Latest News
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Dutch public transport stopped by strike over welfare cuts
A nationwide strike on Wednesday against the government's proposal to cut welfare spending halted public transport in The Netherlands. A 24-hour strike affected train services in the entire country, including international trains to Belgium, Germany France and Britain. The strike was organised by the unions against plans to reduce welfare spending up to EUR6.5billion ($7.6billion) annually, mainly through limiting unemployment benefits. The strike is a further obstacle to the centre-right minorities government that was installed in this year's parliament. The coalition is in need of outside support, as it lacks a majority. The opposition's leading left-wing Pro Party has joined the unions to demand that any proposals for welfare cuts be removed from the table. To gain support, the government has already backed down from a plan that would have raised retirement age. Last week it also agreed to soften some other proposals. The Pro party, however, has stated that this is likely not enough and will be requiring 'further negotiation after the official presentation of government budget on 15 September.
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Merz: Drone attack on airport by Russia prepared for by Merz narrowly avoided disaster
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated on Wednesday that an attempted drone attack at Leipzig/Halle airport?had been 'prepared in Russia for a long time and a disaster had only just been avoided. Merz, a member of the lower house of parliament, said that this attack had been 'planned in Russia over months' and was targeted specifically at Germany. It was only by chance that major material damage was prevented and harm to people was avoided. Merz made his remarks after the far right Alternative for Germany won a major state election 'in Saxony Anhalt' on Sunday. The platform of the party included?calls for a closer relationship with?Moscow. Russia has denied any involvement in the drone incident at Leipzig Airport, and its foreign minister said that these accusations are "the start of a real war".
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Ivory Coast cocoa producers struggle to use the new traceability system
Ivorian cocoa buyers, traders and cooperatives are struggling to implement a new national traceability system that was introduced in advance of upcoming European Union regulations banning the importation of commodities produced on land recently deforested. Exporters say that problems with the system may slow down purchases and deliveries for the season 2026/27, increasing the risk of disruptions in supply through November. Ivory Coast exports?about 40 percent of the world's cacao and disruptions in its exports could affect cocoa prices. From January 1, 2027, the EU's antideforestation regulations will be in effect and require that commodities like cocoa are fully traceable to their origin. From the start of 2026/27 on September 1, all purchases of cocoa must be made using an electronic producer card. The card allows cocoa to be tracked throughout the supply chain and is verified that it meets?the EU sustainability requirements. The Coffee and Cocoa Council has been promoting the new system for months, but today we find that many people are still unaware of how to use it. The main problem is that buyers, co-operatives and agents on the ground haven't yet mastered?new digital tools for purchasing and tracking," stated a director of a European export firm in Abidjan. Exporters reported that many cooperatives and agents still had not received the equipment. This was slowing down deals in rural cocoa growing areas. Our suppliers do not have payment terminals, bags or seals for rural purchases. "The CCC did not provide all the equipment needed, which is prolonging purchasing times and causing delays in deliveries," said the director of another European export company based in Abidjan. The CCC announced that it had finished setting up payment terminals, and was now distributing equipment in accordance with the previous season's purchases. It claimed to have purchased 20,000 new terminals. CCC Director Yves Brahima Kone admitted that there were some problems, but said they weren't serious. We expect that sales will pick up in the future, and we will work out any problems that arise. We'll be there in a few months.
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Fire disables several merchant ships in the Gulf of Oman and Gulf of Qatar
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said that several merchant vessels?in northern Gulf?and Gulf?of?Oman?were hit by disabling?fire during military activity overnight in the area. The UKMTO, a British-affiliated organization that is closely associated with the?navy, said it could not confirm any 'casualties' or?environmental impact. UKMTO also reported another incident, 'on Wednesday, 24 nautical mile from Port Rashid in the United Arab Emirates. The report said that a vessel?was sighted listing at anchor, possibly as a result of an attack from an unknown projectile. U.S. Central Command forces attacked five Iranian crude oil tanks on Tuesday after two days of?attempted rocket attacks against a U.S. Navy ship. Iran's Revolutionary Guards announced on Wednesday that they had attacked two U.S. vessels in the Gulf and eight oil tanks as a response to U.S. attacks?on Iranian tankers. The Guards claimed that the 10 vessels had attempted to cross an area of the Strait of Hormuz they described as being "prohibited" and "unsafe".
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Airports continue to warn about the impact of air traffic disruption on flights in the UK
After a major failure in air traffic control, flights from British airports were resumed on 'Wednesday morning. However hubs warned it would take time before operations returned to normal. The shutdown that lasted for hours on Tuesday resulted to the cancellation of over 1,000 flights, leaving hundreds of thousands of passengers stranded. This has increased pressure on NATS, a provider of air traffic control, and Martin Rolfe, its boss. Ryanair, Europe’s largest airline, has already asked him to resign because of his role in the August 2023 system meltdown, when cancelled flights cost operators PS100,000,000 ($135,000,000). Heathrow Airport near London said that operations had'restarted' and passengers should contact their airline to confirm the schedules as they may have been altered due to Tuesday's problems. In a press release, the UK's busiest hub stated that it expects knock-on effects as crews and aircraft reposition. "We understand how frustrating this situation can be and... we are working closely with our local NATS team, and airline 'partners' to restore normal operations as soon as possible." London Gatwick is Britain's second-busiest airport and advises passengers to contact their airline first. Ryanair reported that around 150,000 passengers were affected by the outage after it cancelled more than 200 flights. British Airways said it cancelled or diverted 100 flight with tens and thousands of people being impacted.
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Portugal will use all available tools to protect refining capacity during the Galp-Moeve merger
Luis Montenegro, Portugal's Prime Minister, said that the government was monitoring merger talks between the?Portuguese Oil Company Galp and Spain’s Moeve. The government will use every tool available to protect Portugal's strategic refining capability. Moeve and Galp began talks in January to create two joint ventures - one that would operate 3,500 fuel stations in the Iberian Peninsula and another that would combine Galp's refineries?in southern Sines with Moeve refineries in southwest Spain's Huelva & Algeciras. Moeve will hold the majority of?the refining company, one of Europe's largest, while Galp will retain just over 20%. Montenegro announced late on Tuesday that the government has been closely monitoring negotiations "from the first day to safeguard Portugal's refinery capacity". They described it as an issue of sovereignty, strategic security and energy. He told the parliament that "we will not refrain from?using?the full range of action available to government as a shareholder, and through its regulatory authority." Portugal, which has had a law in place since 2014, to protect strategic assets, including those in energy, and the state owns approximately 8.4% of Galp, is the only country that did not specify what tools it could use. Even though the government has no direct veto, it can use its leverage to seek assurances about the future of the refinery, which is the only one in the country.
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Dangote's proposed Kenyan refinery faces challenges, including crude supply
Aliko Dangote, a billionaire, has set his sights on replicating the project that launched Africa's largest oil refinery, in Nigeria, less than three years ago. But the construction of his company's planned new 700,000-barrel-per-day Lamu refinery in Kenya promises to bring a whole new set ?of issues -- not least where to secure crude supply in ?a country that, unlike oil-rich Nigeria, currently has no commercial output. Plans are changing rapidly. Discussions about Dangote's East African Refinery centered on Tanzania until April. Dangote said to the Financial Times that he would prefer the refinery be located in Mombasa in Kenya. However, in July an executive stated it would be constructed in Lamu. This deep-water port is critical for the refinery’s success. The company hopes to finish the refinery before 2030. It will hold a groundbreaking at the end this month. Aliko Dangote said that he expected it to cost between $15 billion and $16 billion. The project will test whether the model which helped Nigeria become a fuel exporter and a country with less crude oil supplies can be replicated in a region that has a lesser energy infrastructure. Devakumar Edward, vice-president of Dangote Industries said that there are no challenges to be overcome in terms of regulatory, financial and feedstock issues. It has been previously stated that the company believes this project will improve regional fuel supply as well as energy security. Brendon Verster is a senior economist with Oxford Economics. RAISING CAPITAL In July, a company executive stated that Dangote Group intends to finance the Kenyan Refinery using internal cash flow and?bonds. Dangote plans to launch the largest ever IPO for Africa, a Lagos refinery. Dangote, if he follows the Lagos playbook, could add his own equity to a mix that includes commercial bank loans, and development finance institutions like Afreximbank. The company has already announced other major expansion plans. On Monday, it said that it would spend $14.3billion to double the capacity of its Lagos facility. Analysts say that Dangote is already pursuing multiple oil-related project and that securing funding could be a problem. Kaase GBakon, a former petroleum economist with the state-owned Nigerian Oil Company NNPC, said that raising capital for Lamu would be a challenge, given the group's goal of obtaining?40 billion dollars (including Lamu), between 2025 and 3030 for the announced energy projects. Dangote also suggested that East African nations like Rwanda, South Sudan and Tanzania could each take a 30% equity stake. This would create a new funding source and tie the governments to the project. However, no specific details were given about potential deals. CRUDE SOURCES According to Kenyan reports, the chief economist of Kenyan President William Ruto said that, in terms of feedstocks, the plant would be able to secure a daily crude oil supply of 600,000 barrels from East Africa. This includes South Sudan, Uganda and Kenya. None of these sources are simple. Kenya has oil reserves that have been proven but it has taken years to start production. The prospect of a crude pipeline connecting South Sudan's oil fields, whose exports have been disrupted due to insecurity in Sudan, with Kenya's Lokichar Basin and Lamu Port is still a long way off. Maximillian Ezeude is an oil and gas lawyer from Lagos who told us that South Sudan exports go through Sudan while Uganda barrels are sent to Tanzania via EACOP. Ezeude stated that "This leaves the coastal facility reliant on an unstable international seaborne market". The Middle East is the nearest major source of seaborne imports, and the Iran War is disrupting exports. The refinery is located in the Lamu Port - South Sudan - Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET), a special economic zone near Lamu Port. Lamu Port currently does not have any operational oil storage terminals. The LAPSSET corridor project provides for oil storage facilities at Lamu that can store between 1 and 1.5 million barrels of oil, as well marine loading facilities that can handle vessels of the Suezmax class. This infrastructure is still largely unbuilt. PROJECTS WILL ENGENDER GROWTH, SAYS PRESIDENT The refinery could also have an impact on?Lamu Old Town, located on Lamu Island. This is a World Heritage Site 10 km (6 miles), from Lamu Port. Greenpeace Africa also called on the project to stop due to concerns over habitat destruction and marine degrading. Kenya's Ruto said that the country, whose one refinery was shut down by Essar Energy of India?in 2013, believes the new plant can eliminate costly fuel imports. According to official figures, it spent $4 billion (511,5 billion Kenyan Shillings) on petroleum last year. Ruto, speaking of the Lamu Project, said: "We must make decisions that will change and transform our country." Benjamin Oluwatobi Ajayi is an energy analyst in Lagos. He said that the challenge posed by the project was "substantial". He said that the execution risk was increased by the size of the required debt, the ESG-related constraints on financing, the competition for capital between multiple projects and the need to coordinate many lenders and stakeholders in a short time frame.
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ENOC executive: Costs of oil vessel transit through Hormuz increased after the Iran war
An executive of Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC), said that the cost of oil vessel transit through the 'Strait of Hormuz has increased significantly since the Iran war. This is due to a sharp increase in the costs of cargo insurance and 'additional war risk premiums. According to ENOC?director Paul Bradshaw, cargo insurance now represents a significant percentage of the value being shipped. "I've seen up to 6%." Bradshaw said at the APPEC Conference that this could mean an additional $10 million in cargo insurance. There is a higher premium for transits. Bradshaw explained that the rates for attempting to escape used to be zero, but now they can reach up to 10% of the cargo. He said that transit costs have risen to $10 to $20 million and that some market participants have decided to not insure. In order to better control costs and voyages, more national oil companies have taken back control of their shipping operations. Bradshaw stated that some NOCs have taken on their own ships to have greater control in times of conflict. He said that only a small number of shipowners were willing to take on the risk for safety reasons. The 'Iran war' has caused disruptions around key chokepoints, causing cargoes to be moved onto more complex and longer routes. This has affected the freight economy and vessel availability.
Saudi Arabia lifts alert for southern city after Houthi strike
Saudi Arabia's Civil Defense lifted the alert they had issued in the southern city Khamis Mushait on Wednesday. A day earlier, Houthi attacks in Khamis Mushait and?three other cities nearby injured 73 people and ignited?oil? installations.
On Tuesday, Yemen's Houthis who are aligned with Iran struck an airbase at Khamis Mushait as well as oil infrastructure in nearby cities. This was one of the largest attacks on Saudi Arabia since the U.S. and Israel launched their war against Iran in February.
Saudi authorities have not provided?details' for the reasons why Wednesday's alert was issued in Khamis Mushait.
The fighting between Saudi Arabian and the 'Houthis' has intensified in recent months. This has raised fears that a wider conflict will return after a truce brokered by the U.N. in 2022, which largely ended years of war.
Saudi Arabia is the leader of an Arab coalition backing a government based in Yemen’s south that was forced out of Sanaa 12 years ago by the Houthis. The conflict is now a part of a wider regional war. Both Saudi Arabia and the Houthis are close allies with Iran.
In July, the Houthis announced a naval blockade in the Red Sea against Saudi Arabia. This prompted the Saudi-led Coalition to attack?what they said were Houthi Military Facilities in Yemen.
Saudi-backed Yemeni forces launched an offensive in recent days on Houthi-held territories after the group tried to advance against government positions. The government claims it is aiming to recapture the entire Houthi-held area.
Al Masirah TV of the Houthi group, citing its health ministry, reported that Saudi airstrikes on Yemen's Al Jawf in the last two days had killed at least '21 people. Saudi Arabia has neither announced nor confirmed that it is carrying out attacks?there.
Saudi Arabia described the Houthi attacks as a dangerous escalate, and the Saudi-led coalition said they would take steps to prevent further attacks. The Houthis claim that their attacks are a response to Saudi Arabia's escalation of violence in Yemen.
(source: Reuters)