Unidentified men opened fire this week on leading Iranian opposition figure Mehdi Karoubi, an opposition website reported on Friday.