Latest News
-
Russian strikes knockout power in Ukraine
The Ukrainian Energy Ministry reported on Wednesday that Russia had struck Ukraine's power infrastructure overnight with drones, cutting off electricity in several areas, including the central Dnipropetrovsk area. Ukrenergo, the operator of Ukraine's power grid, said that electricity supplies were restricted in seven areas. The majority of these regions are in eastern Ukraine. Naftogaz, the state-owned gas company, said that a thermal plant was hit without naming it. In recent weeks, Russia has intensified its attacks against the Ukrainian energy infrastructure. This includes both gas and power plants. Naftogaz reported that the Russians attacked gas installations three times in the last seven days. These included "critically-important facilities" located in Kharkiv and Sumy regions, as well as Chernihiv. Svitlana Svitnychuk, the Ukrainian energy minister, said in a statement earlier this month that Ukraine Want to Increase After Russian airstrikes against its gas infrastructure, it has increased its gas imports 30%. Reporting by Pavel Polityuk Editing Peter Graff
-
Hungary criticizes EU energy policy in Moscow
Budapest's Foreign Minister said that Hungary would suffer from being cut off from Russian Energy during a trip to Moscow on Tuesday. He reiterated the fact that Hungary will not be influenced by outside forces when making decisions about its energy supply. Peter Szijjarto attended the Russian Energy Week Forum as NATO Defence Ministers met in Brussels for a discussion on military aid to Ukraine. This highlighted Budapest's differences from most other alliance members when it comes dealing with Moscow. Hungary's continued reliance on Russian Energy since Moscow invaded Ukraine has prompted criticism from several European Union allies and NATO members. Szijjarto said to reporters in Moscow that Budapest's national interests were paramount when it comes to energy supply. "We never felt let down by Russia." Deliveries have always been made... Contracts are always honored. "My question is why we should end this relationship", Szijjarto replied. Hungary has rejected plans by the European Commission that would phase out all EU imports of Russian gas, including liquefied gas, by 2027. This deepens a rift between Brussels and Moscow over the relationship with Moscow. Hungary has signed a 15 year deal with Russia in 2021 to purchase 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas per annum. Last year, Hungary increased its purchases from Gazprom, importing 7.5 billion cubic meters of Russian gas through the Turkstream pipeline. Moreover, the country imports a large amount of crude oil from Russia through the Druzhba Pipeline that runs through Belarus, Ukraine and Hungary to Slovakia. JANAF, a Croatian pipeline operator, also transports crude to MOL's Hungarian refineries. Szijjarto stated that "Brussels wants to cut one (pipeline) under the concept of diversification." How can you think that having two pipelines is safer than one? "This is insane," said he. Last month, U.S. president Donald Trump announced that he would ask Hungary to stop purchasing Russian oil. This was part of an effort to pressurize NATO allies into cutting energy ties to Moscow due to its war in Ukraine. Hungarian Premier Viktor Orban has said that Hungary's economy would suffer if it stopped using Russian energy. (Reporting and writing by Olesya Almakhova and Vladimir Soldatkin, Writing and editing by Lucy Papachristou, Anita Komuves and Andrew Osborn)
-
Local police report that 10 people were killed when an oil tanker in Indonesia caught fire.
According to local police, at least 10 people died and 18 were injured when an oil tanker caught on fire in Indonesia's Riau Islands Province early Wednesday morning as it was being fixed. Zaenal Arifin, chief of the local police, said that a fire broke out at a shipyard located in Batam at 4 a.m. (2100 GMT) on Tuesday. Batam is about 20 kilometers (12.4 miles), or by sea, away from Singapore. Arifin stated that MT Federal II caught fire while docked for repairs. The cause of the fire is still under investigation, and the ship did not carry oil. Arifin reported that as of Wednesday afternoon, 10 victims had died, and 18 more were being treated in hospital. All the victims were working on the vessel to repair it. Arifin stated that "some of them were severely injured". He said that he did not know who owned the boat. In Batam, an ill-fated vessel caught fire while being repaired in June. Four people were killed and nine injured. Local police in that case have identified two suspects who they believe violated safety standards. (Reporting and editing by Thomas Derpinghaus; Ananda Teresia).
-
Royal Mail fined $28 Million by UK regulator for failing to meet delivery targets
The UK's telecom and Media regulator fined Royal Mail on Wednesday 21 million pounds ($28,1 million), the largest penalty it has ever imposed on a post and parcel group for failing to meet delivery targets in 2024-25. Royal Mail has tried to modernize its operations in order to increase volumes. Ofcom has also revised some of their targets to avoid delays. Since at least 2007, the group has failed to meet its delivery targets. Ofcom has fined the company 5.6 million pounds in 2022-23, and 10.5 millions pounds in 2023-24. This is their third annual penalty. Royal Mail was not penalized by the regulator during the COVID-19 epidemic. Ofcom warned on Wednesday that Royal Mail will continue to levy the charges unless they improve. In a statement issued by Ofcom's director of enforcement, Ian Strawhorne said that "millions of important letters" are being delivered late and the people are not getting what they paid for when buying a stamp. He added that these failures are "unacceptable". Royal Mail issued a statement acknowledging the decision of the regulator and stating that the changes made to the "Universal Service Model" as part of a pilot program have had positive results. Royal Mail was owned by International Distribution Services. This company became private following its acquisition by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky.
-
The diverting of tankers from a Chinese terminal sanctioned may cause congestion in other ports
According to trading sources, at least five crude oil tankers have been diverted from a major eastern Chinese port after the U.S. imposed a ban on an import terminal on Friday. U.S. sanctions disrupted plans by the country's refining companies to unload cargoes in the port of Lanshan, the hub for refinery activity in Shandong Province. The diverting of the ships could also lead to congestion in alternative ports. This is especially true at Zhoushan located further south, off the coast Zhejiang Province, where multiple ships have been redirected. The U.S. sanctioned the Rizhao-Shihua Crude oil Terminal in Lanshan on Thursday for receiving Iranian crude oil aboard sanctioned vessels. Sinopec Kantons Holding is a subsidiary of Sinopec and also known as China Petroleum and Chemical. According to analysts and industry executives, one-fifth (or a fifth) of Sinopec’s crude oil imports passes through the Rizhao Schihua Terminal. Chinese refiners responded by moving their ships away. Unipec is the trading arm for Sinopec Asia's biggest refiner. Over the weekend, it diverted its Very Large Crude Carrier New Vista to Ningbo or Zhoushan where they are currently waiting to unload their cargo. Unipec diverted a VLCC carrying 2,000,000 barrels of Omani oil to Zhoushan for an arrival date on October 21. Data from LSEG & Kpler confirmed this. Zhoushan, an archipelago located south of Shanghai, is linked to Sinopec’s eastern Chinese refineries by pipelines. LSEG data revealed that two more vessels, the VLCC Spherical, and the Suezmax Fulger which can transport up to one million barrels oil, will also be heading to Zhoushan. A shipping source stated that it's not clear if the Spherical will discharge its 2 million barrels Brazilian crude at Zhoushan, as they are still waiting for orders. Data showed that the Fulger, which is carrying approximately 1 million barrels Egyptian Arco crude oil, will discharge at Zhoushan, on October 19. The charterers of the Spherical & Fulger were not immediately known. LSEG data revealed that the VLCC Habshan chartered by CSSA - the shipping arm for French energy giant TotalEnergies - has changed its destination from Rizhao to Tianjin. It is expected to arrive on October 26. Data from LSEG & Kpler shows that the VLCC carries about 2,000,000 barrels of Congolese Djeno Crude. Sinopec’s largest subsidiary refinery, Tianjin Petrochemical, is located in Tianjin. Sinopec also operates an oil reserve from this city. TotalEnergies and Sinopec didn't immediately respond to comments. Sinopec Kantons stated on Monday that they expect their business to be affected by the sanctions.
-
California Judge blocks efforts to restart Santa Ynez Oil Pipeline
A California judge on Monday sided with state government, and tentatively ruled in favor of the state against Houston-based Sable Offshore’s request to restart a crude oil pipeline that draws crude oil from the Santa Ynez off-shore oil project. The tentative decision of Judge Thomas Anderle at the Superior Court for Santa Barbara County is a major setback for Sable whose entire business revolves around the Santa Ynez Project. In extended trading, its shares dropped over 20% to $14 per share. In May, the company restarted production at one of three offshore platforms that are part of this project. It had been shut down for a decade due to an oil leak under Exxon Mobil's previous ownership. Sable also repaired a subsea pipe that takes crude oil from an offshore platform. It hoped to sell the oil in California, but the California Coastal Commission refused its restart citing problems with Sable’s permits. Sable filed a petition with the Santa Barbara Superior Court, arguing that the Coastal Commission lacked the authority to issue a cease and desist. Anderle's tentative ruling stated that the company had not met its burden of proving the commission abused its discretion. Anderle will conduct an hearing on Wednesday, before making a final decision. Sable will also likely change its marketing strategies for crude oil produced on the Santa Ynez platform. Last week, the company said that delays in the re-start of the Las Flores system would force it to switch to tankers for the transportation of crude oil from Santa Ynez. Sable said that it has asked the federal government to support the tanker route and submitted last week an updated Santa Ynez development and production plan detailing this route to the U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. Shariq Khan, New York; Chris Reese, editing.
-
Spirit Airlines targets a net profit of $220 million in 2027
Spirit Airlines announced on Tuesday that it would fully implement its transformation by the end 2027. By then, the bankrupt airline expects to generate about $220 millions in net profit. In a regulatory filing the discount airline estimated that its adjusted operating losses in 2025 would be $819 million. After filing for bankruptcy a second consecutive time in August, the ultra-low cost carrier has cut its network and fleet size, and is planning to lay off pilots and flight attendants in order to get on a more solid financial footing. Spirit Airlines said that its EBITDAR, a measure for operating performance, is estimated to reach $900 million at the end of 2027. Two furloughs are expected to save the carrier $211 million, of which one has already taken place. Spirit stated that fleet reductions would result in an estimated $400 million in annualized rent savings and a decrease in lease liabilities of over $3 billion. Reporting by Rajesh Kumar Singh in New York and Doyinsola Oladipo; editing by Chris Reese, Deepa Babington
-
Next week, the US Senate Committee will vote on legislation relating to aviation safety.
The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee will vote on aviation safety legislation on October 21, following a deadly January crash between a regional American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter at Reagan Washington National Airport that killed 67 people. The Senate Commerce Committee chair Ted Cruz, along with several other senators, are set to introduce legislation that will require military helicopters flying near civilian aircraft to use ADS-B technology for tracking, and all civilian aircraft to use ADS-B. At the time of the collision in January, the helicopter that was involved did not use ADS-B. First reported the planned vote next week that will mark the first major step toward aviation safety reforms following the U.S. plane accident which killed more than 200 people. Cruz, a Republican senator, has been working with Maria Cantwell, a Democrat, to try and reach a bipartisan agreement before the hearing on legislation relating to aviation safety. Sean Duffy, Transportation Secretary and members of both parties in Congress, has questioned the Federal Aviation Administration's failure to take action for many years regarding close calls with military helicopters near Reagan. Cruz's bill, dubbed ROTOR Act, would also require that the Army Inspector General's Office initiate a safety audit after declining to do so. Cantwell, along with other Democratic Senators, proposed legislation in June requiring an audit of helicopter operations and passenger operations on major airports. The bill also mandated new FAA safety assessments after fatal passenger airline crashes and required ADS-B usage. Cruz's spokesperson said that he had been working with the families of those who were injured in the accident and was committed to making sure this kind of accident never happens again. The spokesperson said that the bill "requires all aircraft, both military and civil, to use ADS-B out and ADSB in and seeks accountability for the Army failures which may have contributed to this crash." In April, the FAA announced that government helicopters would be required to use ADS-B near Reagan National. And in May, the Army was barred from flying helicopters around the Pentagon following a close call. The FAA changed helicopter routes earlier this month at the Baltimore/Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport, and Washington Dulles International Airport in order to "add additional buffer between aircraft" and "increase the separation between helicopters flying into and out from each airport." (Reporting and editing by Nia William and Aurora Ellis; Reporting by David Shepardson)
German energy transition powered mainly by nonrenewable fuel source cuts: Maguire
Germany's power sector is relying on cuts made to nonrenewable fuel source usage for the lion's. share of recent decarbonisation efforts, but will require a. continual jump in clean generation to make sure a long lasting shift in. power production away from contaminating fuels.
German power generators cut fossil fuel-powered output by. 19% through the opening half of 2024 from the very same months in. 2023, data from LSEG programs.
That compares to simply a 2.1% increase in clean power generation. from the first half of 2023, and suggests that power firms are. mainly counting on cuts to nonrenewable fuel source usage to make progress. against energy shift goals.
Those cuts to nonrenewable fuel source use have actually helped slash German power. sector emissions, which amounted to 70 million metric lots of. co2 (CO2) for the first 5 months of 2024 compared to. 88 million lots throughout January to May of 2023, data from think. tank Coal programs.
However slow industrial activity has actually implied that overall. power need overalls are also down so far this year, which has. allowed power suppliers to minimize total generation by more than. 6% compared to the very first half of 2023.
If Germany's production and industrial activity picks up. momentum over the remainder of 2024, overall power requirements might climb. in tow and could put pressure on power providers to increase. output from fossil fuels to satisfy that extra need.
COAL CUTS
Coal-fired generation took the impact of the fossil fuel. output cuts, coming by simply over 17% in the very first half of 2024. from the exact same months in 2015.
To make up for lower coal-fired generation, output from. natural gas plants increased by 5% in January-June 2024 from the. initially half of 2023, while generation from oil-fired plants rose. 12% and coal-derived gas plants increased output by 3.7%, LSEG. data programs.
Entirely, overall generation from nonrenewable fuel sources contracted by. 19% throughout the first half of 2024, and follows a 24% contraction. in the whole of 2023 from the year before.
CLEAN BULK
The drop in nonrenewable fuel source generation has resulted in tidy. source of power protecting a bulk share of Germany's power. generation mix monthly given that December 2022.
The share of tidy power in Germany's power generation mix. reached a new high of 64.6% throughout the first half of 2024,. compared to 59.3% during the same months of 2023 and an average. share of 61% for 2023 as a whole.
That stated, power firms have actually been not able to offset all the. cuts to nonrenewable fuel source usage with development from tidy energy sources,. specifically after Germany shut its national atomic power plant fleet. in April 2023.
Atomic power plants had actually represented around 8% of total power. generation in 2022, so the complete cessation of such a noteworthy. source of tidy energy has actually been tough to replace.
Wind farms have emerged as Germany's largest source of clean. power, and accounted for a typical share of 37% of overall power. generation in 2015, according to LSEG.
Solar is the 2nd biggest source of German tidy power,. and produced around 17% of all power in 2015, while hydro. possessions created around 4%.
SEASONAL SWINGS
During the very first half of 2024, wind power generation climbed. 7.6% from the exact same duration in 2023, while solar generation increased. by 12.8% and hydro output climbed up 5.4%.
Solar output is accountable to climb up further throughout July and. August throughout the height of summer season, and could account for around. 30% to 35% of overall power generation during those months.
However, generation from wind farms and hydro dams. historically dip during the summertime due to slower wind. speeds and lowered water flows from reservoirs.
For power manufacturers who need to keep power supplies. around the clock, the drop off in wind and hydro output may set. the stage for higher generation from natural gas plants,. particularly if German manufacturing activity gets steam.
And any such increase in gas-fired output could in turn open. the German power sector to accusations of backsliding on power. clean-up dedications.
To guard against that in the future, power firms will need. to considerably increase total generation from clean sources. and likewise considerably raise the storage capacity that can. bridge durations of lowered clean generation.
The build-out of a completely tidy power generation system. may take numerous more years and continued high levels of annual. financial investment in tidy generation and battery building and construction.
Up until then, further periods of tidy power growth followed. by flare ups in fossil-fired output look likely.
<< The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a. writer .>
(source: Reuters)