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Fuel shortages in Russia: Second wave sweeps across the country
According to regional authorities and media, fuel shortages returned to certain regions of 'Russia in August. Local authorities in at least ten regions tightened controls on the sale of motor fuel at petrol stations. On Monday, witnesses reported that diesel fuel was still available in almost all fuel stations throughout the Moscow region. However, gasoline was again unavailable. Fuel?crisis began in May, and by July, it had spread to almost all of Russia. It was caused by the closure of several refineries that were?targeted in drone attacks, and an increase in seasonal demand. The authorities increased fuel supplies on the domestic market by lowering quality standards, banning exports of gasoline and diesel fuel and increasing imports. By the end July, the situation was stabilised and restrictions were removed or greatly eased in certain regions. This respite, however, did not last. Another round of restrictions was prompted by a new wave of drone attacks on oil refineries that occurred in late July and early august. Fuel supplies remain difficult in many regions of the country. The Russian government made this statement in a Friday press release, after energy officials discussed the situation, especially in the Orenburg region, Lipetsk in the Tver region, Krasnodar in the Zabaykalsky Primorsky Krasnoyarsk in the Oryol and Khakassia, as well as in the Krasnoyarsk in the Krasnoyarsk in the Tuva, Khakassi According to data from the exchange, sales of 'gasoline' have dropped by a?average of 20 percent at the St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange compared with the second half July. Hugh Lawson, editor; reporting by Hugh Lawson
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Irish police claim that deadly motorway stunts are being staged to get'social media shares'
Ireland's chief of police has warned that some young people drive the wrong way on motorways "for social media likes" after two recent?head-on collisions?near Dublin. Justin Kelly, the Irish police chief, issued the warning after five male teens died in an early Sunday morning crash, injuring a child and three women in another vehicle who were traveling to Dublin Airport. Police said the teenagers were traveling south on a northbound motorway to the southwest of Dublin. Kelly, in a press release about the incident, said that this reckless behavior was sometimes done for social media likes. The Garda Representation Association, which represents the police officers, has stated that it is a standard practice not to chase a car on the wrong side. John Joe O'Connell?, the association's vice-president, told RTE radio on Monday that men and teenage boys were competing by "engaging in pursuits and going 'the wrong way' down a motorway or dual carriageway, and filming this for likes". Police said that nine people were injured?earlier this year when eight youths drove the wrong direction on Dublin's main outer ring road. (Writing and editing by Helen Popper; Conor Humphries)
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Indian court chides SpiceJet as last-minute lessor settlement forces judgement delay
SpiceJet was criticized by an Indian bankruptcy court on Monday for a 'last-minute settlement' with one of eight aircraft lessors who were due to be ruled upon in their bankruptcy petitions. The court said that SpiceJet wasted time and money, the latest sign financial stress among the country’s fourth largest carrier. SpiceJet was asked by the court whether there would be more deals. One of the National Company Law Tribunal's judges criticised the parties for not disclosing the settlement until the day of the decision. It's not fair." The hearing was held as the legal battles between SpiceJet and the companies that lease its aircraft were about to end with eight bankruptcy petitions. SpiceJet has been under scrutiny since the cases were filed. Even a single bankruptcy petition could trigger a court-supervised process where an independent professional would take over control of SpiceJet while creditors consider a restructuring. The judges of the tribunal said that'substantial time has already been spent on hearing arguments and preparing judgements, but they agreed to delay the judgement until tomorrow after the parties requested time to present the settlement agreement. A STRUGGLING Airline Under Intense Pressure The court then considered whether this development would affect seven other SpiceJet cases of insolvency that were due to be decided but for which no settlement had been reached. The lawyers for some other lessors asked the court repeatedly to make its decision. Kevic Setalvad, representing the lessor Alterna Aircraft, said: "They're taking risks and playing fast and loose." SpiceJet didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment. SpiceJet, India's once?second largest domestic airline, has cut flights, grounded planes and delayed pilot salaries as it struggles with a financial crunch following years of losses?and legal disputes. In June, its domestic market share dropped from about 15% to 1.9%. It has received $15.69 million under a government-backed program to stabilize operations. However, pressure from aircraft lessors continues. SpiceJet was served with a payment default notice by at least two lessors this year. Two entities owned 'by the leasing arm of China’s?ICBC' sought to deregister the four Boeing 737 MAX planes leased to SpiceJet.
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US railroad Union Pacific made money by charging fuel costs spikes from the Iran war to cover their charges.
U.S. railroad Union Pacific made $91.1 million in fuel surcharges more than it paid out for fuel during the second quarter. This is according to an?company filing at the Surface Transportation Board, first reported by. These excess surcharges increased Union Pacific's profits, despite criticisms from shippers who believe that the surcharges are excessive. The only U.S. transport companies to report fuel costs as well as fuel surcharge revenues to regulators is railroads. This rare insight provides insights into how fuel surcharges improve company profits. Union Pacific has said that its fuel surcharge increases are in line with industry standards. STB filings revealed that only Norfolk Southern,?CSX, and?CSX had surpluses of $3.6 and $8.4 millions, respectively, in the second quarter. Union Pacific stated that fuel surcharges were a part of the total cost they negotiate with their customers. They also take this into account when choosing Union Pacific. Union Pacific reported last month that fuel surcharges increased earnings by 14 cents per share for the second quarter. According to the number of shares outstanding, this amounts to $83.2 millions in profit. NORFOLK NORTHWEST MERGER Union Pacific has applied for regulatory approval to acquire Norfolk Southern, a $85 billion company. The aim is to create the first railroad operator in the United States. The Stop the Rail Merger Coalition includes six state attorneys-general, rival railroads, labor unions, agricultural and chemical industry group, and other groups. They claim that creating a railroad which has a 50% share of the domestic rail freight market would reduce competition, and increase shipping costs, ultimately affecting consumers. The coalition didn't immediately respond to an inquiry about the surcharges. In a STB filing made this month, BNSF-owned by Berkshire Hathaway said that only Union Pacific would benefit from the proposed merger. The company noted that the resulting firm "will have all the incentives and opportunities to apply UP’s long-standing high-price strategy on a nationwide scale." BNSF declined comment. Fuel surcharges are applied by the U.S. Transportation Industry using benchmarks like the Department of Energy's On Highway Diesel Fuel Price and a proprietary formula known as a "trade-factor." Surcharges are a long-standing practice that has survived legal challenges and regulatory scrutiny for decades. "Rail Fuel Surcharges Overall are Up 43 Cents per Mile Since March, and Now Sit Above the Previous?Record From September 2008" It's not a mistake, said Kyle Henzel. President and Chief Operating Officer at shipping platform Ship.com. The lag between the fuel price and surcharges on railroads is usually two months. The March fuel surcharge for this year, for instance, was based off the January diesel prices, before the Iran War began. Union Pacific's STB filing showed that in the first quarter it collected fuel surcharges of $607.6 millions, which was $34.8 million more than what it had paid for fuel. Union Pacific's fuel costs were $56.4 million higher than the surcharge revenue in both the first and second quarters. Union Pacific is the only major railroad that reported fuel surcharges exceeding fuel costs in the first half 2026. Union Pacific and BNSF compete to dominate the western United States. STB filings show that BNSF surcharges for the first half of this year were $658.1 million less than fuel costs. The company's STB documents showed that Union Pacific generated $2.3 billion in fuel surcharges last year. This was $48 million more than the fuel it purchased. (Reporting and editing by Timothy Gardner; Sabrina Valle, Lisa Baertlein; Additional reporting by Lisa Baertlein)
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L'IMAD, the Abu Dhabi wealth fund, plans to buy AD Ports in its entirety
L'IMAD, the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, announced on Monday that it plans to buy out AD Ports Group. L'IMAD owns 75.42% of AD Ports' shares through its wholly-owned subsidiary ADQ. It is now looking to purchase the remaining capital by way of a conditional voluntary cash offer at 6.25 dirhams for each share. According to calculations by?' calculations. AD Ports shares rose by nearly 15% to 5.86 dirhams at 0745 GMT on Monday morning, bringing them closer to the offered price. L'IMAD, one of Abu Dhabi's wealth funds, is chaired?by Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled Bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. According to Global SWF, it has an estimated $300 billion of assets under management. AD Ports which operates ports across the United Arab Emirates, and in other countries, announced last week that it has continued to increase alternative multimodal trade routes in order to combat the effects of the Iran war which led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. ADQ stated in a separate Monday filing that the offer made on Monday would allow AD Ports to "pursue its long-term strategy objectives more effectively", which includes capital investment programs and strategic acquisitions. ADQ said that L'IMAD expected AD Ports' would require equity raises. It added that recent transactions, and the resulting increased financial leverage levels, will likely limit its ability to distribute dividends. L'IMAD stated in the statement "sufficient resources are available to ADQ for the payment of cash to AD Ports shareholders as per the terms and conditions of the offer." Rothschild has been appointed as the financial advisor for the tender.
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Data shows that Vietnam has received its first direct cargo of diesel from India in eight years.
According to shiptrackers and traders, Vietnam received its first direct shipment of diesel from India's Reliance Industries via traders in 8 years, after the removal of fuel import taxes facilitated the trade. Vietnam'removed import?taxes for all fuels in March. This was a policy aimed to widen its supply pool, as shipping risks arising from the U.S. - Iran conflict forced buyers to look beyond their usual suppliers. According to shipping data and two trade sources, around 70,000 metric tons of transport and industrial fuel was loaded onto the Panamax tanker Magic Victoria at Reliance’s refinery in Jamnagar. The cargo was discharged from the Van Phong Terminal in Khanh Hoa Province operated by Petrolimex?on August 14-16. It wasn't immediately clear who had sold the cargo to Petrolimex. Reliance and Petrolimex did not respond immediately to requests for comment. Kpler ship tracking data revealed that some barrels of India origin were transported to Vietnam in March via a ship-to ship transfer between the Strait of Singapore, Malacca and Singapore. Analysts?said that by opening its market to other suppliers, Vietnam enabled India to increase fuel exports, and to capitalise on their position as a swing supplier to markets east and west from Suez. India's supply?also helped to cap cash premiums in Asia for 10-ppm gasoline at $5-$6 a barrel, despite fears about tightening supplies in markets west of Suez. LSEG and Kpler'shiptracking' data revealed that Vietnam imported most of its diesel last year from South Korea, and other parts of Southeast Asia. Another trade source stated that it's?still more lucrative for India-origin cargoes to go to markets west of Suez instead of Southeast Asia. (Reporting from Trixie Yap, Hanoi, and Khanh Vu; editing by Alexandra Hudson.)
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Sources say that the new pipeline between Syria and Iraq is still many years away.
Iraq's plans for a 'pipeline' to transport oil through Syria in order to avoid future disruptions to the Strait of Hormuz would likely take four years to build and cost $15 billion, according to sources familiar with the project. U.S. officials and energy executives have billed the plan as part of an effort to reduce the industry’s dependence on the Strait of Hormuz, which has been closed largely by the Iran War. The initial feasibility study is being funded by a consortium that includes Chevron. Over the next two-year period, the Strait will become irrelevant. Last week, U.S. Treasury secretary Scott Bessent stated that the strait would become irrelevant. Bessent stated that "more than 50 or 70 percent" of these exports will be shipped via underground pipelines. Two sources involved directly in the project said that the pipeline between Iraq and Syria would take double the time due to the need for a new infrastructure. Due to the sensitive nature of the issue, both sources requested that they not be identified. NEW INFRASTRUCTURE TO REMOVE OLD WAR-DAMAGED PIPES Iraq is one of the most affected countries by the Hormuz closure. According to SOMO, the state-owned oil company, it exported approximately 3.6 million barrels per day prior to the war. This was mainly via Gulf terminals near Basra. However, in July, only 35.5 million barrels were shipped through Hormuz. The pipeline connecting northern Kirkuk in Iraq to the Mediterranean port in Banias, Syria already exists. However, it was badly damaged by the wars in Iraq or Syria and is not regularly used since 1980. Both sources stated that the plan would cost at least 15 billion dollars and require the construction of a completely new pipeline rather than repairing the existing one. One source said that while a large part of the new pipeline will run along the same Kirkuk to Banias route, sections intact of this pipeline are incompatible with the newly developed specifications, and therefore would not be usable. Second source: The project will include a completely new integrated crude oil pipe system linking Iraq's southern fields and northern fields with a central hub at Haditha, in western Iraq. It would then continue to Banias. The U.S. welcomed the "rehabilitation" and reconstruction of the pipeline. It said it would have an initial transport capacity 2 million bpd crude oil. This would require a significant expansion of the capacity of the old pipe, which was about 300,000 barrels per day. That is less than a 10th of what Iraq exported via the Strait of Hormuz prior to the Iran War. Iraq has restarted its oil exports via pipeline from the Kirkuk fields to Turkey's Ceyhan Port with a targeted capacity of 250,000 bpd. Both sources stated that work on the Iraq to Syria pipeline would take 'around four years. One added, however, that this timeline could also be affected by the need to clear old infrastructure as well as acquiring new land rights from Syria’s?new government. A NEXT POSSIBLE "ACCESS TO THE MARKET" BUT STUDIES ARE STILL REQUIRED Syria and Iraq signed separate memorandums with a consortium made up of U.S. giant Chevron, TI Capital, and Qatar's UCC Holding for technical and financial study in preparation for this project. The Iraqi oil ministry and state-owned Syrian Petroleum Company have not responded to requests for comments on the project, the timeline and cost estimates of the sources. UCC Holding and TI Capital did not respond immediately to comments. Chevron referred to an earlier statement regarding the preliminary agreement, and stated that it does not comment commercial details. A?Chevron executive stated at a press conference last month that the project would offer "another route to the?market" via the Mediterranean. The executive stated that any pipeline must also connect to Iraq's southern fields, West Qurna 2 & Nassiriya. Chevron has entered into negotiations to join these fields. Chevron has not yet completed technical studies that will determine if the existing Iraq-Syria Pipeline needs refitting or expanding, according to the executive. The company hasn't yet provided estimates on the future export capacity of the project. The executive stated that "normally, when it comes to pipelines, there is not 100% capacity on the first day."
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The Gulf markets are easing as Iran tensions and the Hormuz shipping disruptions take a toll
Early trade in the Gulf markets was subdued on Monday as stalled U.S. - Iran diplomacy revived concerns of a 'prolonged Middle East Conflict,' while reduced traffic along the Strait od Hormuz exacerbated 'concerns about energy supplies & trade flows. Tensions remain high after Iran urged Washington on Saturday to "accept defeat", while U.S. president Donald Trump called Tehran "very Evil" and warned Americans to be prepared for high fuel prices. Shipping through the strategic waterway was severely disrupted because there were no significant progresses in peace talks. Trump said that he will soon declare the Strait o?Hormuz as a U.S. Territory. Saudi Arabia's benchmark index fell 0.2%. This was due to a 0.5% drop in Al Rajhi Bank, and a decline of 0.5% at oil giant Saudi Aramco. According to a post made on X, the Civil Defense of the kingdom announced?on Sunday? that there was no danger in Jazan Province. The alert had been issued earlier to warn residents of the potential danger. Qatar's benchmark stock index fell 1% in Qatar. Almost all of its constituents traded in the negative zone. Qatar National Bank, which is the Gulf's largest lender, declined 1.8%. The weekend following the tanker attacks last week saw a marked slowdown in shipping activity. Kpler data revealed that five cargo vessels passed through the waterway on Saturday and none on Sunday. This compares to 31 vessel transits during the previous weekend. Dubai's main stock index fell 0.1% with the top lender Emirates NBD falling 1.3%. The index in Abu 'Dhabi was up by 0.1%. This was largely due to a 14.9% increase in Abu Dhabi Ports, after the wealth fund L'IMAD announced plans to take this firm private. L'IMAD has announced that it will make a conditional offer for the remaining shares of?AD Ports at 6.25 dirhams each.
Sources say that Russia's Black Sea Novorossiysk Port resumes oil loading after drone attack
Two trading sources reported that the main Black Sea oil terminal of Russia, Novorossiysk, resumed its operations on Sunday following a Friday drone attack.
Sources said that a Suezmax class tanker had been loading Kazakh KEBCO crude since Sunday. It was due to depart on Monday. One of the sources stated on Monday that another tanker will begin loading 80,000 tonnes of KEBCO crude oil on Tuesday.
Novorossiysk is capable of handling?around 700,000. barrels per day. It can load Russia's Urals and Siberian Light grades as well as Kazakh KEBCO. The Sheskharis Terminal, the port’s main oil export facility, is where loadings are done. The port loads fuel, grain and other goods.
According to one source, a tanker that was scheduled to load crude oil at the port on Friday morning left the port for the open sea after the drone attack. The port halted crude loadings after the drone attack and stopped accepting oil at the terminal due to the fact that storage tanks had reached their capacity.
The short shutdown highlights the vulnerability of Russian energy infrastructure which has been repeatedly targeted by Ukrainian drones in recent months.
The Novorossiysk Port, which includes both Sheskharis (Sheskharis) and Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminals (CPC), is also a crucial?transit route? for Kazakhstan.?Kazakhstan relies on Russian Infrastructure to export KEBCO and CPC blend oil grades to the global market. (Reporting and Editing by Susan Fenton).
(source: Reuters)