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Vale, a Brazilian miner, will more than double its fleet of iron ore carriers equipped with sails
Vale intends to more than double its fleet of iron ore carriers equipped with a'sail'. The technology will be expanded to at least twenty vessels in the next three-year period, which will reduce the Brazilian miner’s exposure to the volatility of marine fuel prices. According to Vale's General Manager for Shipping, Rafael Fischer, the spinning cylindrical sails can save up to 10% on fuel depending on the vessel. The mining industry has seen a significant increase in freight costs during the war with Iran. Fischer said aboard one of the vessels equipped with sails, docked at the Tubarao Port in Espirito Santo. Vale has eight vessels equipped with sails. This is the result of Vale's decade-long focus on reducing emissions and improving efficiency, which has helped the company to be somewhat protected as the Middle East conflict has driven up the price of oil products. Vale is concerned about fuel costs, since it ships iron ore primarily to China where Australian suppliers compete with it. Fischer explained that "we have a geographical disadvantage in comparison to our competitors. We are using innovation as a tool to mitigate this effect." ETHANOL-POWERED SHIPS Fischer said that Vale is not only adding sails to its vessels, but also allowing them to be fuel flexible. It announced earlier this month a 25-year contract with China's?Shandong Shipping Corporation for the construction and operation of two of the first transoceanic vessels powered by ethanol. The ships can also run on conventional bunker fuel or methanol, with future conversion options including liquefied?gas and ahmonia. Fischer said, "In the future we will be able to choose from at least five different fuels. This gives us flexibility to adapt to changing situations and market conditions." (Reporting and writing by Fabio Teixeira, Editing by Joe Bavier.)
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Netomi, a startup that provides AI-based customer service, raises $110 Million
The chief executive of technology startup Netomi revealed this week that the company has raised $110 million through a Series C funding round led by Accenture. Netomi, founded a decade or so ago, uses artificial intelligence for customer service at companies such as United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and DraftKings. CEO Puneet mehta spoke on the sidelines on Tuesday of the Momentum AI Summit in New York. Recent improvements in large language models, such as those that run?ChatGPT, have raised expectations about how well bots can resolve customer issues without the need for a human representative. Mehta stated that Netomi, a California-based company, uses AI models from OpenAI's Anthropic, Alphabet Google and OpenAI. Netomi was able to answer questions more precisely via the United Airlines mobile app, for example, "Can I?sit with my dog on the exit row?" he explained. Mehta stated that customers "don't go there for items of low complexity," Mehta. "We are focusing on items of at least medium complexity," Mehta said. Netomi’s valuation was not determined after the funding round. Justin Wexler, general partner of WndrCo, stated that the company had raised over $160 million in funding since its foundation. Jeffrey Katzenberg, WndrCo managing partner and media entrepreneur, has joined the startup's board as part of its Series C round. Accenture also has a partnership in place with Netomi. Wexler stated that hundreds of 'Accenture' employees will be trained to use Netomi's technology in order to help customers implement improved AI service agents. Wexler said that Adobe Ventures has also invested in the Series C. Adobe and Netomi are working together to add AI to the websites running on Netomi's platform. Mehta stated that Netomi employs about 170 employees and will use the extra capital to invest both in research and in deployments for customers. He said the company hopes to deploy AI-based agents that take proactive actions and preemptively resolve customer issues. (Reporting and editing by Thomas Derpinghaus, Juby Babu, Jeffrey Dastin)
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MARA buys Ohio gas plant operator Long Ridge at $1.5 billion to expand beyond bitcoin
MARA Holdings announced on Thursday that it would 'buy Long Ridge Energy & Power for $1.5 billion, including debt. This is a major step in the bitcoin mining company's efforts to reposition itself as a digital energy and infrastructure company. It is one of the biggest companies in the world that mines and holds bitcoins. Now, as AI advances and demand increases, it has shifted its focus to digital infrastructure. MARA's previous focus on cryptocurrency is complementary to its revised strategy. However, it is looking more to energy assets in order to have enough power to develop data centers. IDEAL ASSETS FOR NEW STRATEGIES This evolution has been accelerated by the acquisition of Long Ridge Energy. The company said that Long 'Ridge owned a 505 megawatt natural gas combined cycle power plant in Hannibal Ohio as well as 1,600 acres of contiguous land on which MARA planned to build a data centre powered by the plant. Fred Thiel, MARA's Chief executive officer, said that the campus "has all the components we need for an ideal data center campus". He noted that the data center was a highly efficient facility due to the fact that it was built in 2021. The land had already been approved for industrial use. Thiel stated that MARA has already received interest from several?potential tenants. These include hyperscalers, firms which provide massive cloud computing capacity. He said that the company anticipates having a tenant lined up around the time of the closing. The closing of the acquisition is anticipated to be later in 2026 depending on regulatory approvals, including those from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Assets that provide instant cash The $1.5 billion transaction includes an assumption of existing debt of $785 million and the Long Ridge assets generate annualized earnings of $144 million. MARA will have cash in hand before the project's contributions. Thiel stated that MARA's ownership of Long Ridge would not affect the amount of power Long Ridge provides to retail customers. There are growing concerns in the United States over the impact of data centers on the grid. The PJM transmission area, where the plant is situated, is considered to be the most vulnerable.
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India's Adani Enterprises reports a fourth-quarter loss, hurt by the depreciation on some assets
India's Adani Enterprises, the flagship company of Gautam Adani, a billionaire who leads the conglomerate, announced a?fourth-quarter loss? on Thursday. The depreciation in some of its newly commissioned assets was the main cause. The company reported a net loss of $23.27 million in the quarter ended March 31. This compares to a profit last year of 38.45 billion rupees. The company stated in its filing that the fourth-quarter results had been impacted by depreciation of recently commissioned assets at the copper and 'Navi Mumbai' plant. Adani Enterprises fourth-quarter EBITDA (a measure of operating profit) rose by?3% year-on-year, to 43.46 trillion rupees. Revenue from operations increased by?20.3%, to 324.39 trillion rupees. The firm's earnings were boosted by a one-time influx of 39.46 billion rupees in the previous quarter? from the sale of a stake it held in a consumer goods venture with Singapore's Wilmar.
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Low industry activity in India has led to a fall in truck rentals
The Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training said that truck rentals in India fell by 4% to 5% in April, after a 9% - 10% decline in March due to the Iran war and a lack of supplies in the main manufacturing hub. * The IFTRT reported a drop of between?15 to 20% of the cargoes that are sent from manufacturing hubs. This is especially true for?small and mid-sized enterprises, which?accounts for?70% or more of intra and interstate cargoes It said that increased arrivals of summer fruits, vegetables, and pulses boosted the agri-logistics market by 20 % - 25 %, leading to capacity shifting to wholesale markets to offset industrial freight losses. * IFTRT stated that although local diesel prices?have not been raised, truck?tyres have increased by 4%-5%?in the past 4 to 6 weeks?,?increasing the operational expenses of fleet owners? (Reporting and Editing by Louise Heavens, Nidhi verma)
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Bangladesh to switch from Airbus to Boeing for jets
Bangladesh is set to sign an agreement?on Thursday?to buy 14 'aircraft?from U.S. aircraft manufacturer Boeing, according to officials. This marks a departure from Europe's Airbus due to trade pressure from Washington. Officials have not disclosed the value of the agreement, which will provide Biman Bangladesh Airlines with a mixture of narrow-body and large-body aircraft as it looks to expand its capacity and modernise their fleet to meet the rising demand. An official of the aviation ministry, and a representative from Biman have confirmed that an agreement will be signed in Dhaka on Thursday night. The officials spoke under condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to media. The aircraft will be delivered in phases. However, more technical and financial details have not been disclosed. Boeing did not respond immediately to a comment request outside of its normal business hours. The agreement brings to an end a long-running contest between Boeing's and Airbus's bids for Biman’s next big order. Both manufacturers were vying for greater presence on the growing South Asian aviation market. Bangladesh approved plans under the former government of Prime Minster Sheikh Hasina to purchase 10 aircraft from Airbus, even though no agreement was signed. After the fall of her government during the mass uprising in 2024, the interim administration changed its course to favour?Boeing. Officials stated that the decision was based on both fleet needs and larger trade considerations. Bangladesh is trying to reduce the pressure of a $6 billion trade deficit with the United States, and avoid tariff increases which could hurt its export-driven economy. The expansion of the fleet coincides with broader upgrades in Bangladesh's aviation industry, including a brand new terminal at Dhaka Airport, to handle the increasing passenger traffic, driven by a growing middle-class and a large number of overseas workers. Biman, a 54-year old company, has more than 20 aircraft in its fleet, mostly Boeings. More than half are wide-body planes. The company also owns a number Dash-8 turboprops.
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Adani Ports in India sees its quarterly profit increase as cargo volumes rise
Adani Ports & SEZ, India's largest private operator by volume, posted a 10.5% increase in profit for the March quarter on Thursday. This was boosted largely by a rise in cargo volumes. The company reported a net profit for the third quarter of?33.29billion rupees ($350.03m), up from 30.14billion rupees one year earlier. Analysts say that disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz caused shippers to reroute their cargo. This has led to an increase in container volumes, transshipments, and'stopovers' at Adani Ports. The firm's ports business, which is its largest, saw a 30.5% increase in revenue, while its logistics division grew by 2%. This was mainly due to higher volumes of containerized and bulk cargo. The quarter saw a 13% increase in cargo volumes to 133.4 million metric tons, and a 26.5% increase in overall revenue.
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Weir, a UK engineering company, has a quarterly decline in order intake
Weir Group announced a drop in 'first-quarter orders' on Thursday. This sent shares tumbling as much as 10% even as the engineering firm reaffirmed its annual guidance and promoted their head of the biggest business to CEO. Andrew Neilson, the president of the company's minerals division, will succeed Chief Executive Jon Stanton, who is heavily focused on the mining industry. The unit accounts for more than 71% of the total group revenue. This update is timely as the global demand for rare earth minerals, such as nickel, continues to increase. Other factors driving this are electric vehicles, grid expansion, renewable energy, and the growth of data centres linked to artificial intelligent. For the first quarter ending March 31, Weir reported that its total order intake had declined by 3%, following similar declines in its minerals unit. This sent shares down 7% to 2,560 pence at 0820 GMT. The company stated that phasing orders and some mine interruptions in Asia-Pacific?and Africa have affected the business. However, it is confident that?orders will?develop'very positively' throughout the year despite the potential impact of uncertainty related to the Iran War. The company stated that the rise in commodity prices, driven by the war, has boosted demand for expansions as well as underlying activity. The company continues to expect a mid-single digit organic revenue growth in 2026 and a 50 basis-point increase in operating margin. (Reporting from Neeshita Behra in Bengaluru, Writing by Pushkala Aripka; Editing by Sumana Dhaniwala and Mrigank Nandy)
Royal Caribbean reduces its annual profit forecast and sees higher fuel prices
Royal Caribbean cut its annual profit forecast for the year on Thursday, citing soaring fuel costs linked to the ongoing Middle East tensions as a factor affecting the cruise operator's margins.
As a result of the stalled U.S. - Iran negotiations, cruise operators are now facing a more difficult?environment. This is because they are heavily reliant on fuel oil...and marine gas oil.
Royal Caribbean stated that fuel?costs based on the current pump rates, net of hedging, will be approximately $1.3 billion or $0.62 per share higher than their previous forecast.
However, the company's shares still rose by about 5% in premarket trading after exceeding quarterly profit expectations.
The company's?profit forecast for fiscal 2026 is expected to be in a range of $17.10 to 17.5 per share. This compares to its previous forecast?of $17.70 - $18.10.
According to data compiled and analyzed by LSEG, it posted an 'adjusted profits of $3.60 per shares for the first quarter compared with analysts average?estimate? of $3.19. Reporting by Anuja Mistry, Bengaluru. Editing by Shilpa Majumdar
(source: Reuters)