OMAHA, Jan. 16 (UPI) — Omaha, Neb.-based Union Pacific set a record by removing 194 million tons of coal from Wyoming’s Southern Powder River Basin during 2006.

The railroad said the effort was made to help meet the U.S. coal demand. Union Pacific moved 895 more train loads of SPRB coal during 2006 than it did in 2005. That’s equivalent to 15 million tons of coal, the company said in a statement.

“Our employees are stepping up to the challenge to help meet our nation’s crucial energy needs,” said Jim Young, president and chief executive officer of UP. “Their ideas and dedication helped fuel the increases we experienced in 2006, and together we are continuing to develop new ways to handle rising demand.”

Investment in expanding capacity and developing new transportation processes helped UP achieve the increase in tonnage. Also the addition of several rail lines, including one in Wyoming and several others to be added soon, improved the overall system.

Coal inventories at U.S. utilities were expected to be at their highest levels in four years at the end of 2006, according to predictions by the Energy Information Administration, the the U.S. Department of Energy’s data arm. The EIA said it expects inventory levels to continue to rise through 2007 and possibly be at 138.9 million tons by the end of the year.

Cameroonian defender Lauren today joined Portsmouth from Arsenal for an undisclosed fee.

After a long spell out with injury, the full-back, who turns 30 tomorrow, had fallen behind Emmanuel Ebouй and Justin Hoyte in the Arsenal pecking order and was told by manager Arsиne Wenger that the club would not block a transfer away. He has signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Pompey, where he will renew his acquaintance with former Gunner Sol Campbell.

Lauren joined Arsenal from Mallorca in the summer of 2000 and made over 200 appearances, winning two Premiership titles, three FA Cups and three Community Shields. He retired from international football in 2002 after scoring one goal in 25 appearances for Cameroon, including the teams that won the 2000 and 2002 African Nations Cup and the gold medal winning side at the 2000 Olympics. He also won the Spanish Cup at Mallorca.

“Lauren is an outstanding player,” said the Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp. “He’s a great athlete and professional, very strong and quick too. He will be a tremendous asset to us, is extremely versatile and can play in a number of different positions at the back and in midfield. I’m delighted he’s decided to join Portsmouth above a whole host of clubs that were after him. It just shows how far we have come in a short space of time.”

Lauren himself was delighted with the move. “Portsmouth are having a great season and are pushing for a place in Europe and I aim to be playing my part in that challenge,” he said. “I have been very impressed with the club’s plans for the future both on and off the pitch and this was why I chose to come to Fratton Park. It will also be good to once again team up with Sol Campbell and Kanu.”

Lauren will train with the rest of the Pompey squad tomorrow and go straight into the squad for Saturday’s Premiership game at home to Charlton Athletic.

Toll Brothers 1Q Profit Falls 67 Percent Toll Brothers First-Quarter Profit Plunges 67 Percent to $54.3 Million Due to Hefty Writedowns The Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA - Luxury-home builder Toll Brothers Inc. said Thursday its first-quarter profit dropped 67 percent due to hefty writedowns and other costs, and CEO Robert Toll said there are still too many soft markets.

Quarterly earnings declined to $54.3 million, or 33 cents per share, from $163.9 million, or 98 cents per share, during the same period a year ago.

The latest quarter includes a goodwill impairment charge of $9 million related to Toll’s 1999 acquisition of the Silverman Cos. in Detroit. Results also were hurt by $96.9 million in costs to write down the value of land or housing stock the company no longer believes it can sell at a profit, versus writedowns of just $1.1 million in the prior-year period.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial were looking for net income of 29 cents per share.

Quarterly revenue slipped 19 percent to $1.09 billion versus $1.34 billion in the previous year, meeting Wall Street’s expectations.

States in the North showed the biggest decline for Toll, down 32 percent, followed by the West and the Mid-Atlantic states. The South had the smallest dip.

First-quarter net signed contracts slid 34 percent to $748.7 million. The West had the weakest showing, down 59 percent, followed by the Southern states, the Mid-Atlantic and the North.

“There are too many soft markets at this stage of the selling season to call a general upturn in the new home market. Demand varies greatly from week to week in individual markets,” Chairman and Chief Executive Robert I. Toll said in a statement.

The company’s first-quarter cancellations totaled 436 units, down from 585 units in the 2006 fourth quarter. Toll said its cancellation rate of 29.8 percent was lower than the fourth-quarter’s 36.9 percent rate but still well above the company’s historical average of about 7 percent.

Looking ahead, Toll expects to deliver between 6,000 to 7,000 homes this year, down from the prior projection of 6,300 to 7,300.

It expects home building revenue of $4.2 billion to $4.96 billion and net income of $240 million to $305 million, or $1.46 to $1.85 per share. Wall Street analysts were expecting profit of $1.46 per share.

But the company cautions that the earnings projection is based on $60 million in estimated writedowns for the remaining three quarters, but the actual figure could be “significantly” higher or lower.

Shares of Toll fell 31 cents, or nearly 1 percent, to $32.55 in pre-market trading. The stock closed at $32.86 on Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange.