Central America








LNG Transportation

Transport Infrastructure

Transport Infrastructure

Rubio praises Panama's decision to withdraw from Chinese infrastructure plan

Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary for State, welcomed the decision of Panama to allow its participation in China’s global infrastructure plan to expire on Monday. He called the move a "great step forward" for the United States-Panama relationship. Washington has argued Beijing uses this scheme as "debt-trap diplomacy" in order to consolidate its global influence. Rubio made his first trip abroad as the top U.S. diplomacy under President Donald Trump. He visited Panama, an important U.S. ally in Latin America. Rubio also pressed the country to change its relationship with China. Jose Raul Mulino, the Panamanian president, said that after meeting...

Transport Infrastructure

Why the US claims that China's presence in Panama violates the neutrality treaty

Some U.S. officials and lawmakers are citing a nearly 50-year-old treaty signed between the United States of America and Panama as a way to justify Trump's threat to take back the Panama Canal, provided they can prove that the waterway's operations are threatened. Some, however, believe that obstacles would arise if the U.S. tried to use the 1997 Panama Canal Neutrality Treaty - which went into effect in 1999 - to claim the canal. The treaty guarantees the canal will remain neutral and available to ships from any country. Since 1999, the Panama Canal Authority has controlled the 82-km waterway....

Transport Infrastructure

Senators raise concern about Chinese impact on Panama Canal operations

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators on Tuesday revealed alarm at China's influence on the Panama Canal, which President Donald Trump has actually vowed the United States would take back. Chinese companies are developing a bridge throughout the canal--. at a sluggish pace so as to take almost a decade-- and control. container ports at either end, Senate Commerce Committee chair. Ted Cruz said at a hearing on the canal's role in U.S. trade and. national security. The partially-completed bridge offers China the capability. to block the canal without warning, and the ports offer China. ready observation posts to time...

Transport Infrastructure

Germany protects oil tanker adrift off its Baltic coast

A tugboat has stopped a. tanker bring around 99,000 metric lots of oil from Russia. from wandering out of control off Germany's Baltic Sea coast near. the island of Ruegen, emergency services said on Friday. The 274-metre (899-foot) Panama-flagged tanker, called. Eventin, and taking a trip from Russia to Egypt, had been drifting. gradually and unable to manoeuvre given that earlier on Friday,. Germany's Central Command for Maritime Emergencies said. A tugboat was holding it in position and others were en. route, CCME said, adding it was examining next steps. Evacuation of the 24-member team was not required, it said....

Transport Infrastructure

After Trump danger, Mexican president says Panama Canal belongs to Panamanians

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum revealed support for Panama's federal government on Monday after U.S. Presidentelect Donald Trump threatened to reassert U.S. control over the Panama Canal on Sunday. Undoubtedly, the Panama Canal belongs to the Panamanians, Sheinbaum stated, speaking during her routine early morning press conference. Sheinbaum's comments came one day after Trump accused Panama of charging excessive rates to use the Main American passage while speaking with a crowd of supporters in Arizona. After the event, he published an image on Reality Social of an American flag flying over a narrow body of water, with the comment: Invite. to...

Transport Infrastructure

Trump threatens to retake control of Panama Canal unless offer reached

President-elect Donald Trump threatened to reassert U.S. control over the Panama Canal, accusing Panama of charging excessive rates to use the Main American passage, which allows ships to cross in between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. In a Saturday night post on Fact Social, Trump likewise warned that he would not let the canal fall into the wrong. hands, and he seemed to alert of possible Chinese impact on. the passage, composing that the canal needs to not be handled by. China. China does not manage or administer the canal. However, a. subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchinson Holdings handles...

Transport Infrastructure

Trump says he may demand Panama hand over canal

P residentelect Donald Trump on Saturday accused Panama of charging extreme rates for use of the Panama Canal and said that if Panama did not manage the canal in an appropriate fashion, he would demand the U.S. ally hand it over. In a night post on Reality Social, Trump likewise cautioned he would not let the canal fall under the incorrect hands, and he appeared to caution of prospective Chinese impact on the passage, composing the canal ought to not be handled by China. The post was an exceedingly unusual example of a U.S. leader saying he could push a...

Transport Infrastructure

Freeport LNG hits gas-processing record after plant overhaul

Freeport LNG drew record natural gas volumes on several days today, according to financial firm LSEG, following conclusion of an overhaul that increased processing capacity. Freeport LNG drew a record 2.414 billion cubic feet (bcf) of feedgas on Friday, preliminary LSEG data revealed. That volume continued a series of record gas pulls that each topped the plant's previous record of 2.261 bcf, which was reached in April 2023. Freeport LNG had actually announced in April that a debottlenecking meant to enhance processing likely would add an additional 1.2 million metric heaps per annum (MTPA) of LNG capability. The plant's capability...

Transport Infrastructure

Dutch reactionary leader condemns attacks on Israeli fans in call with Netanyahu

Dutch farright leader Geert Wilders expressed his anger and shame over attacks on Israeli soccer advocates in Amsterdam in a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday. The Israelis, advocates of the Maccabi Tel Aviv club who remained in the Dutch city for a match versus Ajax Amsterdam, had been assaulted over night by what its mayor called antisemitic hit-and-run squads. At least 5 people were dealt with in hospital. Wilders, who heads the biggest celebration in the federal government, stated on X that in his call with Netanyahu (I) told him of my anger and embarassment of...

Transport Infrastructure

Mexico cautions US restriction on Chinese vehicle tech might harm automotive market

The Mexican government on Monday raised concerns about the Biden administration's proposal to restrict essential Chinese software application and hardware in linked vehicles on American roads due to national security issues. Mexico's economy ministry said in a filing with the U.S. Commerce Department the proposal could have a considerable. effect on Mexico's automotive industry. Economically, it postures. potential trade barriers, interruptions to provide chains,. increased production expenses, and a possible danger of minimized. direct and indirect work. Automaker and tech groups separately on Monday asked the. administration for changes and for more time before the rule. takes effect. The proposal...

Transport Infrastructure

2 lots individuals die in bus crash in main Mexico

At least 24 people died and five others were hurt when a bus crashed on a highway in Mexico's main state of Zacatecas on Saturday, regional authorities stated. The mishap happened in the morning hours when the bus bring the victims collided with the back of a. tractor-trailer carrying corn. Zacatecas Governor David Monreal verified the casualties in. a post on social networks, assuring to provide assistance for the. victims. Efforts were ongoing on Saturday morning to recover a few of. the bodies that had fallen into a gorge, a city government. official who asked not to be called told...

Transport Infrastructure

Train derailment produces most current supply chain hiccup for US-Mexico grain exports

Mexican rail consortium Ferromex and U.S. railway company Union Pacific Corp. stated they have stopped releasing licenses for some grain rail. shipments moving through Eagle Pass, Texas, after a current train. derailment in Mexico closed the track. The stop is a short-term measure until rail traffic gets. cleared after the track resumed, Ferromex told Reuters in a. declaration Monday, adding that total volume of grain movement. in between Union Pacific and Ferromex will not be impacted. The interruption marks the latest in a string of grain freight. rail backlogs at the border, particularly at El Paso and Eagle. Pass, that...

Passenger Transportation Services

Passenger Transportation Services

Wall Street Journal - Jan 31

The following are the leading stories in the Wall Street Journal. Reuters has not validated these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. - OpenAI remains in early speak to raise as much as $40 billion in a. funding round that would value the ChatGPT maker as high as $300. billion. - Waste Management will shed 1,000 jobs this year,. accelerating its automation efforts, which will lower its. headcount by thousands and move the company better to its objective. of $450 million in expense cuts. - Allstate will sell its Group Health service to. Nationwide for $1.25 billion in...

Passenger Transportation Services

Mexico to examine mining accident which eliminated 3

Mexican authorities will investigate an occurrence at a gold mine in the Pacific seaside state of Guerrero which killed three workers, President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Friday. Canadian business Torex Gold, which operates the mine, reported on Thursday that 2 employees and a professional had been eliminated after being exposed to carbon monoxide. Another specialist was exposed and hospitalized, Torex said in a declaration. It stopped briefly operations. Sheinbaum told an interview the labor ministry and civil security authorities were reviewing the case and would deal with the households of the victims. She added that she had actually asked Labor...

Passenger Transportation Services

LATAM, Aeromexico weigh options to limited sustainable fuels

2 of Latin America's. leading airlines Chilean provider LATAM and Mexico's Aeromexico. are thinking about alternatives to sustainable air travel fuel (SAF),. which stays in brief supply in the area, as a method to cut. carbon emissions. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT Air travel is a heavily contaminating industry due to the jet fuel. utilized to power airplanes. The sector agrees that the shift to. utilizing SAFs is a top priority to reach net-zero carbon emissions. commitments, and some nations have actually presented reward. programs or guidelines setting minimum portion targets for. SAF use. However, fuel feedstocks made from waste items such...

Ground Transportation

Transportation

Transportation

First time in nearly a year, transits through the Panama Canal dropped in January

According to a bulletin released by the Panama Canal's administering authority on Tuesday, the number of ships that passed through it, the second busiest canal in the world, decreased to an average of 32,6 per day, or 1,011 total vessels in January. This is the first monthly decline in nearly a year. According to statistics from the Panama Canal Authority, after a severe drought in 2023 that led to passage restrictions in early 2024, 2024 saw a significant increase in transits, with a total 1,059 vessels in December. The data revealed that the recovery in demand was not sufficient to...

Transportation

Can the US declare that China's presence in Panama violates the neutrality treaty with Panama?

Some U.S. officials and lawmakers are citing a nearly 50-year-old treaty signed between the United States of America and Panama as a way to justify Trump's threat to take back the Panama Canal, provided they can prove that the waterway's operations are threatened. Some, however, believe that obstacles would arise if the U.S. tried to use the 1997 Panama Canal Neutrality Treaty - which went into effect in 1999 - to claim the canal. The treaty guarantees the canal will remain neutral and available to ships from any country. Since 1999, the Panama Canal Authority has controlled the 82-km waterway....

Transportation

US has choices to deal with Chinese impact in Panama, United States official states

The head of the Federal Maritime Commission will inform a U.S. Senate committee that the United States has choices to resolve the growing presence of China and Chinese firms in Panama. President Donald Trump has sworn that the United States would take back the Panama Canal however has actually given no more details on when or how he planned to reclaim the canal which is the sovereign territory of an ally. We require to increase assistance for American business seeking to do organization in Panama and throughout the Americas. Chinese companies must not be the sole bidders on agreements, Federal...

Transportation

Trump says the US will retake back the Panama Canal by invoking an expansionist agenda

Donald Trump, the newly sworn in President of the United States, promised on Monday to take back the Panama Canal during his inauguration speech. He invoked the 19th-century expansionist doctrine "Manifest Destiny." Trump reaffirmed his threat made before his inauguration to regain control of the canal. He accused Panama of not fulfilling its promises to transfer the strategic waterway to the United States in 1999, and of transferring the operation to China. The Panamanian government has denied these claims. "We didn't hand it over to China." Trump said, "We gave it to Panama and we're bringing it back." He did...

Transportation

Gas need from United States LNG export plants heads for very first decrease in 8 years

Demand for U.S. gas to produce melted natural gas (LNG) for export this year is headed for its first decline given that the nation began exporting the superchilled fuel from the lower 48 states eight years back. The U.S. is the world's largest exporter of the superchilled gas and an essential company of gas to Europe in the wake of Russia's. intrusion of Ukraine. Natural gas rates have stayed fairly. high in Europe as the expected U.S. growth in output in 2024 has. not materialized and the continent is bracing for a brand-new gas. price shock as colder winter season...

Transportation

Argentina's YPF develops new collaboration for Vaca Muerta Sur oil project

Argentina's staterun oil company YPF formed a brand-new collaboration with regional oil business to transfer and export oil from its massive Vaca Muerta shale oil formation, the business revealed on Monday. In a statement, YPF stated it was partnering with Vista Energy Argentina, Pampa Energia and Pan American Sur to form VMOS S.A. to run its Vaca Muerta Sur project. The project consists of a 473 km (about 294 miles). pipeline, loading and discharging terminal along with storage. facilities. The project will require an estimated $3 billion in. financing that will be supplied by the partners, as well as. local...

Transportation

Mexican senate authorizes work advantages for app chauffeurs

Mexico's Senate on Thursday authorized reforms to enhance conditions for chauffeurs with ridehailing and shipment services such as DiDi, Rappi and Uber, ensuring access to social security and a. Christmas reward, to name a few advantages. The reform passed all with 113 votes in favor, and. will be forwarded to the executive power to get enacted. President Claudia Sheinbaum had actually sent out the proposition to. lawmakers in early December and it was fast-tracked to a plenary. vote ahead of Congress' Christmas recess on Dec. 15. Mexico's judgment Morena celebration and its allies, which won a. landslide success in the...

Transportation

Mexico's lower house authorizes labor reform for app workers

Mexico's lower house on Tuesday authorized a reform that seeks to regulate labor conditions for shipment employees and motorists working for apps such as DiDi, Rappi and Uber by ensuring access to social security and a Christmas reward to name a few benefits. The reform passed in basic with 462 votes in favor, with no abstentions and no one voting against, following a two-hour argument. Today is a day that ought to go down in history, said ruling Morena celebration legislator Ariadna Barrera, saying the reform would advantage hundreds of thousands of employees and even more the celebration's. efforts to...

Oil Pipeline

Argentina's YPF to look for $2 billion in funding for oil pipeline in Q2 2025

Argentina's staterun oil company YPF will seek $2 billion in funding in the 2nd quarter of 2025 to complete its Vaca Muerta Sur job, a company source stated on Wednesday. The project is being performed by Vaca Muerta Oil Sur ( VMOS), which is managed by YPF, and intends to carry an additional 390,000 barrels daily from the Vaca Muerta development to a coastal export terminal in Rio Negro province. The source said that the company is seeking $1.5 billion from foreign investors and $500 million in your area and wishing to add Pampa Energy, Vista, Shell, Chevron and Pan...

Transportation

Freeport LNG reports short-lived shutdown at Texas center due to power fluctuation

Freeport LNG reported on Monday that 3 LNG processing trains at its Quintana, Texas, center were back on line after momentary outages that started on Friday due to the fact that of a power feed interruption. Texas-based Freeport LNG runs the second-largest U.S. export facility and gets its power from the state's electrical grid. It has struggled this year with several processing interruptions triggered by storms. Those blackouts sometimes lowered U.S. LNG exports. Throughout operation of Freeport LNG's Pretreatment Center, Trains 1, 2, and 3 tripped due to an incoming power feed disruption. The journeys led to inevitable venting to...

Transportation

Panama Canal seeks LNG resurgence after 65% decline in traffic

The Panama Canal aims to restore vessel traffic bring U.S. liquefied natural gas to Asia as demand in that market rises and a brand-new appointment system allows carriers to secure slots, following a 65% decrease in the transit of its secondmost crucial sector, the Panama Canal Authority informed Reuters. A U.S. LNG switch to Europe in the aftermath of Russia's. invasion of Ukraine, integrated with long waiting times and. costly charges to transit through Panama due to severe dry spell,. have actually kept many LNG ship of the canal. Lots of gas exporters continue to take longer routes around. South...

Transportation

Oil freight from Mexico en path to Cuba amid power crisis, data shows

A tanker bring about 400,000 barrels of oil left from Mexico's Pajaritos port and on Monday was on its method to Cuba, where a severe energy crisis has left the island having a hard time to keep the lights on, shipping information revealed. Cuba kept schools closed and non-essential workers home last week as the Caribbean island nation struggled to recuperate from the collapse of its power grid and a hurricane in current days. The Cuba-flagged tanker Vilma, which is anticipated to get here in Cuba later on today according to information from monetary company LSEG, has actually exclusively been...