Latest News
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Cold storage REIT Lineage trims personnel, WSJ reports
Cold storage property investment trust Family tree Inc is cutting staff after a blockbuster initial stock offering in the U.S. in 2015, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, pointing out a company declaration. The Novi, Michigan-based company did not disclose the number of tasks or types of roles impacted by the layoffs, according to the report. Lineage did not right away respond to a Reuters request for remark. Lineage, backed by personal equity firm Bay Grove Capital, debuted last July at $82 per share, above the offer cost of $78. each, offering the company an appraisal of $19.2 billion. It had raised $4.45 billion in its U.S. initial public. offering, making it the greatest stock market launching internationally in. 2024. The company deals with food and drink companies such as. Kraft Heinz, Darden Restaurants and Walmart. for the storage, managing and motion of frozen and. disposable food all over the world.
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US airline industry lobbying group chief retiring at end of year
The longtime head of the trade group Airline companies for America who assisted U.S. airline companies win $ 54 billion in federal COVID relief funds will retire at the end of the year. Nick Calio, a former assistant to President George W. Bush, has headed the prominent airline company lobbying group considering that 2011 that includes American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, FedEx and Southwest Airlines . He has actually likewise promoted more funding for air traffic controllers and coped the Biden administration over regulative efforts. Congress approved $54 billion in 3 rounds covering much of U.S. airline company payroll expenses for 18 months during the pandemic. Calio also safeguarded airlines' actions to survive as passenger traffic dropped. In 2015, Calio urged the Biden administration to take swift action to attend to a long-standing air traffic controller lack and obsolete centers and technology. Business as usual isn't sufficing, Calio stated in a speech in Washington in 2015. It is an immediate problem. It's easy to overlook perhaps on a day-to-day basis, however we need to come up with a strategy to address it. President Joe Biden and Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg have actually consistently sparred with airline companies, while Airlines for America and some providers last year encouraged a U.S. appeals court to obstruct USDOT's brand-new guideline on in advance disclosure of airline company fees pending a full evaluation. The Federal Air travel Administration is still about 3,000 controllers behind staffing targets and has about 10,600 licensed controllers. In June, the FAA once again extended cuts to minimum flight requirements at overloaded New york city City-area airports through October 2025, pointing out a shortage of air traffic controllers. Airlines have effectively combated against many propositions in Congress over the last few years, including one to need sensible. baggage charges, a mandate for airline-caused delay settlement or. another that might seriously damage the lucrative airline credit. card service.
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UN Shipping chief: Unregulated tanker fleet poses greater risks
The head of United Nations' shipping agency, said Tuesday, that the safety risks posed to seafarers and the environment by unregulated oil tanks are increasing. The shadow fleet is a term used to describe hundreds of ships that are being used to transport oil by Russia, in violation with international sanctions imposed against it due to the Ukraine War, and by oil exporters like Iran and Venezuela, who have been hit by U.S. sanction. Since the United States announced its new sanctions package, Jan. 10, at least 65 oil tanks have anchored in multiple locations this week, including near the coasts China and Russia. Arsenio Dominguez, Secretary General of the International Maritime Organization(IMO), said at a press conference that the risk of environmental impact and safety of seafarers is increasing as the shadow fleet increases. We can see this in the different incidents and accidents that have occurred. Dominguez said that he could not comment on the sanctions but his main concern was about old tankers which "put people onboard and the environment at risk". "The more ships look to... avoid the IMO requirements, we will experience situations like those we experienced in the last half of 2024." In recent months, there have been several incidents of collisions with shadow fleet vessels and their breakdown. Dominguez stated that an IMO meeting will be held in March to follow up on a 2023 resolution aimed at enhancing the scrutiny of ship-to -ship oil transfer in open waters - a risk often associated with shadow fleet tanks which conduct such transfers without regard for safety. He also said that he met with smaller countries which provide flags for shadow fleet tanks. To ensure that commercial ships comply with international safety and environmental standards, they must be registered or flagged with a specific country. Sources in the shipping industry say that many smaller flag registries do not enforce compliance regulations and sanctions. Dominguez stated that "substandard shipping... has been on the agenda of IMO for many, many years." (Reporting and Editing by Ros Russel)
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Colonial shuts pipeline due to prospective fuel leakage
Colonial Pipeline, the biggest improved products pipeline operator in the United States, said on Tuesday it was responding to a report of a potential fuel release in Paulding County, Georgia which one of its mainlines was briefly shut down. Teams were on the scene coordinating reaction efforts, the business stated. The pipeline that was shut was Line 1, which transfers about 1.5 million barrels of fuel a day and runs from Houston to Greensboro, North Carolina. It is one of Colonial's 2 mainlines that connects Gulf Coast refineries with markets throughout the southern and eastern United States through more than 5,500 miles (8,850 km) of its pipeline system. Colonial Pipeline did not offer information on the estimated period of the blackouts. The U.S. Department of Transport Pipeline and Hazardous Products Security Administration (PHMSA) did not instantly react to a request for remark. Paulding County Constable's Office stated there was no notice to 911 relating to a gas leak.
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Iraq, UK agree on trade bundle worth approximately $15 billion, defence deal
Iraq and Britain have actually concurred on a trade package worth up to 12.3 billion pounds ($ 14.98. billion) and a bilateral defence deal, the Iraqi and British. prime ministers stated in a joint statement on Tuesday. The offer, imagining more than 10 times the overall of. bilateral sell 2024, was revealed after a meeting in between. Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and British. equivalent Keir Starmer at the latter's Downing Street workplaces. It includes a 1.2-billion-pound job in which. British-made power transmission systems will be utilized for a grid. interconnection task between Iraq and Saudi Arabia, too. as a 500-million-pound plan to update the Al-Qayyarah air base. in northern Iraq. A water facilities project by a UK-led consortium. that will assist provide tidy water in dry southern and western. Iraq is likewise part of the offer, the statement said. The project. would be worth approximately 5.3 billion pounds in UK exports. Sudani and Starmer also signed a defence offer that. establishes the basis for a new period in security cooperation. Sudani said earlier that the UK-Iraqi security deal would develop bilateral. military ties after in 2015's statement that the U.S.-led. coalition established to combat Islamic State would end its work in. Iraq in 2026. The Iraqi premier started a main visit to the United. Kingdom on Monday in the middle of historical geopolitical shifts in the. Middle East. Iraq is attempting to avoid becoming a conflict zone as soon as. once again amid a period of regional turmoil that has actually seen Iran's. allies Hamas degraded in Gaza and Hezbollah damaged in Lebanon. throughout wars with Israel, and Bashar al-Assad fell in Syria.
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Jordan purchases estimated 60,000 T wheat in tender, traders say
Jordan's state grains purchaser acquired about 60,000 metric lots of difficult milling wheat to be sourced from optional origins in a worldwide tender on Tuesday, traders stated. It was thought to have been purchased from trading house CHS at an estimated $267.60 a heap cost and freight (c&& f) for delivery in the 2nd half of March, they said. Reports show assessments from traders and further price quotes of prices and volumes are possible later. Traders reported these estimated deals from some other trading houses participating in Tuesday's tender, all per heap c&& f: Cargill $275.50, Viterra $286, Al Dahra $276, Aston $280,. Buildcom $273.27, Olam $275.50, Ameropa $269.94 and Cereal Crops. $ 300. Traders stated they received indications that Jordan will. concern a brand-new tender in the coming days to purchase 120,000 lots of. wheat. Offers are expected to be submitted on Jan. 21, with. shipment in the full month of April and complete month of May. A different tender from Jordan seeking 120,000 tons of animal. feed barley closes on Wednesday.
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Private equity financier Adebayo Ogunlesi joins OpenAI's board
ChatGPT maker OpenAI said on Tuesday private equity veteran Adebayo Ogunlesi, who is presently the CEO of Worldwide Infrastructure Partners (GIP), has joined its board. Ogunlesi, 71, will be encouraging OpenAI on securing access to the infrastructure needed for advancing its synthetic intelligence advancement, OpenAI said in a statement. Established in 2006, GIP is a PE company focusing on infrastructure that handles more than $100 billion in possessions and has a portfolio including Britain's Gatwick airport, the Port of Melbourne and significant overseas wind projects. BlackRock acquired GIP last year for $12.5 billion. AI facilities has actually been front-and-center in the AI race, as technology companies' capability to advance their AI is directly based on their ability to shore up massive calculate infrastructure, through specialized information centers that connect thousands of chips together in clusters. In 2025 alone, huge tech firms consisting of Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta and Apple are projected to spend over $200. billion on capex-- practically double of what they paid out in. 2021, the year before OpenAI's generative AI chatbot ChatGPT. debuted. In recent months, OpenAI has been pushing the U.S. federal government to embrace helpful policy that will allow the. U.S. to remain ahead of China in the race for the nascent. technology. There's an estimated $175 billion being in global funds. awaiting investment in AI jobs, and if the U.S. does not. draw in those funds, they will flow to China-backed. jobs-- enhancing the Chinese Communist Celebration's international. impact, the company composed on Monday in a set of policy. proposals.
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Brazil says Meta hate speech policy modifications do not fit with local law
Brazil's federal government stated on Tuesday it is seriously concerned about Meta Platforms' recently revealed modifications to its hate speech policy, adding that it thinks they do not adhere to the nation's. legislation. Facebook owner Meta last week reduced curbs on conversations. around controversial subjects such as immigration and gender. identity, while also ditching its fact-checking program in the. United States. The Brazilian government bought the social media company,. which likewise owns Instagram and Threads, to describe its strategies,. which President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had formerly identified. very serious. Meta in a letter to the South American country reiterated. that changes to the fact-checking program for now would just. use to the U.S., and stated that modifications to its community. standards were limited to the hate speech policy. The relocation, the company included the document shared by. Brazil's federal government, was focused on securing higher liberty of. expression. The workplace of Brazil's lawyer general (AGU) in a separate. declaration stated that some aspects of the Meta document trigger the. federal government severe concern, highlighting the changes to the. hate speech policy, which use to Brazil. AGU and other ministries understand that the present terms. of usage, along with the changes now informed by Meta, do not fit. with Brazil's legislation and are not sufficient to safeguard. basic rights, it added. Brazil will hold a public hearing later today to discuss. the topic with professionals.
Texas, California top United States power sector's battery pipeline: Maguire
California and Texas lead the nationwide charge on gridscale power sector battery systems, accounting for 72% of the battery networks presently in operation and around 65% of the battery advancement pipeline.
California has the largest footprint of currently deployed utility batteries, with approximately 9,920 megawatts (MW), according to the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA). Texas has the next biggest power battery system, with 4,832 MW.
In overall, 29 states currently release 20,521 MW of battery systems within their power networks, and an extra 28,600 MW remains in advancement and expected online by mid-2026, according to energy information platform Cleanview.
TOTALLY CHARGED
Grid-connected utility batteries allow for state energy providers to save surplus power during times of high output, such as when solar output peaks and pushes total generation levels above system need needs.
Power companies can then release the batteries during peak usage periods, which makes sure that energies can make complete usage of renewable power output and fulfill system need peaks with power that was partially generated at other times of the day.
Utilities with extensive battery systems can also utilize them to displace power from fossil fuels, consequently assisting to lower power contamination even as they raise general power supplies.
The California Independent System Operator - the state's. primary electrical energy service provider - presently products around 17% of its. electrical power from batteries during the evening peak need. duration, according to energy information platform gridstatus.io.
That share of electrical energy supply surpasses the share of. California's wind farms and hydro dams over the exact same period, and. has permitted utilities to reduce power imports.
FOCUSED POWER
When the prepared battery systems are finished in 2026, the. nationwide battery network will more than double from its existing. scale to around 49,110 MW.
Texas will surpass California as the leading battery state once. its pipeline of 12,425 MW is brought online, bringing the. state's total to 17,257 MW.
California's 6,071 MW of planned capability will lift its. overall battery network to 16,000 MW, guaranteeing those two states. keep a roughly 70% share of the overall battery network after. the advancement pipeline is completed.
GROWTH MARKETS
Arizona, Nevada and Florida are the next biggest states in. terms of currently released power battery systems, boasting. around 1,813 MW, 1,125 MW and 561 MW of capability, respectively.
Arizona likewise has among the biggest battery pipelines, of. 2,616 MW, which will lift the state's total capacity to 4,430 MW. when total and make sure the state stays the third-largest. power battery user.
South Carolina and New York City have the next largest battery. development pipelines, of 1,881 MW and 1,178 MW, respectively.
Idaho, New Mexico, Utah and Nevada all have planned capacity. additions of over 400 MW, EIA information shows.
An extra nine states have 100 MW or more in. advancement, and five states have in between 50 MW and 99 MW. prepared.
Altogether, 31 states have some battery capability planned for. their power networks within the next two years.
NO REVEALS
Presently, 19 states have no scheduled battery systems in. advancement, consisting of Pennsylvania, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa and. Kentucky.
A few of those power systems are extremely powered by. fossil fuels, such as Kentucky's, and so produce little to none. renewable power that requires storage.
Others, such as Iowa, source over half their overall. electrical energy from renewable sources, and have a growing network. of gas peaker plants that supply power whenever there's a. supply-demand mismatch.
Overall, nevertheless, battery systems look set to end up being. significantly popular across a bulk of states, especially as. costs continue to trend lower while overall electricity and. power demand increases.
The expense of a 20-foot direct present (DC) battery container. that can keep around 3.7 megawatt hours (MWh) of power for 4. hours has actually nearly cut in half between 2022 and 2024, according to. consultancy Tidy Energy Associates (CEA).
Grid-scale battery systems are priced by the kilowatt hour. ( kWh), or the quantity of power or electricity that can be. discharged over an hour.
In 2024, the average price for U.S. energies is around. $ 148/KWh for a 20-foot container system. That compares to around. $ 270/kWh for the same unit in 2022, according to CEA.
If costs continue to rapidly decline in the coming years,. that will make them cost effective at scale for a growing variety of. energies, and most likely make them commonplace within large power. systems within the next decade.
The opinions revealed here are those of the author, a writer. .
(source: Reuters)