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Portugal's CP purchases 114 electric railcars for $871 Million
Portugal's state owned railway operator CP announced on Friday that it would purchase 117 electric self-propelled railcars for EUR746m ($871m) from the French/Portuguese consortium Alstom/DST, in its largest ever acquisition. In a separate press release, Infrastructure Minister Miguel Pinto Luz stated that the government "bets on the railroad" and that the purchase will address the long-standing delays of modernising CP’s fleet and improve service quality for the growing number of passengers. CP stated that the deal included 118 million euro in co-financing by European funds and 212.5 millions euros from the Portuguese Environment Fund. The first units are scheduled to be delivered in 2029. This will allow "the renewal and upgrade of a part of CP’s fleet as well as the strengthening of its supply capability," the company added. The contract includes also the construction of an rolling stock maintenance shop in the north Portuguese city of Matosinhos.
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Singapore asks UN to defer vote on carbon shipping price as US opposes the measure
LONDON, October 17 - Singapore called on the U.N. Shipping Agency to delay the adoption of a price for carbon on ships to allow time to reach a consensus. This was after the United States, Saudi Arabia and other countries were unable to agree on a deal at the London talks due to strong opposition. Washington and Riyadh - the two world's largest oil producers - have both strongly opposed a price on carbon emissions for shipping in discussions at the International Maritime Organization. The European Union, however, has continued to back the idea. Singapore voted for the carbon tax in the IMO vote in April. EU countries and Brazil asked for a vote to be held on Friday morning. In order to adopt a carbon tax in a vote, two-thirds must agree. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, called on IMO members to vote against it on Thursday, stating on his Truth Social platform, that Washington "will not stand for this new global green scam tax on shipping, and will not adhere to its in any shape, form, or manner." In a note to investors, Jefferies analyst Omar Nokta said that the IMO meeting this week in London "appears on the brink of collapse." Reporting by Enes Tunagur and Jonathan Saul, Editing by Peter Graff
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Asian spot prices slightly rise on cold weather, despite large inventories
The Asian spot price of liquefied gas (LNG), despite high storage inventories, rose this week due to colder weather forecasts for north-east China. Average LNG price for delivery to North-east Asia in December Industry sources estimate that the price per million British Thermal Units (mmBtu) was $11.10, up from $11.00/mmBtu in the previous week. Klaas Dozeman is a market analyst for Brainchild Commodity Intelligence. He said that Asian consumers were showing some interest in buying commodities due to the arrival of the first heating demand and confirmation of La Nina. La Nina - the cooling of temperatures over the Pacific Ocean in the middle and east - could lead to an increase in winter heating needs, but it is unlikely to last long or be very strong, according the expert. Dozeman stated that while Chinese trade data showed modest gains in exports and imports, the underlying economic weakening persists due to falling producer prices. The markets are braced ahead of an upcoming deadline of Nov. 10, for U.S. China trade. Martin Senior, Argus' head of LNG pricing, says that there have been a few spot tenders for spot cargoes, from price-sensitive buyers. However, South Korean demand is particularly weak, as high inventories due to the strong coal burning in recent months has led to import levels of 8-year lows for the first half October. Gas prices in Europe fell on Friday, as wind farms' strong output curbed the demand for gas and supplies were stable. Alex Froley is a senior LNG analyst with data intelligence firm ICIS. He said that spot gas prices have remained relatively stable over the past week. The market, in general, has been on a slight downtrend on the long-term. The weather is a major risk factor for Europe. According to Florence Schmit of Rabobank, the market appears to be repositioning ahead of winter. With EU storage levels below the average for five years and a greater potential to increase gas demand from Ukraine, some upside risks are reintroduced. Seb Kennedy, an independent gas analyst, explained that in anticipation of higher winter prices hedge funds reversed their recent sales in TTF Futures by opening up new long positions. Commercial players, on the other hand, opened new short bets against TTF Futures to lock in future profits from physical inventory. S&P Global Commodity Insights estimated its daily North West Europe LNG Marker price benchmark (NWM) for cargoes to be delivered in December ex-ship on October 16. This represents a $0.53/mmBtu reduction from the December futures prices at the TTF Hub. Spark Commodities rated the October price as $10.440/mmBtu. Argus rated the price at $10.550/mmBtu. Qasim Afghanistan, analyst at Spark Commodities, says that the U.S. arbitrage for north-east Asia through Cape of Good Hope currently points to Europe. The Atlantic region saw the biggest week-on-week rise in LNG rates since June, at $29 500/day. Pacific rates dropped for the eighth consecutive week to $23,500/day. (Reporting and editing by Alexander Smith; Marwa Rashad)
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Sources say that high prices and poor quality are causing Ivory Coast cocoa sales to be slowed down.
Cocoa sales in Ivory Coast halted at the beginning of the 2025/26 harvest season due to a record farmgate prices and low-quality stocks, according to industry sources. On October 1, the top cocoa producer in the world raised its guaranteed price by state to 5,05 CFA francs per kilogram. This was a level that traders said was unusually high. Sources said that the increase in exporters' costs has led them to stop providing funds to buyers for purchases. A Lebanese customer based at the port of San Pedro in the southwest said, "This year no funding was provided as it usually is in August and Septembre." He said that banks also were reluctant to offer financing due to the high risk in the event of an emergency. A LIQUIDITY CRUSH HITS EXPORTERS The commercial director of a firm that exports cocoa in Abidjan told AFP that the cost of a truck transporting 35-40 tons of cocoa is between 98 and 112 CFA francs. This is about $175,156 to $200,179. He said that "nobody has the money at the moment to pay for five to ten trailer trucks per day, especially if the quality of the bean is poor," adding that the company had reduced operations in order to improve quality and preserve liquidity. According to buyers and cooperatives, around 50,000 tonnes of cocoa beans had been stored in anticipation of a price increase. Grinders reject the beans because of their small size, low content of fat and high acidity. A Lebanese independent buyer in San Pedro said, "We did not receive any pre-financing for this year. I wanted to sell the cocoa that I had in my warehouse to get cash to buy new cocoa. But no one was interested." "I have 3,000 tonnes available and until I sell them, I cannot buy anything," said the man. A second Lebanese purchaser based in San Pedro expressed confidence that they would find a way to lower the price or mix old beans with new ones. He has sold 700 tons of cocoa since the beginning of the season, and currently owns 900 tons. Exporters and pod counters said that this year's main crop output is expected to be similar with the season of 2024/2025. They also added that the first harvest will be lower because of unpredictable and mixed weather conditions.
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Bolt CEO: EU must focus more on self-driving cars to keep up with competitors
Bolt, a ride-hailing company and food delivery service in Estonia, said that Europe must pay as much attention as it does to the development of self-driving vehicles to be able to participate in the technology of the future. Europe's automakers are struggling to keep pace with the technology developed by other countries, notably China and the United States. Markus Villig told a group of journalists that "there's so much focus on EVs, but we've missed the point on autonomous driving." It will be the core. The U.S. is a leader in autonomous driving, with companies like Tesla and Alphabet's Waymo, as well as Chinese rivals Baidu, WeRide, and Pony.ai. Waymo has plans to introduce autonomous ride-hailing services in London, next year. Bolt will benefit from the launch "robotaxis", however, Villig said that the European Union must recognize this technology as a strategic one, with implications for security, and should not rely solely on imports. Villig said that the EU spent tens and tens billions on different parts of the EV chain but not on software for self-driving cars. The traditional carmakers may invest some money, but they do not appear to be planning on building their own self driving systems. The EU wants to increase its digital sovereignty by reducing Europe’s reliance on U.S. Big Tech for cloud, network and artificial intelligence services. Villig added that the EU should also avoid allowing foreign companies to enter and crush smaller competitors in their own countries, as has happened in other tech fields. He suggested that upcoming EU players be given subsidies or exclusive licenses to operate robotaxis for a period of time in certain cities or regions to help them build scale. (Reporting and editing by Emelia Sithole Matarise; Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop)
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The Dutch Supreme Court rejects Russia's appeal over Yukos 50 billion payout
The Dutch Supreme Court denied on Friday an appeal from Russia against the $50 billion arbitral award that it was ordered to make to former shareholders of Yukos, now defunct, in 2014. This ruling comes after years of legal disputes in Dutch courts, following the initial arbitration tribunal ruling that found Moscow had violated international obligations by taking measures designed to bankrupt Yukos - formerly Russia's biggest oil company. Yukos was seized in 2006 by the Russian state after the oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky had a falling out with Vladimir Putin. The government demanded billions in back taxes, which led to Yukos' collapse. In 2016, a lower Dutch court ruled against the penalty, only to have it reinstated on appeal. The Supreme Court then referred the case back to the lower court in 2021 to determine whether Russia's claim of false evidence provided by shareholders was incorrectly rejected. Last year, the Amsterdam appellate court dismissed this claim because Russia brought it too late. The Supreme Court said on Friday that it did not see any reason to reverse the ruling of the appeals court. (Reporting and editing by Barbara Lewis and Kirsty Donovan; Bart Meijer, Alban Kacher)
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US and Singapore ask UN to delay vote on carbon shipping price amid splits
LONDON, October 17 - On Friday, the United States, Singapore and Liberia called on U.N. Shipping Agency to delay adoption of a price for carbon on ships. This was after states failed to reach consensus in London during this week's talks. During discussions at the International Maritime Organization, the United States and Saudi Arabia strongly opposed a price on carbon emissions for shipping. The European Union continued to support this idea. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, called on IMO members to vote against it on Thursday, saying that Washington "will not stand for this new global green scam tax on shipping, and will not adhere to its in any shape, form, or manner." Omar Nokta, a Jefferies analyst, wrote on Friday in a note to investors that the IMO meeting this week in London "appears on the brink of collapse". Reporting by Enes Tunagur and Jonathan Saul, Editing by Hugh Lawson
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Brazil's BNDES approves financing of $312 mln for Embraer aircraft exports to SkyWest
In a Friday statement, Brazil's State Development Bank announced that it had approved 1.7 billion reais (312,3 million dollars) of financing for the export to U.S. SkyWest Airlines of 13 Embraer airplanes. SkyWest will pay the financing in U.S. Dollars, BNDES stated, adding that aircraft should be delivered by the end of 2025 or late 2026. SkyWest, Embraer’s largest customer over the past few years, has placed a firm June order for 60 E175 aircraft valued at $3.6 Billion at list price. Options for another 50 jets were also included. Since 1997, BNDES has financed more than $26.7 billion worth of Embraer exports. Its role is to act as a credit agency, promoting the country's export industries and bolstering foreign reserves, while also helping local firms compete on a global scale. ($1 = 5.4440 reais) Reporting by Rodrigo Viga Gaier, Writing by Isabel Teles, Editing by Sarah Morland & Tomaszjanowski
United States peak power pollution season gets underway: Maguire
The month of July kicks off the yearly peak period for power emissions in the United States, as higher nationwide temperatures ratchet up usage of energyintensive air conditioning unit and spur power firms to crank up output from fossil fuels.
The July-to-September quarter has actually marked the quarterly high point for nonrenewable fuel source power output over the previous three years, with fossil-fired generation increasing by approximately 37% from the previous quarter considering that 2021, data from LSEG programs.
Resulting emissions throughout the third quarter of the calendar year have actually leapt by a similar degree, according to energy think tank Cinder, and have once again have actually traditionally scaled their yearly peak throughout the July-September duration.
U.S. power emissions through the very first half of 2024 have currently climbed by 5.2% from the very same period last year, to 790 million metric tons of co2 (CO2) and equivalent gases, according to Coal.
If power companies follow their typical practice and count on nonrenewable fuel sources to plug most of any power supply shortfalls throughout this year's peak need period, 2024's emissions toll will most likely climb even further above last year's total.
GASSING UP
Power companies traditionally depend on gas to supply the bulk of any incremental rise in power use during the 3rd quarter, with gas-fired output rising by an average of 36% because 2021 throughout that time window from the second quarter.
However, coal-fired power generation also tends to climb greatly during the July to September period, and in 2023 increased by more than 50% from the 2nd quarter as power companies had a hard time to meet the higher power consumption throughout that period.
A key driver behind the heavy dependence on nonrenewable fuel sources throughout the height of summertime is the tendency for clean power supplies to hold flat and even agreement a little during that duration.
Clean power generation tends to plunge during the summer due to lower wind speeds at turbine level and minimized hydro dam generation during the driest months of the year.
In 2023, clean power generation expanded by simply 0.4% during the 3rd quarter from the second quarter, LSEG information shows.
In 2022 and 2021, clean generation declined by 4.3% and 1.7%. respectively during that quarter from the previous quarter.
TOUGH CHOICES
The combined track record of tidy power generation right when. total power demand reliably peaks leaves U.S. power firms with. little scope but to improve output from nonrenewable fuel sources in spite of. continuous commitments to decarbonize power production.
Power sector emissions tend to go through substantial jumps. whenever power companies raise the share of fossil fuels in the. total generation mix.
In between 2019 and 2023, typical power sector emissions during. the 3rd quarter have been 532 million heaps, according to. Cinder.
That compares to 401 million tons for each of the other. quarters of the year, and highlights the scale of the. ecological impact from higher nonrenewable fuel source usage.
However, the July to September window is also when the U.S. power system tends to come under pressure from heat waves and. heavy storms that traditionally cluster during the most popular time. of year.
To ensure day-and-night power availability and fulfill greater. baseload requirements from higher commercial and residential. air conditioning system use during summer season, many power systems are. bound to improve general output by whatever indicates required.
Fossil fuels have actually formed the backbone of that additional. power generation over the last few years, and have actually resulted in a jump in. associated emissions which might worsen the climate-warming patterns. that have actually lifted a/c unit need in the very first place.
However if power firms continue to construct out tidy generation. and battery storage capacity at the record pace seen over the. past decade or two, tidy source of power may be able to replace. some fossil fuels in power generation mixes in the years ahead.
<< The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a. writer .>
(source: Reuters)