Latest News
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F-16 escorts aircraft out of the area after airspace violation near Trump's Golf Course
The U.S. military released a statement saying that an F-16 fighter jet intercepted on Saturday a general aviation plane that had violated the temporary restriction placed over the golf club of U.S. president Donald Trump in Bedminster in New Jersey. North American Aerospace Defense Command said that the incident occurred at 2:39 pm (1839 GMT) and marked the fifth unauthorised incursion into the restricted airspace Saturday. The jet's identity was confirmed by a spokesperson. NORAD released a press release stating that the NORAD aircraft performed a headbutt maneuver in order to attract the attention of the civilian pilot. The aircraft was then safely escorted away from the area. The White House did not comment immediately on the incident. NORAD reported several similar incidents over the past few weeks and urges general aviation pilots in that area to review all notifications. (Reporting and editing by Alistair Bell; Reporting by Andrea Shalal)
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Mayor of Moscow: Russian air defences shot down four drones heading for Moscow
The mayor of Moscow said that Russian air defences destroyed four Ukrainian drones heading for Moscow on Saturday. One of the main airports in the capital temporarily stopped outgoing flights. The mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, said that emergency services are working on the site of the drones which have fallen but did not give any information about potential damage. In a Telegram report, the Russian Defence Ministry said that air defence units destroyed 48 Ukrainian drones over a five-hour period on Saturday evening. Five drones were in the area surrounding Moscow and two others were heading for the capital. According to the report of the Defence Ministry, the total consisted of 17 drones flying over the Bryansk Region near the Ukrainian border as well as 11 in the adjacent Oryol Region. Belgorod region governor, on the border, said that four Ukrainian drones injured a driver of a bus and a driver of a car. A report from the Defence Ministry stated that 94 drones were destroyed in Russia over night on Saturday, and 45 others within six hours of each other during the day. The Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow reported delays after flights had been temporarily halted. Civil Aviation Authority Rosaviatsiya stated that the measures were taken as a result of "restrictions", over the capital's skyspace, as well as high winds. Rosaviatsiya reported that incoming and departing flights were temporarily halted at airports across Russia, including Pulkovo Airport in St Petersburg, due to safety concerns. (Reporting and editing by Jan Harvey, Diane Craft and Lucy Papachristou)
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Homeland Security reports eight migrants were deported to South Sudan from Djibouti.
The Department of Homeland Security announced on Saturday that the Trump administration deported eight migrants to South Sudan who were held by the U.S. for more than one month at a Djibouti military base. This was after the migrants failed to stop their transfer in a last ditch effort. Two officials at Juba Airport said that an aircraft carrying U.S. citizens deported from the United States arrived in South Sudan Saturday. Unidentified airport staffer said he saw a document that showed the aircraft had "arrived today morning at 6:00am" (0400 GMT). A second immigration official confirmed that the deportees were in the country, but did not provide any further information. He referred all questions to National Security Service. A source from the South Sudanese government said that U.S. officials were at the airport waiting for the arrival of the migrants. The fate of these migrants has become a hot topic in the debate over the legality and effectiveness of Trump's immigration campaign, which involves high-profile deportations of migrants to "third countries", where they claim to be at risk of harm. This issue has been taken to two Supreme Courts. South Sudan is dangerous, even for the locals. U.S. State Department warns Americans not to travel to South Sudan due to violence and armed conflict. The United Nations warned that the African country's current political crisis could rekindle a brutal civil conflict that ended in 2018. Eight men from Cuba, Laos Mexico, Myanmar, Sudan, and Vietnam were deported to South Sudan, according to their attorneys, because it would be a violation of the U.S. Constitution which prohibits cruel or unusual punishment. The Americans had been in custody in Djibouti ever since a Boston federal judge blocked the Trump administration in May from moving them immediately to South Sudan due to concerns about due process. The Supreme Court of Canada on Thursday ruled that additional litigation was necessary following the Supreme Court's ruling. Siding with the Administration Lifting these limits. The courts were closed on July 4th for Independence Day, so two courts heard the emergency requests of the lawyers for migrants on Friday. However, U.S. district judge Brian Murphy said that the Supreme Court's order forced him to deny the request, allowing their deportation. It was not immediately clear where the men were located in South Sudan following their arrival.
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Mayor of Moscow: Russian air defences shot down four drones heading for Moscow
The mayor of Moscow said that Russian air defences destroyed four Ukrainian drones heading for Moscow on Saturday. One of the main airports in the capital temporarily stopped outgoing flights. The mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, said that emergency services are working on the site of the drones which have fallen but did not give any information about potential damage. The Defence Ministry reported that 94 drones were destroyed in the air over Russia on Saturday night, and another 45 between 8am MSK (0400 GMT), and 1350 MSK. The Rosaviatsia Aviation Authority in Russia said that Saturday, the outgoing flights from Sheremetyevo Airport were temporarily suspended before being lifted. They cited "restrictions" on the airspace of Moscow as well as high winds. Rosaviatsia reported that incoming and departing flights were temporarily halted at airports across Russia, including Pulkovo Airport in St Petersburg, due to safety concerns. (Reporting and editing by Lucy Papachristou)
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Liverpool players carry red wreaths to Diego Jota funeral
Diogo Jota, a soccer star from Liverpool, died along with his brother, in a car accident on Thursday. On Saturday, his Liverpool teammates, as well as local residents, attended the funeral in a small Portuguese village. Liverpool's captain Virgil Van Dijk and goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, as well as manager Arne slot, were all present and past teammates who attended the Gondomar service for Andre Silva and the striker. The English Premier League players carried into the chapel two floral tributes, one in the form of a shirt and the other in the colour red. Jota's shirt, worn by Van Dijk, has the number 20 in white flowers. One wore the number 30 worn by Jota, whose brother played in Portugal's 2nd division for FC Penafiel. The teammates entered the church silently, dressed in black with their heads down. The only sound that could be heard was the applause of the crowd. Rute Cardoso arrived with her family. She had married her childhood sweetheart Jota just weeks before the tragic accident. Jota was surrounded by hundreds of Gondomar residents, a small village in northern Portugal, where she grew up. Manuel Linda, Bishop of Porto presided over the private service for close family members and friends. Linda's emotional homily to Jota, his parents, his wife, and their three children said that "solidarity of love is stronger than death". The service was also attended by teammates of the Portuguese national squad, including Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes and both who play in the English Premier League. Jota’s death, at age 28, sent shockwaves through the soccer world and beyond. Condolences poured in from leaders across the country as well as the entire sport. After midnight on Thursday, the brothers' Lamborghini was believed to have veered from the road as they drove to a ferry to Britain. The police suspected that a tyre burst. Reporting by Graham Keeley & Sergio Gonclaves. Mark Potter edited the story.
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Japan braces for more quakes, authorities dismiss doomsday hype
The Japanese government warned on Saturday of the possibility of further strong earthquakes occurring in waters southwest from its main islands. However, it urged people not to be misled by unfounded predictions. Authorities evacuated residents on Friday from islands near the epicenter of a 5.5 magnitude quake that struck off the tip the southernmost island of Kyushu. The quake that occurred on Thursday was strong enough to make it difficult to stand. It was one of over 1,000 tremors that have been recorded in Kagoshima Prefecture islands in the last two weeks. This has fueled rumours that were sparked by a comic-book prediction of a disaster that would strike the country in this month. Ayataka Aybita, Director of the Japan Meteorological Agency’s earthquake and tsunami monitor division, said that it was difficult to predict an earthquake's exact location, time or magnitude with the current scientific knowledge. Ebita said at a press briefing that "we ask people to base their understandings on scientific evidence". Some travellers have avoided Japan because of the manga. The manga has been interpreted by some as a prediction of a catastrophe on Saturday. The latest data shows that arrivals from Hong Kong - where the rumours are widely spread - were down 11% from last May. This year, Japan saw record numbers of visitors. April's record-breaking monthly number of 3.9 millions travellers was a record. Ryo Tatsuki is the artist of the manga "The Future I Saw", which was first published in 1999, and then re-released 2021. In a press release issued by her publisher, she said that she "was not a prophet". Japan is one of the most seismically active countries in the world. About one-fifth (or more) of all earthquakes with a magnitude of 6 or higher occur in Japan. (Reporting and editing by William Mallard in Tokyo, with Tim Kelly reporting from Tokyo)
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CANADA-CRUDE-Discount on Western Canada Select unchanged
On Friday, the discount between West Texas Intermediate and Western Canada Select futures remained unchanged. WCS for August in Hardisty (Alberta) settled at $10.30 per barrel below the U.S. benchmark WTI according to brokerage CalRock. The price was flat compared to Thursday's trading. Due to the U.S. Independence Day holiday, trading volumes were low. Independence Day is a holiday in the United States. The summer and the return to road construction season is a strong season for Canadian heavy crude. This crude is used by U.S. refiners to make asphalt. * The WCS Discount has increased slightly since last week, when wildfires in Canada’s oil-producing areas led to temporary tightening. The price of Canadian crude oil remains historically high, partly due to the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion that increased the country's ability to export oil to Asian markets. The global oil futures market fell slightly on Friday due to low trading volume, as traders awaited the OPEC+ meeting this weekend and anticipated that the member countries would decide to increase their output. Amanda Stephenson reports from Calgary.
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French President Macron announces 'historic' Airbus/Malaysia Airlines deal
French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Friday that Airbus and Malaysia had signed a historic agreement, while Macron was hosting Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in Paris. Macron said that such deals showed the importance of trade between France, Asia and Europe as Europe prepares to face possible tariffs by U.S. President Donald Trump. "I think of the projects that have been signed in key minerals, rare earths, with Carester, which just opened a new factory in Lacq region, transport, with this historic collaboration between Malaysia Airlines, and Airbus and the energy sector," said Macron. This week, industry sources reported that Airbus is close to winning a Malaysia Aviation Group order for additional A330neo long haul jets. Airbus was our main focus. "AirAsia has another 50, and Malaysian Airlines 20," said Ibrahim. (Reporting and editing by Jean-Stephane Brosse)
Maguire: High fossil fuel consumption highlights US power transformation challenge
The United States continues to rely on fossil fuels for its power generation, despite the rapid expansion of clean energy.
According to Ember, U.S. generators have been prioritizing clean energy sources over fossil fuels for the past decade. Since 2014, they have increased clean electricity production capacity by more than 70%, while reducing fossil-fueled capacity by 5%.
LSEG reports that fossil fuels still dominate the nation's power generation, with just over 58% of the total generated in the first eight month of 2024.
This is down from 60.4% in the same month of 2021. It reflects efforts to increase generation using clean energy, as part net zero emission targets.
In absolute terms, fossil fuels have reached new heights in this year's output, as a result of the steadily increasing total energy demand, which is putting strain on all power systems in the country.
In order to keep up with the rapid growth in demand, which is fueled by data centers and artificial-intelligence applications, power companies have had to increase their production from fossil fuels along with clean energy sources. This was despite long-term pledges to reduce reliance on fossil-fuels.
The fossil fuel generation of power generators will be reduced to a significant extent only when clean generation capacity surpasses fossil generation capacity and is complemented with a much larger battery storage system than the one currently in place.
Staying Power
According to LSEG, the total U.S. electricity generation from fossil fuels in the first eight month of 2024 reached 68.6 megawatt hours (MWh). This was an increase of 2.8% over a year earlier and was the highest level since at least the 2021.
The majority of the energy was generated by natural gas-fired power plants, which produced 49.3 millions MWh. This was a 5% increase from January to August 2023 and the highest total ever.
The coal-fired production was down by 2.3% compared to the previous year at 19,1 million MWh. This is the third consecutive decline in coal consumption during the window from January to August.
The oil-fired output was 179.368 MWh. This is a record low.
The industry's efforts to reduce the use of highly polluting fuels are reflected in the steady reductions in coal- and oil-fired power generation.
Ember data shows that the emissions per unit of electricity produced by gas-fired power plants are among the lowest fossil fuels and 77% less than coal-fired generation.
Around 537,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) were emitted in 2024 for each terawatt-hour (TWh), of electricity generated by gas-fired power plants.
This compares with around 950,000 tonnes of CO2 from coal-fired power plants and 700,000 from oil-fired power plants.
CLEAN LIMITATIONS
The emissions from clean energy per TWh electricity are around 21,500 tonnes CO2, which is 25 times lower than the emissions from gas-fired plants.
This sharply reduced emissions profile is one of the main reasons why U.S. government and power companies support clean energy adoption within U.S. electricity generation.
In the first eight-month period of 2024, nuclear reactors will account for approximately 18.6% of the total U.S. generation.
Other major sources of clean energy include hydro dams (6.4%), wind farms (10.7%) and solar farms (5%)
Clean power sources are limited in their current capacities.
Nuclear power plants are the most reliable source of clean energy available, but they have fallen out-of-favor due to their high costs, long development times, and strict regulations regarding waste management.
Hydro dams are also subject to a long construction phase. They can only be used in certain areas and they face fierce environmental opposition.
Solar and wind farms are cheaper and quicker to build, but they have some drawbacks.
Construction costs for onshore wind farms have increased since 2020, mainly due to inflation in labor and parts. They also need to overcome local objections to get the green light. Offshore projects face similar obstacles, but at a higher cost.
Solar parks can be the fastest and cheapest way to generate power, but they only work during daylight hours. They require backup supplies when solar output drops.
The U.S. utilities responsible for ensuring that power is available at all times, regardless of time, rely on fossil fuels in order to meet most of their demand and fill any gaps during periods of windless or sunless weather.
Many utilities are building battery networks to store excess clean energy for later use. This will help reduce fossil fuel dependence in the future.
According to the energy data platform Cleanview, current battery capacity installed is just around 21,000 Megawatts. This is less than 2% total installed generation capacity.
Batteries can only meet a small fraction of the country's power requirements.
Power firms may be forced to continue using fossil fuels as a major source of electricity until batteries are able to reliably deploy more of their generation capacity.
(source: Reuters)