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Chile copper thieves are undermining security measures on mine train
In a memo, Antofagasta Plc, a miner in Chile, warned that gangs are raiding copper trains across the remote Atacama Desert, becoming more bold and tactically sophisticated. They have breached anti-theft measures which had been effective for years. In a meeting this year, the copper miner and railroad operator raised alarms. Chilean prosecutors claim that some 'thieves' jump from trucks to rail cars, crossing isolated desert stretches. They then throw 80-kilogram copper slabs to waiting gangs and escape into the desert. Other people use hook lines in order to remove entire stacks from slow-moving trains. Copper stolen from illegal scrap yards is sold, melted to remove the identifying marks and sent abroad, disguised as scrap cargo, to destinations such as China. The memo was prepared by Antofagasta in May as a follow-up meeting to the March meeting with former Security minister Maria Trinidad Steinert. Copper is essential for manufacturing and the fast-growing markets of electric vehicles and renewable energies. The scale of robberies is still modest when compared with the monthly exports of one of the largest copper producers in the world, which were $5.37 billion last July. But any increase in copper theft remains a serious problem for Chile, which relies heavily on the export of this red metal. It supplies about a quarter the world's supply of copper. Antofagasta’s subsidiary Ferrocarril de Antofagasta Bolivia (FCAB), operates about 700 km (435 mi) of rail used to transport copper from Antofagasta’s own mines and operations run by competitors?to port. The thefts take place in isolated parts of northern Chile where trains transport copper cathodes over miles of desert terrain, with little nearby infrastructure or communication coverage. Antofagasta has not responded to our request for further information. PICKING UP THE PACE The rate of robberies is increasing. Antofagasta recorded 86 train heists in 2018, more than twice the 39 reported by local media in 2022. In the first four month of 2026, 34 robberies had been reported, with 169 metric tonnes of stolen goods, or 71% of total 2025. The train that carries copper from the state-owned Codelco mine in Chuquicamata is a frequent target. Antofagasta reported that it was targeted dozens of time last year. Thieves made off with $2.4million worth of red metal. Since then, the rail operator has budgeted almost the same amount for the installation of an anti-theft enclosure and the assignment of a security team to the line. Antofagasta stated that the "most effective control" the company had against desert heists was the cages bolted to train cars. The firm claims that recent attacks have become brazener. Antofagasta reported that in early 2026 a train equipped with a cage containing ore from Freeport McMoRan’s El Abra Mine was struck twice within two weeks. The train operator stated that "this shows a higher level in terms of adaptability, coordination, sophistication, and risk appetite from the gangs." Typically, copper cargo is insured for transit to limit financial losses. The company also said that its employees are in danger. One train was attacked by criminals who stole copper in the past. COPPER SMUGGLING CRACKDOWN Security analysts claim that gangs are now quasi-paramilitary organizations, equipped with guns and bulletproof vests. Authorities dismantled in April a major copper-smuggling network that had allegedly moved $917 million of the red metal from 2020 to 2025. This was the first major bust for President Jose Antonio Kast who took office in March and promised to crackdown on crime. Andres Jouannet, the then Deputy Minister of Public Safety, promised to make rapid progress in combating copper theft. He also pledged to create working groups to address the problem. Early June, he was replaced. The ministry has not responded to any requests for comments on the working group or the actions taken after the meeting between the Antofagasta office and the Ministry. Codelco, and Freeport McMoRan were both targets of the thefts. Both companies did not respond to inquiries for comment. Legislators are pledging to address the problem. Even as the number of robberies has increased, a bill to make copper theft an offense specific in the lower chamber since it passed the Senate in 2020 is still stuck. The House Mining Committee did not provide any comment on the actions of several members. Kast has "pushed for stronger powers to fight crime. These proposals have been met with resistance by Congress. But he also made security improvements an economic necessity, as mining companies are currently being forced to pay for increasing protection costs. Kast stated last week that mining companies should not have to dig trenches in order to prevent the theft of equipment, or send armed guards into mines to remove product. "That's what we want." Kast stated that "organized crime has changed." These are transnational organisations that need a different legal frame work. "We need to agree what this framework should be."
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Minister Zelenskiy says that despite Zelenskiy’s threats, Russia will not allow Ukraine seriously to disrupt civil aviation
The Russian Transport Minister said that despite the threat of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Russia would not allow Ukraine to disrupt civil aviation operations. Zelenskiy, a Russian aviation expert, warned Tuesday airlines and insurance firms that the presence Ukrainian drones made Russian airspace dangerous and closed it effectively. "Of Course, We are Preparing for This?and Taking into Account All These Threats. We constantly improve?flight security and airport requirements.?And we have a?solution for all of it. "We have solutions to all of the terrorist threats," Andrei Nikitin was quoted as saying by Interfax, Russia's news agency. "We work closely with the?Ministry of Defence, and the Russian National Guard." "I believe we won't allow any disruption to civil aviation." On Tuesday, President Vladimir 'Putin stated that Zelenskiy’s warning sounded as if Ukraine intended to commit "state terror." He said that if this happened, Moscow would find a way to react.
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Hong Kong court refuses to allow Evergrande founder's funds to be used for legal fees
Hong Kong High Court rejected a?request?from an attorney for the founder Evergrande, a Chinese?property?company that is embroiled in a legal saga. The lawyer wanted to use liquidators' funds to?pay HK$1.2m ($153.039) of legal s costs. The liquidators have been fighting to recover $6 billion in dividends, remuneration and bonuses paid to Hui Ka Yan and other former executives. Evergrande, once China's largest property developer, defaulted on the majority of its $300 billion liabilities. The company is now a symbol of the property crisis in China, which has been a drag for years on the second largest economy. Hui, once Asia's wealthiest man, was sentenced last week to life imprisonment by a Chinese court, which confiscated all of his personal belongings. Hui’s?lawyer said to the Hong Kong 'court on Wednesday, that Hui’s legal team didn't have access the the complete Chinese judgment. She also added that she did know how confiscation would affect the Hong Kong proceeding. Hui's lawyer said that Hui was prohibited by the authorities from talking about his assets. Offshore creditors were worried that after the?sentence was passed in China, the confiscation his personal assets could affect their debt recovery as it could complicate liquidation. But Xinpeng Xhu, a Shanghai lawyer at the?Rongying Law Firm said he thought that impact would be limited. In liquidations, he said that confiscations often include assets offshore but that creditors' rights would be protected. Evergrande was ordered to liquidate by the Hong Kong High Court in 2024. Edward Middleton & Tiffany Wong from Alvarez & Marsal were appointed as liquidators. Separately the liquidators have also sued PwC for 57 billion Yuan ($8.5 billion), accusing them of negligence in their auditing work.
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Two injured after blast at southern German train station
German police reported that an unknown object exploded in the early morning hours of Wednesday near a train station?in the southern city of Augsburg. Two passersby, aged 17 and 18 years old, suffered minor injuries. Bavaria State Police said that the explosion occurred in a passageway of a building. They added that two Ukrainians were injured. Police?added hours later that the city's main train station had been?closed following an additional suspicious item being found. Police announced on X that "train services have been suspended." Bild, the news outlet in Germany, reported that the hand grenade was detonated early in the morning in front of an jewelry store. Uncertainty remained about the details of the explosive device, according to a police spokesperson. Augsburg is an important regional transport hub, located about 55 km (35 miles) north of Munich.
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Fuel costs threaten winter forecast, so Ryanair reduces its traffic target
Ryanair, Europe's largest budget airline, cut its traffic target for fiscal 2027 on Wednesday in order to reduce the exposure to unhedged costs of fuel during winter. It also warned that annual profits would fall below their record-breaking level from last year. This move shows how the 'crisis' in jet fuel caused by the conflict in the Middle East has reshaped European aviation. Many'major carriers are either keeping their capacity flat or reducing it before the typically loss-making winter season. Ryanair said that if oil prices remain high through S.27 (summer of 2027), short-haul flights in Europe will 'increase materially, reflecting higher oil prices. Some less well-hedged competitors may struggle to maintain capacity or survive the winter season. Ryanair, one of Europe's most well-hedged carriers, said that 80% of their jet fuel requirements were hedged until March 2027 for about $67 per barrel. The airline reduced its fiscal 2027 target from 216 to 214 million passengers. The airline removed five aircraft in July from its Charleroi, Belgium base and reduced?2 millions seats from its Brussels schedule. Dublin-based 'carrier', who said jet fuel is currently around $140 per barrel, will maintain winter capacity year-on-year to limit exposure to unhedged costs. Ryanair stated that the 'profit after tax will be lower than last year's record levels, but added that it is too early to give a meaningful indication.
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Minister: Putin has renamed the planned "Power of Siberia 2" pipeline as the "Power of Baikal" pipeline.
According to Russia's Energy Minister Sergei Tsivilev, Vladimir Putin has renamed "Power of Baikal", the planned gas pipeline from Siberia to China. He didn't say if other aspects of the project were changed. Tsivilev said that the 'Power of Baikal' project, formerly called 'Power of Siberia 2 but named by Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, was in its final stages of construction. It is estimated that the?2,600 km (1,616 miles) pipeline will carry 50 billion cubic meters (bcm), of gas to China each year from the Arctic gasfields of Yamal. The pipeline would be a complement to the existing Power of Siberia 1 pipe that transported 38 bcm of natural gas from Russia to China in 2013. The 'planned pipeline' has been in limbo for a long time due to disagreements about the 'gas price it will transport. Putin has said that the gas price would be determined by a formula similar to the one used in Russia to calculate the cost for shipments to Europe.
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German police report that the German power grid is under a new sabotage attack
Germany is facing a'second sabotage attack on its electricity grid. Local police said on Wednesday that they are investigating a 'attack on a substation near the city of Bergheim in western Germany. The police are investigating an act that was premeditated on the technical infrastructure on Tuesday at 4:00 pm (1800 GMT), but they added that the power supply in the region has not been affected. The spokesperson refused to specify the damage. On Tuesday, conductive devices damaged power lines in Brandenburg's eastern state. Amprion, the electricity grid operator in Germany, said that it was most likely an external interference that caused the incident that occurred in western Germany. It also stated that grid stability and power supply were maintained throughout. In a separate press release, RWE stated that the incident led it to remove lignite power plants with a combined capacity of 4,200 megawatts from the grid. It said that the affected units at Neurath, Niederaussem and Amprion would be reconnected to the grid in the next few days. German authorities are on alert for possible attacks on vital infrastructure. Berlin blamed Russia on Tuesday for an alleged drone attack that occurred at the Leipzig/Halle Airport last month on a Ukrainian cargo aircraft. A series of?measures were ordered in response. The German electricity grid has suffered attacks in the past, including from suspected left-wing extremists.
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Qatari and UAE LNG cargoes are transferred via ship to ship outside Strait of Hormuz
According to tracking firms, three liquefied gas cargoes that were loaded in Qatar or the United Arab Emirates in recent weeks have been moved 'between' ships outside of the Strait of Hormuz for delivery to India and Japan. Since the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran began on February 28, several commercial vessels have been attacked amid increased tensions along the Strait of Hormuz, a major shipping route. The majority of LNG tankers who have successfully navigated the Strait have delivered their cargoes to the end-buyers. Ship-to-ship LNG transfers, unlike crude oil, are rare. According to Vortexa & Kpler, the LNG carrier GasLog Shanghai completed a STS transfer in late August with GasLog Savannah off the coast of Oman. On July 31, an incident occurred while the GasLog Shanghai LNG vessel was leaving the Strait of Hormuz, with cargo loaded from Qatar's Ras Laffan Export terminal. GasLog Shanghai, as well as GasLog Savannah are both controlled by the Greek shipping company GasLog. QatarEnergy and GasLog have not responded to comments. Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz for most of the six-month conflict. This has disrupted energy supplies and fueled inflation fears. Since the start of the conflict, LNG exports have dropped from the region. This has helped push Asian spot LNG to a five month high of $23.20 for a million British thermal unit (mmBtu), which is more than twice the level before the conflict. Additionally, the QatarEnergy-controlled Al Rekayyat tanker, which was hit by a projectile near the Strait of Hormuz in early July, conducted an STS transfer in mid-August on the east ?coast of the United Arab Emirates, Vortexa and Kpler data showed. Al Rekayyat carried out the transfer of cargo with another Qatari LNG tanker named Tembek. Kpler data showed that the cargo was originally loaded at Ras-Laffan and then delivered by Tembek on August 31 to India's Dahej Terminal. According to Vortexa & Kpler, a third tanker, ADNOC's Mraweh, completed a STS transfer in mid-August with LNG Enugu, off the coast of Oman and outside the Hormuz Strait. Early August, the Mraweh loaded an LNG cargo with Das 'Island before transferring STS to LNG Enugu. Kpler data showed that the LNG Enugu was 'currently on its way to Futtsu in Japan. ADNOC declined comment. BW Group, a shipping firm, and Marubeni, a Japanese trading company, who both own LNG Enugu in a joint venture with BW Group, declined to comment.
Two sailors were killed by Bahri, a Saudi shipping company, in an incident on the Hormuz.
Saudi Arabia's national shipping firm, Bahri?said Wednesday that two Filipino seafarers were killed in a?security?incident on its vessel?SIDR" on August 31, as it was transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.
The company has not disclosed any further information.
The UKMTO maritime security agency reported that on?August 31 a tanker reported being hit by three unknown projectiles as it was leaving the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran has threatened to shut down any tankers that attempt to pass through the narrow waterway without authorisation.
In its statement, the company said that "Bahri is in constant contact with the vessel. It coordinates closely with relevant authorities and industry stakeholders while closely monitoring developments."
Another Bahri vessel had been?hit by the strait a month before. At the time, the Wedyan supertanker was?sailing near Oman's coastline.
After the Iran-backed Yemeni Houthis declared a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia, two other Bahri ships,?AMZAN? and MASA?, were also?attacked? in the Red Sea.
(source: Reuters)