Latest News
-
Malaysia Aviation Group to report $12 Million Net Profit in 2024
Malaysia Aviation Group (Malaysia Airlines' parent company) reported on Thursday a net income of 54 million Ringgit ($12.24million) for the 2024 financial period. Malaysia Airlines is still struggling to recover two deadly disasters In 2014, the airline temporarily reduced its capacity by 18% last year after it was You can find out more about it here The Malaysian civil aviation authority found several safety and maintenance problems. Izham Ismail, MAG's managing director, told a press briefing that despite the capacity cuts the passenger traffic remained strong in the premium segment. Both the passengers and the cargo segments had higher load factors. MAG stated that the capacity reductions in the fourth quarter 2024 are due to supply chain disruptions which have extended maintenance times and delayed new aircraft deliveries. Malaysia Airlines was delisted from the stock exchange in 2014. Khazanah Nasional, a sovereign wealth fund, then acquired ownership of MAG. In 2023, MAG reported its net profit after tax and interest since the 2015 restructuring. MAG is constantly growing and upgrading its fleet. Last month, it was said that Would buy Boeing will sell 18 737 MAX 8, 12 737 MAX 10, and an additional 30 jets with the option of purchasing more. Izham stated that MAG is committed to replacing its aging fleet but operational disruptions remain a challenge. He said that "global supply chain disruptions, and delivery delays, have affected the pace." The MAG Group includes Malaysia Airlines, Firefly and Amal, a pilgrimage airline. ($1 = 4.410 ringgit) Reporting by Danial Zahar, Writing by Lisa Barrington, Editing by Kim Coghill & Gerry Doyle
-
Vietnam boosts power capacity with $136 billion plan
The government announced late Wednesday that Vietnam plans to increase its installed power generation capacity from 80 GW to between 183 and 236 Gigawatts (GW) by 2030. This is an increase of more than 80 GB at the end 2023. In a press release, the government announced that the plan would focus on the development of renewable energy and include nuclear power for the first. The Southeast Asian nation, an industrial hub in the region, wants to increase its capacity for electricity production to support its rapidly growing economy and achieve its carbon neutrality pledge by 2050. According to the PDP8 plan, solar power will make up 25,3%-31,1% of total installed capacity in 2030. Onshore and nearshore winds will represent 14,2%-16,1%. The report said that coal-fired plants would account for between 13.1%-16.9%, hydropower will be 14.7%-18.2%, and plants using natural gas liquefied will make up 9.5%-12.3%. The government stated that the country aims to have its first nuclear plants in operation between 2030-2035 with a combined capacity of 4.0 GW - 6.4 GW. The goal is to reach 6 GW-17 GW offshore wind power between 2030 and 2035. Investors have been concerned by the authorities' announcement of a retroactive adjustment to preferential pricing for solar and onshore-wind energy producers. According to the statement, Vietnam will need $136.3 billion in total investments for 2026-2030, which includes $118.2 for new power plants, and $18.1 for its grid. (Reporting and editing by John Mair, Alan Barona and Francesco Guarascio)
-
Railroad operator CSX misses quarterly estimates as coal revenue falls
CSX, the railroad operator, reported revenue and profit for its first quarter below Wall Street expectations on Wednesday. Gains in intermodal revenue were offset by a drop in coal revenue as well as a fuel surcharge. The demand for coal has been hindered by the switch to natural gas, which is cheaper. However, this trend will change now that President Donald Trump signed an executive order earlier this month to increase coal production. In a press release, CEO Joe Hinrichs stated that "CSX experienced operational challenges at the beginning of the year which contributed to results in the first quarter not meeting our expectations". The volume of intermodal shipping (which involves more than one means of transporting goods) increased by 2.1% during the third quarter. However, coal dropped 8.5%. LSEG data shows that the company's revenue for the quarter ending March 31 was $3.42 billion, below the $3.47 billion analysts had predicted. It reported a loss of 34 cents, which was also below the 37 cents expected. CSX’s operating margin was down to 30.4% for the third quarter, from 36.3% a year earlier. After-hours trading showed that shares of the Jacksonville-based company had a slight decline. (Reporting and editing by Maju Sam in Bengaluru, Anshuman Shetti and Utkarsh shetti from Bengaluru)
-
Cosan's Edge imports Argentinean gas to Brazil via Bolivia
Edge, a Brazilian conglomerate owned by Cosan, announced on Wednesday that it had imported Argentinean natural gas to Brazil via Bolivia for the very first time. The operation was carried out in partnership with Tecpetrol Argentina, which produces 25 millions cubic meters of gas daily in the country. The volumes were not disclosed by either firm. This operation is a follow-up to the first import by Brazil using Bolivian infrastructure. TotalEnergies export gas from Argentina's Vaca Muerta shale to Brazil's Matrix Energia earlier this month. The two operations made use of the existing infrastructure for gas pipelines between the three countries. This has raised hopes that Brazil will start receiving more volumes from Argentina, as it develops Vaca Muerta. Ricardo Markous, CEO of Tecpetrol, said that Vaca Muerta has a lot of potential. "There's a big opportunity. And transport capacity expansions have been planned and are in progress," Markous stated. Edge, which is involved in gas trading as well as infrastructure and logistics projects within the segment, will be supplying gas from Argentina. (Reporting and writing by Leticia fucuchima, Editing by Margueritachoy)
-
Pipeline operator Kinder Morgan misses first-quarter profit estimates
Kinder Morgan, the U.S. operator of pipelines and terminals, narrowly missed Wall Street's expectations for its first-quarter profits on Wednesday. This was due to a decline in its pipeline products segment and increased costs. The energy industry is bracing for the impact of U.S. president Donald Trump's tariffs against most Canadian and Mexican imports. These include levies on imports of steel, "reciprocal tariffs" on other nations as well as falling oil prices. Kinder Morgan, however, left its profit forecasts unchanged because it continues to bet on a rise in the demand for natural gas. The terminal operator said that tariffs will not have a major impact on the project's economics. Kim Dang, CEO, said: "We started efforts to mitigate potential impacts early in the third quarter by preordering key project components, negotiating cost caps, and securing local steel and mill capacities for our larger project backlog, which represents two-thirds our project backlog." The first-quarter adjusted earnings at its Products Pipelines segment fell by 5.8%, to $274M, due to the planned 10-year turnaround of a petroleum condensate treatment facility on the Houston Ship Channel, as well as the lower oil price. Kinder Morgan's operating costs increased to $3.1 billion from $2.62 in the first quarter of last year. According to data compiled and analyzed by LSEG, the Houston-based company posted an adjusted profit per share of 34 cents for the three-month period ended March 31. This was lower than analysts' estimates of 35 cents. Reporting by Vallari Shrivastava, Bengaluru. Editing by Alan Barona.
-
Siemens Energy increases outlook after exceeding forecasts in second quarter
Siemens Energy raised its outlook on Wednesday for the current financial year. It cited a strong performance across all its business areas, which provide equipment and service to the global energy industry. The group expects to increase sales by 13-15% in 2025 compared to 8-10%. The free cash flow before tax is expected to be around 4 billion euro ($4.55 billion). Siemens Energy cited a "positive development in business" without giving more context. The second-quarter profit of Siemens Energy before special items grew more than five times to 906 millions euros. This is a margin that beat the consensus by 9.1%. The company that manufactures and services wind and gas turbines, power grids and electrolysers, among other equipment, benefits from the surge in global demand for electricity, a trend driven partly by data centres required for AI technology. The news led to a 2.6% increase in the price of the Frankfurt-listed shares, which are scheduled to release the final results for the second quarter on May 8.
-
Algeria purchases about 540,000 T of wheat at tender, traders report
Initial assessments by European traders indicate that Algeria's state grain agency OAIC purchased approximately 540,000 metric tonnes of milling wheat at an international auction which closed on Tuesday. Estimates of the volume purchased ranged up to 600,000. They reported that the average purchase price was between $267 and $267.50 per metric ton, including freight. Most traders estimate $267.50 per ton. The reports reflect the opinions of traders, and it is still possible to estimate prices and volume later. Algeria usually buys much more than 50,000 tons. Wheat can be supplied from any approved origin. The traders initially thought that the majority of the wheat they purchased would come from the Black Sea area, namely Ukraine, Romania, and Bulgaria. Initial reports did not include purchases of French wheat. Traders claim that a diplomatic rift in France and Algeria has led the Algerian grains agency OAIC, to exclude French wheat and trading firms from its tenders. Wheat was requested for shipment from two main regions, including Europe: June 1-15 & June 16-30. The shipment date is one month sooner if the wheat comes from South America or Australia. Reporting by Michael Hogan, Hamburg; Sybille De La Hamaide, Gus Trompiz and Kirby Donovan in Paris.
-
Port of Corpus Christi records its highest ever Q1 throughput
Port of Corpus Christi reported on Wednesday that it had recorded the highest first quarter ever for freight movements through its shipping channel by 2025. This was due to increased oil and LNG shipments. For the first time, the port and its clients moved more than 50 million tonnes of cargo through the Corpus Christi Ship Channel. The Port of Corpus Christi, the third largest port in the United States in terms of total waterborne tons, is strategically located on the western side of the Gulf of Mexico and serves as a major gateway for international and domestic maritime trade. The Port of Corpus Christi reported that crude oil shipments totaled 33,4 million tons in Q1 of 2025, while LNG volumes accounted for 4.3 million tonnes. Dry and break bulk commodities also saw increases, with Q1 tonnage increasing by 5% compared to a year ago. The final phase of Corpus Christi Ship Channel Improvement Project, expected to be completed by mid-2025, is currently in progress. After completion, the port expects the project to improve waterways on the Gulf Coast from Texas to Florida with a 54 foot-deep and 53-foot-wide vessel channel along with additional shelf space for barges. (Reporting by Sarah Qureshi in Bengaluru; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
The German LNG import terminals
Since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022, Germany has sought to import liquefied gas (LNG), to replace Russian gas piped to Germany.
The first step was to deploy floating storage units (FSRUs), which receive seaborne LNG. Longer term, it planned shore-based regasification facilities and terminals to import and manufacture ammonia and clean hydrogen.
Here are the latest updates:
MUKRAN
Gascade's OAL pipeline supplies the terminal on Ruegen Island in Baltic Sea with LNG.
The private operator Deutsche ReGas began a three-month bid round on April 4 to expand Mukran’s long-term capacity for regasification by offering 5 bcm extra per year between 2027 and 2043.
ReGas currently only uses the FSRU Neptune of Norwegian operator Hoegh at Mukran. ReGas had cancelled a second FSRU in February due to low utilisation.
ReGas said that it is struggling to compete with the fees offered by DET, the state-owned Deutsche Energy Terminal GmbH, to attract cargoes to terminals in the North Sea, which are more west-lying and under DET's supervision, while German LNG sales are generally slow.
It also stated that it would stick to its plans of restarting a 2nd FSRU, and restoring Mukran’s full capacity (13.5 bcm per year) by 2027.
LUBMIN
ReGas signed a 2024 agreement with Hoegh to convert the Baltic Sea port (a precursor of Mukran) into an ammonia/hydrogen terminal.
Hanseatic Energy Hub took a final decision in 2024 to invest in a terminal that is ammonia ready and will be located at the Elbe River inland port. The terminal should start operating in 2027.
The terminal will cost approximately 1 billion euro ($1.09 billion).
The employment of the FSRU Energos Force, which was to last until 2027 before the onshore terminal starts operations, has been delayed until further notice. This is because DET and HEH have cancelled their contracts after they could not resolve disputes over construction schedules and payment.
WILHELMSHAVEN
Utility Uniper launched Germany’s first FSRU operations, Wilhelmshaven 1 on the North Sea in 2022.
Uniper has plans to build a 200-MW electrolyser that will be powered by local wind energy and a land based ammonia reception terminal.
DET has stated that there are plans to build a second FSRU in Wilhelmshaven, but it did not specify a date for commissioning.
BRUNSBUETTEL
Brunsbuettel FSRU began operations in 2023 along the North Sea Coast. It was initially chartered by RWE and operated by its trading arm, before being handed over to DET.
The facility is a precursor to a land-based Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) plant that has been approved for 40 million euro of state assistance.
The terminal could begin operations by the end of 2026 when an adjacent ammonia facility, which was recently inaugurated, could also be operational. $1 = 0.9147 euro (Reporting and editing by Vera Eckert, Aidan Lewis and Jason Neely).
(source: Reuters)