Firm behind Gulf's clean-energy city cuts staff

The government company building a high-profile green-energy city in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi says it has cut 9 percent of its staff as it looks to trim costs. Masdar said in a statement emailed on Wednesday that the job cuts were part of an annual business planning process designed to "enhance the efficiency and effectiveness" of the company. It didn't say when the cuts took place or which parts of the company were affected. Masdar last year revised plans for a self-contained clean-energy city being built in the desert outside Abu Dhabi that was originally expected to cost $22 billion. The company insists it plans to complete the project, though not as fast as originally planned.