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Sources say that Gunvor and Vitol, two commodity traders, queue up to buy Russian aluminum from the LME storage.
Three sources with knowledge of the situation said that major commodity traders Gunvor, Vitol and London Metal Exchange approved warehouses at the South Korean port Gwangyang are awaiting the withdrawal of large quantities of Russian produced aluminium. Gunvor and Vitol focus primarily on energy. However, oil and gas trading companies have also made significant moves in metals markets as they explore the opportunities presented by the global transition to clean energy. Gunvor and Vitol are not sure why they want to store the aluminum in Gwangyang LME warehouses, as the majority of the metal in the LME is Russian. This was deposited in 2022 after Russia invaded Ukraine. Vitol Gunvor has declined to comment. LME data show that metals destined to leave ISTIM's Gwangyang warehouses, a major operator in the port of LME depositories, weighed 97.750 metric tonnes at the end of February, valued at more than $250,000,000. The data revealed that the average waiting time for delivery was more than 11 months, or 81 calendars days. Queues form only when large numbers of metal warrants (title documents conferring ownership) are cancelled within a short time. Sources claim that Vitol has already received some aluminum from the LME warehouses at Gwangyang. Gunvor hasn't yet taken any according to other sources. LME data shows that in late December, 84,000 tonnes of aluminum stored in LME Gwangyang warehouses was cancelled. In January, only a small amount of aluminum was removed, but in February, 33.200 tons were removed, and 26,800 tonnes have been removed from LME's warehouses in Gwangyang So far, March has been a great month. The LME's cancelled warrants for Gwangyang, which totalled 123,325 tonnes, on 28 March suggest that another 37,125 metric tons of aluminum is expected to leave its system. In February, Russian President Vladimir Putin offered to supply aluminium for the U.S. market as part of a future deal. Putin stated that Russian companies can supply up to 2 million metric tonnes of metal annually for the construction, transport and packaging industries. According to industry sources, the two main destinations of Russian-origin aluminum are China and Turkey. Both countries accept metal produced in Russia. In April of last year, the U.S. Treasury Department (Treasury Department) and the British Government banned the 148 year old LME and Chicago Mercantile Exchanges (CME) to hold Russian aluminium and copper produced after April 13. Rusal is the only company that produces aluminium in Russia. Last year, it supplied more than four million tonnes of aluminum or about 5% of global total. The LME aluminium prices held steady for a couple of weeks after Donald Trump was elected U.S. President, but they have fallen 7% to $2,540 per metric ton since March 12, on concerns about U.S. Tariffs and a trade war. (Reporting and editing by Veronica Brown, Jan Harvey, and Pratima Dasai)
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Uganda pays $118 million to Umeme for investments not recovered
Ugandan private electricity utility Umeme Limited announced on Monday that it received $118,000,000 in compensation for unrecovered investment from the government, following the expiration its monopoly distribution rights in the country. Umeme signed an agreement for a concession of 20 years in 2005. Umeme requested a renewal of the concession agreement in 2005, but the government refused. According to the agreement with Umeme, the government must compensate the company for capital investments made in the network of power distribution that it has not recovered within the concession period. Umeme stated in a press release that the payment made on Monday was what auditors from the government determined to be owed by Umeme. Umeme claims that it has invested $234 million total in unrecovered investments. It stated that its board was "optimistic" about the dispute being resolved in the 30-day period of good faith negotiations or, in any case, by an arbitral court in London. Unable to reach a spokesperson from the Ugandan energy ministry for a comment, The concession granted by Umeme ended on Monday. The state-owned Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited will be given the monopoly.
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Data shows that Russian gas exports to Europe fell 19% month-over-month in March.
Calculations showed that the average daily supply of natural gas to Europe through the TurkStream pipeline, owned by Russian energy giant Gazprom, fell 19.4% from a year earlier in March. The only remaining transit route for Russian gas into Europe is through Turkey after Ukraine decided not to renew a transit agreement with Moscow that expired in January. Based on data provided by the European Gas Transmission Group Entsog, calculations showed that Russian gas exported via the TurkStream pipe fell to 45 million cubic meters (mcms) per day from 55.8 millions cubic metres per days in February. This was also lower than the 46.4 mcm of March 2024. Calculations show that the total Russian gas supplied to Europe through TurkStream was around 4.5 billion cubic meters (bcm) during the first three month of this year. This compares to 7.7bcm in the same period last year. The company did not reply to a comment request. It hasn't published its monthly statistics since 2023. Gazprom's data and calculations indicate that Russia shipped 63.8 billion cubic meters of gas by different routes to Europe in 2022. This fell by 55.6% in 2024 to 28,3 bcm, but increased in 2024 to about 32 bcm. Gas flows into Europe peaked between 2018 and 2019. The annual flow was around 175 to 180 bcm. (Reporting and editing by Andrew Osborn.)
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Exports are at risk, grain traders say. They ask Ukraine to stop changing the price mechanism.
The Ukrainian grain traders' union UGA and the UAC agrarian producer union demanded on Monday that the government suspend the additions to the method for determining the minimum export price, warning that these changes could stop exports. In December, Ukraine implemented a new system of exporting key agricultural goods, including grain, which means that consignments cannot be shipped at prices lower than those set by Ukraine's agriculture ministry. In March, the government changed the rules to say that the export price of a certain good could not be lower than the price minimum for the same type of product under the exact same delivery conditions the month before. UGA stated in a press release that "Export Prices naturally fluctuate based on global trends and seasonality. Demand, Logistics, and Competition." The report noted that "An artificial prohibition on price reductions ignores the market reality and threatens Ukraine’s ability to enter into export contracts." The union asked that the government suspend the amendments, and openly consult with the business community. The UGA also added that they had stressed the importance of unifying and clarifying terminology. This included the definitions of "minimum prices", "reference prices" and "supply base". Ukraine is one of the largest grain and oilseed exporters and growers. The ministry of agriculture reported that the country has exported 32,4 million metric tonnes of grain in the July-June 2024/25 season. (Reporting and editing by Andrew Heavens; Andrew Polityuk)
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Sonatrach reduces prices by 2-7%, Saudi Aramco maintains April LPG OSPs
Saudi Aramco's official selling prices for LPG (liquefied petroleum gases) in April are unchanged from those of March. Sonatrach, however, has cut its OSPs between 2-7% because of a weaker Mediterranean demand, according to traders on Monday. Aramco’s April OSP was $615 per metric tonne. Butane costs $605 per ton , traders said. LPG comes in two types: propane and butane. They have different boiling points. LPG is primarily used as a fuel for heating and cars, as well as as a feedstock to make other petrochemicals. Sonatrach has cut its April OSP (Off-Season Price) for propane from $550 to $10 per ton Butane is $40-$545 per ton , traders said. Aramco’s OSPs serve as a guide for contracts to provide LPG from the Middle East into the Asia-Pacific Region. Sonatrach OSPs serve as benchmarks in the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions, including Turkey. (Reporting and Editing by Louise Heavens).
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Dutch Gasunie plans to invest 13 billion dollars in the power grid by 2030
Gasunie, the Dutch natural gas grid operator, said on Monday that it will invest approximately 12 billion euros (13 billion dollars) by 2030 to accelerate the energy transformation and prevent major industries from leaving the Netherlands. Gasunie announced that two-thirds of their investment will be in infrastructure for sustainable gasses, such as hydrogen and biomethane. They also said they would continue to work on projects for carbon capture and storage. It said that the share of green projects in total investments increased last year from 20% to 45%. Gasunie stated that the company was taking "major steps" towards a future where green electricity and sustainable gas will reinforce each other. The Dutch industry has complained of high energy costs, and limited options to improve production processes. Solar and wind energy have caused congestion in the electricity grid of the country, while plans to produce sustainable hydrogen have been stalled. Willemien Terpstra, CEO of Gasunie, called on the industry and government to work together so that companies could move away from fossil-fuels without losing competitive advantage. Terpstra stated that the Netherlands are at a tipping point, where we will see if we become more sustainable without industry or with it. Gasunie is doing everything possible to maintain key industries in The Netherlands. $1 = 0.9227 Euros (reporting and editing by Bart Meijer)
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The RPT-EU ban of Russia's LNG exports is now in effect
This week, the European Union began a ban on reexporting Russian LNG via EU ports. The goal is to reduce Moscow’s revenue after its invasion in Ukraine. The ban prohibiting the reloading Russian cargoes in EU ports to export to third-country countries was implemented in June 2024. A moratorium will be in place until March 26th 2025 for contracts that were signed before June 25th last year. Gas experts claim that the measure will have little effect, as the transshipments via EU ports into Asia represents less than 10% total Russian LNG exports. However, suppliers will direct this volume towards Europe. Here are some facts about Russian LNG Exports. RUSSIAN LNG EXPORTS In 2024, Russia will be the fourth largest LNG exporter in the world with an annual output of 34.7 millions metric tons. This is up 4% from 2023. Analysts estimate around 2.7 millions tons of LNG were reloaded at EU ports in 2024 for exports to Asia. The EU does not have any immediate plans to stop purchasing Russian LNG. The EU has stated that it plans to gradually wean itself from Russian gas by the year 2027 thanks to increased exports of Norwegian, United States, and Qatar. According to a report by the global energy think-tank Ember, Russian gas imports in the EU will increase by 18% by 2024. The study stated that "this trend will continue in 2025 with an average of 74.3 million cubic metres per day in Russian LNG imports to the EU in February. This represents a 11% increase in a month." TRANS-SHIPMENTS From November to June, Russian LNG exports are dependent on EU ports because thick ice blocks access by traditional LNG vessels to Yamal LNG Arctic terminals owned by gas producer Novatek. Ship-to-ship transfers (STS) are used to reload cargoes onto regular gas carriers, which are then exported to China, Taiwan and India. Novatek, Russia’s largest LNG producer and Yamal LNG’s principal shareholder, has signed long-term contracts with firms including China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC), Shell and TotalEnergies (oil majors), German company Securing Energy For Europe and Gunvor, to sell 17 million tons of LNG per year to Europe. Two Terms The main LNG terminals in Belgium and France are Montoir LNG and Zeebrugge LNG. Fluxys, a Belgian gas transport company, has signed a contract for ten years with Yamal LNG to transship gas at Zeebrugge. Engie, a French energy company, has a contract for 23 years to manage STS operations. TotalEnergies now holds the contract after it purchased Engie's portfolio of LNG. Robert Songer is an analyst with data intelligence company ICIS. He said that in 2024 around 47 vessels will have completed STSs between Zeebrugge, and Montoir. According to an average LNG cargo of 70,000 tons in 2024, this represents 9.2% of the total Russian LNG exports. MOSCOW IMPACT The ban on LNG transshipment will have a limited impact because of the small volume, but it would raise costs for Russian companies as well as disrupt logistics. Charles Costerousse is a senior LNG analyst with Kpler. He said that Russian LNG could still be transshipped easily within Russian waters, at Murmansk, Kaliningrad, or other possible locations in the Mediterranean.
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Oil prices drop despite Trump's warnings about possible tariffs against Russian buyers
Oil prices fell on Monday and are heading towards a modest quarter-loss, despite warnings from U.S. president Donald Trump, who warned that he could impose secondary tariffs against buyers of Russian crude oil if he felt Moscow was blocking his efforts in ending the war in Ukraine. Brent crude futures for June, the more active contract, fell 30 cents or 0.4% to $72.46 a barrel by 0330 GMT. Meanwhile, U.S. West Texas Intermediate oil declined 33 cents or 0.5% to $69.03 a barrel. Brent front-month, down 26 cents or 0.4% at $73.36, expires on Monday. Both benchmarks are on track to finish the month slightly lower and report their first quarterly decline in two quarters. Trump said that he is "pissed" with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He will impose secondary tariffs of 25%-50% on Russian oil buyers if he believes Moscow is hindering him in his efforts to end war in Ukraine. Trump claimed he would be able to impose new trade measures in a month. There are two ways to interpret the headlines, and the drop in price. Tony Sycamore, IG's market analyst, said that the first thing to note is that Trump's threats are not being taken seriously by the market. The second point is that Trump’s threats would, if implemented, be another step on the path towards a global trade war which will impact on growth and demand for oil. Trump Iran If Washington and Tehran cannot reach an agreement over Iran's nuclear program, Washington will bomb Tehran on Sunday. Secondary tariffs may also be imposed. OPEC+, a group that includes OPEC, Russia and its allies, will begin its monthly increase in oil production program in April. Last week, it was reported that the group would likely continue to increase oil production in May. Yuki Takashima is an economist with Nomura Securities. She said, "We expect WTI will stay between $65 and $75 as the market evaluates the impact of Trump's tariffs on the oil supply, global economy and the supply situation in the U.S. Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, may reduce its crude prices to Asian buyers by a third-month low in May, following the sharp declines in benchmark price this month, traders have said. Iran also lowered its price for light crude oil for Asian buyers, to $3.95 per barrel over the average Oman/Dubai for April. Two sources who have direct knowledge of this matter said that the talks to restart Kurdish crude oil exports via the Iraq-Turkey pipe are at a standstill due to a lack clarity regarding payments and contracts. Reporting by Yuka obayashi and Anjana anil; editing by Saad sayeed
United Airlines begins labor agreement settlements with union
United Airlines has actually begun settlements with the Teamsters union, which is promoting a. brand-new agreement covering 10,000 aviation upkeep and related. employees in the United States, the labor union stated on Tuesday.
The Teamsters National Negotiating Committee is seeking. industry-leading salaries, a quicker timeline for reaching the top. pay rate, enhanced health care benefits and higher security. standards.
The negotiations-- which have begun four months before the. current contract is set to end up being amendable-- come at a time. when countless maintenance team member and flight. attendants across airlines are requiring higher earnings and more. advantages after carriers published record earnings assisted by a. rebound in travel need post-pandemic.
Individually, United Airlines' flight attendants are set to. vote in August on whether to license a strike if an agreement. on a new employment contract can not be reached.
(source: Reuters)