Europe

Due to a limited global supply of liquefied petroleum gas, Saudi Arabia's Aramco and Algeria's Sonatrach raised their official'selling prices' for the product in February between 1% and 5,3%. Saudi Aramco’s February OSP?increased $20 per metric ton, to $545?per ton For propane, the price has increased by $20 per ton. Butane LPG comes in two types: butane and propane. They have different boiling points. LPG is used primarily as a fuel for cars and heating, as well as a feedstock to make other petrochemicals. Sonatrach has increased its February OSP for propane from $500 to $25 per ton. For?butane, the...

The cable car that was supposed to transport spectators to the Olympic Alpine Skiing events for women in Cortina won't be ready on time. This prompted Games organisers to?request school closures in order to relieve the pressure placed on the Dolomite resort transportation system. The Apollonio - Socrepes lift has been a controversial piece of Olympic infrastructure in the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics 2026, which will be co-hosted from February 6-22 by Cortina and Italy's capital. The system was supposed to transport spectators directly from the centre of the town to the slopes. However, the work began late and residents...

The cable car that was supposed to transport spectators to Cortina's women's Olympic Alpine skiing event will not be completed in time. Games organizers have requested school closures in order to ease pressure on the Dolomite Resort's transportation system. The 'Apollonio Socrepes Lift' is one of the most controversial pieces of Olympic infrastructure that will be used for the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics 2026, which will be co-hosted from February 6-22 by Cortina and Italy's capital. The system was supposed to transport spectators directly from the centre of the town to the slopes. However, the work started behind schedule and...

There are growing doubts about whether Cortina’s cable car is ready for the women’s Olympic alpine ski events at the Dolomites Resort. The infrastructure has not been completed a week before Games begin. The Apollonio Socrepes Gondola is one the most controversial projects for the Winter Olympics in Cortina, and Milan from 6-22 February. The construction of the cable car that will take tourists from the centre to the slopes has been delayed. Some residents are concerned about safety, as the project is taking place in an area prone to landslides. Two people familiar with the situation said that the...

Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino stated?on Friday? that ports will continue to operate in the 'country despite a?Supreme Court ruling which annulled key port contracts by a Hong Kong-based subsidiary, CK Hutchison. The future of some key ports near the Panama Canal is still unclear after the ruling made on Thursday. Mulino stated that APM Terminals Panama (a Maersk subsidiary) has expressed a willingness to temporarily takeover the operation of the Balboa & Cristobal terminals, after a period of transition during which the current operator will remain. He stated that he has had discussions with multiple companies. Mulino stated during...

Here are the key factors that could affect Swiss stocks on Friday: NESTLE Foodwatch, a consumer rights campaign group, filed a criminal complaint on Thursday in Paris in behalf of eight families who claim their babies fell ill after eating contaminated infants formula. This comes after companies like Nestle recalled?batches? of infant formula over the last month due to 'concerns? about contamination. SWATCH Date possible for the release of FY Key figures. BUSINESS STATEMENTS * Dottikon Es claims that Buechiglas has a strategic stake Dottikon Es associated SYSTAG ANALYSTS VIEWS FLUGHAFEN ZUERICH AG: Jefferies cuts the target price from CHF...

A Russian state trading platform revealed on Thursday that Russia sold Domodedovo Airport, one of its largest and most modern airports in the country, to Sheremetyevo Airport, a subsidiary?of another Moscow-area airport. The sale price was?66 billion?roubles? ($869m) The auction was the 2nd attempt to sell the Airport, which was nationalised by the Prosecutor-General in June 2025. This was the latest in the series of seizures of state assets. The 'first auction, which was held on 20 January and set a price of 132.3 billion rubles as the starting point, failed because only one bidder was allowed to participate. The...

CMA CGM, a French shipping and transportation company, said on Thursday that it would take'measures' to place some of its vessels in safe areas due to the harsh weather conditions in certain parts of Atlantic. It said that "severe weather conditions" were impacting navigation conditions in the Atlantic along the French, Spanish, and Moroccan coasts. The event was of exceptional intensity and length, especially in the Bay o f?Biscay. CMA-CGM Group decided as a precaution to put vessels transiting this area in safe places to ensure crew and cargo safety. The measure is applicable to all areas from southern Morocco...

Storm Kristin, which swept through central and northern Portugal on Wednesday and knocked down trees, damaged houses, and disrupted rail and road traffic, killed three people. According to emergency services, a person was killed when a fallen tree hit their vehicle in Vila Franca De Xira on the outskirts Lisbon. According to the local council, two more people were killed in central district of?Leiria – one of the worst affected areas. In a country with nearly 11 million inhabitants, civil protection authorities reported more than 3,000 weather related incidents. These were triggered by gusts of wind up to 150 km/hr...

Two sources familiar with the plans on Wednesday said that oil producer Chevron will increase exports of Venezuelan crude from the U.S. up to 300,000 barrels per day (bpd). This is up from 100,000 bpd last December and 230,000 bpd this month. The U.S. firm, which is the principal partner of Venezuelan state-run energy company PDVSA has chartered a dozen oil tankers in order to increase shipments at its projects and drain inventories accumulated since December when a U.S. ban on Venezuelan exports left millions of barrels in tanks and vessels onshore. Four Chevron - PDVSA joint ventures produce between...

Container shipping company Maersk said on Wednesday that storms and heavy snowfall were disrupting cargo flow across the south-west and western parts of Europe, as well as affecting deliveries into and out of northern areas. Portugal and Spain are among the countries that were affected by severe weather alerts on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Italy declared a state-of-emergency on Monday for its southern regions which had been ravaged?by an intense storm last week. Maersk stated that terminals in the western Mediterranean had ceased operations. There is no current timeline for their resumption. Maersk sent an advisory to its customers saying that the...

Three sources familiar with this preparation revealed on Tuesday that U.S. officials are preparing to issue a license to lift'some sanctions' from Venezuelan energy companies. This is a departure from the previous plan of granting individual exemptions for sanctions to companies wanting to do business there. U.S. officials said that following the capture by the U.S. of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in the first week of this month, Washington would ease the sanctions on Venezuela's energy sector to facilitate a $2 Billion oil supply deal and an ambitious $100 Billion reconstruction plan for the country's petroleum industry. In recent weeks,...

Siemens Energy will invest $1 billion in the U.S. to expand power grid production and to produce?gas turbine components as it builds data centres to power AI technology. The biggest technology companies in the world are pouring hundreds billions of dollars into U.S. Data Centres that will require more power than can be provided by an aging electrical system. Government reports say that data centres could account for 12% of the U.S. grid's capacity in just two years. This is nearly three times as much as 2024. Siemens Energy CEO Christian Bruch said that the U.S. was the largest market...

On Monday, U.S. president Donald Trump announced that he had reached a deal with Indian prime minister Narendra Modi. The agreement included a stop to the purchase of Russian oil by India. The U.S. is trying to limit Russia's oil revenues to make it more difficult for Moscow to finance the?war? in Ukraine. Here are some important facts about the oil trade between Russia and India. OIL PURCHASES After the outbreak of the Ukraine war in February 2022, India became the largest buyer of Russian oil by sea. After some Indian refiners halted imports in November under pressure from sanctions,...

Data from LSEG and market sources showed that Russia's seaborne gasoil and diesel exports increased 19% over the previous month. This was due to a seasonal decline in domestic demand, which prompted traders to ship out more. The data shows that exports were 4,6% lower than in January 2025, as drone attacks, maintenance and other factors affected the output. Sources said that the shipment of ultra-low sulphur diesel through the Baltic port Primorsk - Russia's largest port for?diesel imports - jumped 32.4% in one month, to a new record of 2.256 million tonnes, supported by an increase in production. The...

The Moroccan energy ministry announced on Monday that it had suspended tenders for a LNG terminal in Nador West Med port on 'the Mediterranean coast and related 'gas pipeline projects. It did not give any details as to the reason for the suspension. The tender was for the construction of an LNG terminal at Nador West Med Port on?the Mediterranean Coast and a pipeline connecting it to an existing pipeline which allows Morocco to import LNG via Spanish?terminals to supply two power stations. The project also included a section which would?connect existing pipelines to industrial zones on the Atlantic coast?in...

The Moroccan energy ministry announced on Monday that it had suspended a tender launched last month to build a gas pipeline, but did not provide any details as to the reasons. The tender was for the construction of a pipeline connecting a future terminal at the Nador West Med Port on the Mediterranean?to an existing pipe that allows Morocco to import?LNG via Spanish terminals?and supply two power plants? The section would also connect the existing pipe to industrial zones on the Atlantic, in Mohammedia and Kenitra. The ministry issued a statement saying that "due to new parameters and assumptions relating...

The Russian captain of the container ship that collided with a 'U.S. The London court found the Russian captain of the container ship that crashed into a?U.S. Vladimir Motin was the captain of the Solong tanker when it struck the Stena Immaculate, which had been anchored with just over 220,000 gallons of aviation fuel. The crash on March 10 started a fire that spread to both ships. Mark Pernia was a crew member of the Solong, a Filipino national whose remains have never been located and are presumed to be dead. Tom Little, the prosecutor at Motin's first trial last...

Gridworks, an?investor owned by the British government in Africa's electric networks, signed agreements on Monday to 'develop and invest' in transmission projects valued at around $400 million, during a visit by Britain's Foreign Minister. Yvette's Cooper's visit to Ethiopia is part of the UK government's efforts to create jobs in order to curb the rising number of migrants seeking to enter the United Kingdom from the Horn of Africa. These two projects are the first public/private partnerships in Ethiopia’s transmission network. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmad's government is slowly opening up Ethiopia’s state-dominated economy for more private investment. One project 'connects...

Calculations on Monday showed that the average daily supply of natural gas to Europe via the TurkStream pipeline by Russian energy giant Gazprom rose 10.3% year-on-year in 'January. After Ukraine decided not to renew a five-year deal for transit with Moscow, which expired in January 2025, the only remaining transit route is through Turkey. Calculations show that the total Russian gas supplied to Europe through TurkStream was 1.73 billion cubic meters (bcm) during January, compared with 1.57 bcm in the same period last year. According to calculations based on data from the European Gas Transmission Group Entsog, Russian?gas exported via...

Officials said that Saturday, parts of Ukraine and Moldova - including the capitals of both countries - were plunged into a blackout due to a "malfunction" of high voltage power lines. Later in the day, power was restored. The accident was not linked directly to war damages, but Ukraine's electricity grid suffered as a result of the cumulative impact of Russian airstrikes. This led to severe restrictions in the supply of electricity over the past few weeks. Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the president of Ukraine, blamed ice accumulation on power lines for a cyberattack and dismissed it. In his video nightly address,...

Four people with knowledge of the situation said that the CEOs from Siemens Energy and Thyssenkrupp would join Economy Minister Katherina Riege on a trip to Saudi Arabia. The top European economy is looking to diversify its supply of energy. Reiche will travel to Saudi Arabia between February 1 and 3 to expand the economic relationship, according to a spokesperson from her ministry. This comes just days after Reiche stressed the importance of new alliances due to rising geopolitical tensions. The focus of the trip will be energy. This is a crucial issue for Germany, which is?Saudi Arabia’s most important...

Katherina Reiche, Economy Minister of Germany will be joined by the CEOs from Siemens Energy and Thyssenkrupp on a trip to Saudi Arabia. This trip is to highlight a drive to diversify energy supplies in Europe's largest economy. Reiche will travel to Saudi Arabia between February 1 and 3 to expand business relations, according to a spokesperson from her ministry. This comes just days after Reiche emphasized the need for new alliances due to rising geopolitical tensions. The focus of the trip will be energy. This is a crucial issue for Germany, Saudi Arabia's largest economic partner within?the European Union....

The discount on Russian ESPO blend crude oil for cargoes loading in March has narrowed due to the brisk Chinese demand. Buyers rushed to secure barrels, while Indian refiners remained wary of Western sanctions. Four trade and industry sources report that Russian ESPO blend cargoes loaded in March were traded at a price of?about $7 to $8?per barrel less than ICE Brent to be delivered to Chinese ports. The majority of March-loading ESPO cargoes has been sold. Sources said that some ESPO cargoes loaded in February were sold at discounts of up to $9-$10 a barrel. ESPO blend traded between...