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Xi calls on China to improve disaster prevention after floods and landslides hit the country
After a series of deadly floods this summer, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged the country to improve its?ability? to prevent, reduce and respond to?natural?disasters. Xi made his remarks on 'Saturday' in Qiushi - a 'journal central to Communist Party messaging. They follow China's most powerful typhoon of the year, and a series landslides which killed dozens. This highlights the increasing impact of extreme weather conditions on the second largest economy of the world. According to an article, "Global warming is causing extreme weather events, such as floods, typhoons and droughts. Their destructive effects are intensifying." Xi stated. The article cited Xi's call for a shift to pre-disaster preparation, stronger monitoring and early warning systems, as well as efforts to fill in gaps in flood control and drainage infrastructure in the north of China. The article cited Xi's remarks from a speech he delivered on April 28 at a Politburo Study Session. The capital of China was hit by the strongest typhoon of this year, which brought torrential rains that inundated roads and left vehicles stranded. In the northwest, flash floods caused landslides in Gansu Province that killed 25 people. And in Chongqing, in southwest China, a mountain collapsed and led to another landslide, which left 51 dead. China has been battling more destructive weather that scientists have linked to climate change. This is especially true this year as an emerging "El Nino" pattern boosts temperatures, fueling more frequent and fierce typhoons. Xi stated that China would "continuously improve its ability and level of response to natural disasters and effectively safeguard the lives and properties of the people as well as social stability" Xi warned that disaster risks'must be prevented from affecting economic, energy and food security and urged the use technologies such as artificial intelligence, drones, and satellite remote-sensing to aid in rescue efforts. (Reporting and editing by Jacqueline Wong, Ryan Woo, Xiangming Hu and Ziyi Tang)
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South Africa is betting on renewable energy, but the power grid in place is not yet ready
Grid gridlock could stall the renewable energy transition * Many green energy plants cannot connect to an overloaded grid * Government plans major grid expansion over next decade By Kate Bartlett The President Cyril Ramaphosa launched the latest green energy projects last month. He called it part of a "clean-energy revolution" and a 155 megawatt wind farm located in Mpumalanga Province. He said that "electricity which is reliable, affordable and becoming increasingly clean is the 'lifeblood' of a growing economic system." South Africa plans to add 105 Gigawatts to its grid by 2039. This will include nuclear, wind, and solar energy. It is more than double the current capacity. Experts say that there is a major obstacle: a lack in transmission lines for all this energy. Many green energy projects cannot connect to the grid. The CEO of Energy Exchange South Africa (a private sector energy trader) wrote in June that "gridlock" was the biggest obstacle to unlocking the renewable potential of the country. It could even cause further economic and electricity crises. He said that the grid capacity of most areas with high green energy resources has reached saturation. This makes it difficult to provide renewable power to those in need. The government has said that to fix the problem, thousands of kilometers of power lines will need to be added in the next ten years. This is estimated to cost 400 billion rand (18 billion PS). EXTENDING GRID Last week, Kgosientsho RAMOKGOPA, Minister of Electricity and energy, admitted that "we need 14,500 km (9,000 miles)" of transmission lines and that we build on average 200km per year. Kevin Mileham, spokesperson for South Africa’s second largest political party, Democratic Alliance, was asked why it took so long. He said that part of the delay is due to redtape. They're considering a partnership model to build this portion of the grid. He said that they have to follow a procedure to appoint these private contractors. The components required are not produced locally. He said that many of these items were on backorder. "We will have to wait for two or three years before we get some of this." Ramokgopa, who was in Beijing to court investment last week, said that six Chinese companies have agreed to establish factories in South Africa for the manufacture of transformers and pylons required to support grid expansion. China, which is the largest producer of renewable energy in the world, has already invested heavily in South Africa's green sector. A Chinese company supplied the turbines for the new Mpumalanga Wind Farm. Mileham stated that there was almost no capacity on the grid in the areas where renewable energy is best suited, such as the sunniest parts of the northern Cape, which are ideal for solar, and the Eastern Cape and Western Cape, which are perfect for wind. He added: "In Mpumalanga and other places, we are able to increase grid capacity as coal plants close." It's not an ideal place to add renewable energy. Unbundling ESKOM South Africa has long struggled with power shortages, due to an aging infrastructure and damage. The state-owned power utility Eskom, however, has suffered from mismanagement and financial losses, and has for a very long time been unable to meet the demand. In 2023, the government began introducing daily power cuts, also known as "load-shedding", to conserve electricity. This was a major blow to the country's economy. Mileham explained that this is now mostly a thing in the past. He explained that rooftop solar doesn't require a connection to the grid. Mileham pointed out, too, that if mining companies built solar power plants next to coal mines "you wouldn't have to transmit this over the transmission infrastructure". Ramaphosa announced this year that he would break up Eskom to create a separate company to manage the transmission grid. Mileham says that this is desperately needed because Eskom, as it stands now, is both "player and referee" in the competition for grid access between independent power producers. Eskom, however, is not backing down. Mteto Ntyati, Eskom's board chairperson, urged the government last week to delay the transfer. Ramaphosa, however, told industrialists in this week that a "competitive electricity market requires a transmission network that is independent and efficient, capable of providing a fair access to all participants on the market." (Editing by Jonathan Hemming).
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Third Point discloses Warner Bros Discovery share, adding to Alphabet exposure
Third Point, the hedge fund of billionaire investor Daniel Loeb, has taken a stake in Warner Bros. According to a Friday regulatory filing, Discovery took a stake in Warner Bros. during the second quarter. According to LSEG, the fund's position of 20,000,000 shares would make it one of the 20 largest investors in the media company. This is at a time when the $110 billion Paramount Skydance acquisition has been halted due to court challenges. Third Point is a long-time investor in the media industry. In 2022, it will push for changes at The Walt Disney Company. The New York-based Fund also revealed that it increased its stakes in Google parent Alphabet as well as boosted their holdings of Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern,?as both railway operators pursue their $85 billion merger. The 13F filing also revealed a new investment in Riot Platforms. This made 'Third Point' one of the 25 largest bitcoin miners.
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ADNOC, the UAE's national oil company, says that one of its vessels was attacked while transiting Hormuz
The Emirati news agency WAM reported that the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company of the UAE said on Saturday one of its vessels was attacked while transiting the Strait of Hormuz the day before. According to WAM, the state oil company reported that no injuries were reported and that the situation is now under control. This was the 'third incident of this kind involving ADNOC vessels within a week. The UAE accused Iran of being behind the earlier attacks. However, the UAE made no comment on the attack that took place Friday. Before the conflict, a fifth the world's oil & liquefied natural gas was transported through the narrow waterway that connects Oman to Iran. Shipping has been disrupted repeatedly since the U.S. and Israeli war?with _Iran erupted on February 28. This has raised freight rates, as well as created security concerns. ADNOC, one of the largest energy producers in the world, exports crude oil and natural gas as well as refined products to other countries. Reporting by Menna alaa el-Din, Editing by Mark Porter & Rod Nickel
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The resumption of Colombian coffee production could take several weeks. Processing is also affected.
Market participants stated on Friday that the normalization of Colombian coffee logistics, including the return of beans to a major exporting port, and then to export markets could take up to two weeks. Fixing processing installations may take even longer. Market participants said that the 7.4-magnitude quake in the Colombian coffee region?killed almost 300 people, caused landslides along dozens of roads and destroyed a number of warehouses and export ports. Carlos Santana is a director of global coffee trader ECOM. He said that he estimates it will take 15 days to normalize the coffee flow. Colombia supplies around 25% of coffee beans consumed in the United States. This is the largest market for the beans. He added, "The port is not closed but it's hard to get the coffee there and several warehouses have structural damage." ATM Terminals, which manages the Buenaventura Port, has said that operations have been gradually resumed. This includes movement in the port warehouses of coffee and sugar. However, it is not yet open to receiving more containers filled for export. According to the company, the earthquake caused structural and machine damage at the dry mill run by Caravela Coffee, located in Armenia, an area in the west-central region of Colombia's main "coffee belt". The?shared on social media a CCTV video showing the moment of tremor. The mill is used for processing green coffee to make it ready for export. "We don't know yet when we will be able to restart our operations safely. "We are still dealing with the lack of electricity in the mill," said Caravela's Chief Executive Alejandro Cadena. The coffee supply will be?tightened by the?temporary suspension of Colombian shipments. Expana, a price reporting and analyst agency, said that the event occurred amid ICE-certified arabica stock shortages. This kept nearby supply tight. Buyers looked to Brazil to offset any Colombian disruptions. (Reporting and editing by Alistair Bell; Marcelo Teixeira)
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Mexico races to remove record seaweed growth from Caribbean beaches
Mexico is battling a record amount of sargassum, a brown seaweed that has a foul smell. The seaweed is choking beaches along the Caribbean coast. According to new data, officials in Quintana-Roo, which is home to popular resorts such as Cancun, Playa del Carmen, and 'Tulum,' have cleared 105,000 metric tonnes of sargassum this year. This figure already surpasses the previous record of 92,783 metric tons set last year. This haul puts the state in a position to surpass earlier projections of 2026, and intensify what officials describe as one of "the worst sargassum season on record." The authorities had estimated that 119,000 tons of sargassum could wash up on the shore this year. Scientists believe the massive blooms have been fueled by fertiliser-rich runoff, including nitrogen and phosphorus from Brazil and other agricultural powerhouses. As the seaweed rots, it releases hydrogen sulfide which irritates the nasal airways. Oscar Rebora is the Quintana Roo environment minister. He said that forecasts are uncertain. Rebora added that the most recent tally as of Tuesday was the current one. He said that Playa del Carmen had the highest volume of seaweed collected to date. The seaweed is a constant for workers who are charged with cleaning the beaches. Vitinia Villemontes, a cleanup worker in Puerto?Morelos said that sargassum has been arriving non-stop. "This year, it just didn't stop." "Sargassum continued to arrive from July to July," she said. "It is virtually impossible to keep it under control." Sargassum is a weed that has been encroaching on beaches in the 'Caribbean for the last decade. It threatens the tourism industry, which underpins the economy of Quintana Roo. Some companies claim that creating a market to sell the algae could offset the high costs of collection. Carbonwave, a company that processes sargassum to?liquid biostimulants, fertilizers and other products, said: "We believe creating value out of it is one of the strategies we can use to reduce the sargassum issue." Mexico's Environment Ministry has identified dozens projects to turn sargassum products into bioplastics, biofuels, and fertilizers. The government's support for commercializing the sargassum is limited. Most of its funds are still used to clean up. (Reporting and Writing by Daina-Beth Solomon, Andrea Ricci and Paola Chiomante)
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India reduces windfall tax on petrol, diesel and aviation fuel exports
According to a government directive, India has reduced 'windfall taxes' on the export of?petrol?,?diesel? and?aviation?turbine fuel? with effect from Saturday. The government order showed that the duty on diesel exports was reduced to 24 Indian rupees ($0.2515) a litre (down from 25.5 rupees) and the duty on petrol was set at zero rupees per kilogram. The tax on "aviation turbine fuel" has been reduced to 19.5 rupees a litre, from 22 rupees previously. India introduced windfall taxes to capture the extraordinary gains from rising oil prices in July 2022. Two years later, it scrapped them. The levy was introduced in March 2026, after oil prices spiked during the U.S./Israeli war against?Iran. India revises its export levies based on the international price of?crude oil and petroleum-based products every two weeks.
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US puts pressure on EU to "deliver" on non-tariff commitments
On 'Friday, the United States called on the European Union to relax its laws that place a?responsibility? on large companies for the environmental and social?impact? of their global supply chain. The United States claimed the EU had promised such measures wouldn't hamper EU-U.S. commerce. U.S. U.S. Now it's up to the EU. "Under the Framework Agreement, EU pledged to?ensure that its Corporate Sustainability due Diligence Directive (CSR) and Corporate Sustainability reporting Directive (CSR) 'does not impose undue restrictions on the transatlantic trade", Puzder wrote. "Extraterritorial Provisions harm American businesses and workers but not only the U.S. will suffer." According to Puzder, EU laws require that large companies, including U.S.-based firms, operating in the EU disclose their environmental and societal impacts, as well as working conditions, across their supply chain. According to a spokesperson for the European Commission, the EU and U.S. continue to work together on non-tariff and tariff issues. The spokesperson stated that the EU had explained its non-tariff rules and stressed its willingness to work with the U.S. in order to increase trade wherever possible. The spokesperson added: "We have always been clear that our rules framework and regulatory autonomy are not negotiable." Washington also wants the EU to amend the Carbon Border Adjustment Method (CBAM), a system that imposes fees on goods imported without meeting EU standards for carbon emissions. New pressure is being applied as U.S. officials and EU officials focus on non-tariff obstacles after the tariff commitments made in July 2025 have taken effect. Three sources familiar with the talks said that they expect joint statements to be released in the fall covering the non-tariff components of the Turnberry Agreement. Brussels has already weakened some of the policies that Washington criticised over the last year, including its anti-deforestation laws and methane emission rules. Sources familiar with EU policy said that the bloc did not plan to make any further concessions. SUSTAINABILITY RULES Last year, the EU also reduced its corporate sustainability regulations, known as CSRD or CSDDD after being pushed by businesses and governments, including those of the U.S.A. and Qatar. Changes agreed in December restricted the scope of Corporate Sustainability Due diligence Directive (CSDDD), and delayed the deadline for compliance by two years, to mid-2029. Corporate Sustainability Reporting (CSRD), a directive that requires companies to disclose their environmental and social impact, will only apply to firms with more than 1,000 workers, compared to the original threshold of over 250 employees. U.S. firms, such as ExxonMobil, had sought more extensive changes including an exemption of foreign firms. A statement that accompanied Puzder's blog post stated: "While the United States recognizes some positive changes in the December 2020 Sustainability Omnibus (Sustainability Omnibus), these reforms did not fully address U.S. concern regarding these directives."
As flights to the Middle East cease, governments plan repatriations
Commercial flights have been grounded in some parts of the Middle East due to an escalating conflict after U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran. This has left foreigners stranded and prompted governments to plan for repatriation.
Here is what the governments have said about plans for repatriation:
AUSTRIA Austria’s Foreign Ministry said that it had assisted 117 vulnerable citizens to leave the UAE and Israel through neighbouring countries and had planned for a 170 person?charter flights from Muscat, on March 4, while warning travellers that they would have to take land departures at their own risk.
BULGARIA
GullivAir and Bulgaria Air, along with the State Aviation Operator, planned three flights to'return Bulgarians from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Oman between March 4 and March 5. These included a GullivAir flight of 326 seats from Dubai, a Bulgaria Air Boeing 737 via 'Oman, and a 90-seat Government aircraft from Abu Dhabi.
CZECH REPUBLIC
Petr Macinka, Minister of Foreign Affairs, said that around 1,400 people had arrived in the Czech Republic via repatriation flight.
ESTONIA
On March 4, the Estonian foreign ministry announced that it had organized a 180-seater flight to Muscat for the next day. This flight was available to Estonian citizens living in Oman or the United Arab Emirates.
EUROPEAN UNION As more members request assistance, the European Commission is now coordinating flights for repatriation under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
A statement by the European Commission on March 9 stated that the EU had supported more than 42 flights to date, which brought over 4,100 Europeans back safely to Belgium, Bulgaria Czechia Italy, Cyprus, Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Austria, Portugal Romania, Slovakia and Sweden.
FINLAND
The Finnish foreign ministry announced that Finland would be arranging a single flight to repatriate about 160 Finns stranded on the island of the United Arab Emirates, on 8 March.
Finnair announced on March 6th that it would be operating flights from Muscat to Helsinki in order to transport customers stranded at Dubai home. The first flight will take place on March 10 with additional flights scheduled later in the week.
FRANCE
The French Foreign Minister said that several flights to bring back French nationals who are currently in the area (around 400,000) were being planned as of March 4.
France has deployed consular teams to Israel's border with Egypt and Jordan in order to facilitate the land exit of people so they can continue their journey by air. A similar mechanism has been implemented in the UAE, at the borders with Oman, Saudi Arabia and other countries, where there is no restriction on airspace.
GERMANY
After the first flight landed in Frankfurt on March 5, the German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul announced that two flights, each carrying about 250 passengers, were planned for March 5-6.
GREECE
The Greek Foreign Ministry said that it had repatriated hundreds citizens from Abu Dhabi, Dubai Jerusalem, Oman, and the UAE in the last week.
HUNGARY On March 4, 87 people returned to Hungary from Amman in Jordan. Another flight, carrying 88 passengers, is scheduled for March 5.
A second flight from Sharm-el Sheikh in Egypt was also scheduled for the 6th of March. Hungary rented a Flydubai aircraft for March '5 and '6 to bring Hungarians back from Dubai. On March 7 and 8, Hungary had two separate flights departing from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia.
ITALY The Italian foreign ministry reported that about 25,000 Italians returned from the Middle East via commercial flights facilitated through the ministry.
The consular service has been expanded in Oman, the UAE, and Bahrain. It also coordinates the return of large groups from the UAE, and other groups travelling via land to Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Italians living in Oman and Israel as well as the Maldives, Thailand, and Thailand receive assistance.
Netherlands
The Dutch government said on Friday that it is preparing to use the military to repatriate citizens who cannot leave their countries on their own. The Dutch government did not give any details about specific countries or timing.
POLAND
Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces reported that the first group of Polish nationals evacuated from the Middle East by military airlift arrived in Poland on 6 March.
PORTUGAL
The Portuguese Foreign Ministry is planning to repatriate more of the 139 Portuguese and eight foreigners on board a charter TAP flight that landed at Lisbon, Portugal on March 6.
ROMANIA
The Romanian Foreign Ministry announced on 4 March that FlyDubai had scheduled two flights from Dubai to Bucharest for March 4 and 5. The ministry reported that FlyDubai had scheduled two flights to Bucharest on March 4 and 5.
SERBIA
Air Serbia's flight from Sharm el-Sheikh landed at Belgrade in the early hours of March 4 with 67 passengers. All were?evacuees from Israel.
SINGAPORE
The foreign affairs ministry announced on Facebook that the government would deploy an A330 multi-role air force aircraft to assist Singaporeans in departing Riyadh from the country on March 10. A second flight out of Saudi Arabia is planned for the 12th.
SLOVAKIA
The Slovakian government has conducted six repatriation flight with 248 passengers. 189 of them were Slovaks, and the remainder were foreigners. On Thursday, the Foreign Ministry announced that eight additional evacuation flights from Jordan and Oman would be carried out by the end the week.
SLOVENIA
The prime minister's statement said that Slovenia organized four buses to transport Slovenian citizens, including families with children, from Dubai to Muscat Airport in Oman on March 3.
Two more flights are scheduled for March 4, with the first flight to Slovenia being organised on 3 March.
According to Jose Manuel Albares, the Spanish government began evacuating citizens from?the Middle East? on March 3. More than 175 Spaniards arrived on a flight via Abu Dhabi.
Albares stated that Spain is also strengthening its embassies to the UAE, Saudi Arabia Oman, Bahrain and Bahrain in order to provide further support and facilitate repatriations.
SWEDEN
Sweden chartered a plane on Saturday to bring back 180 Swedes who were identified as vulnerable.
THAILAND
Thailand will?evacuate its nationals by land from Iran to Turkey between March 7 and 10 while those stranded in Iraq, Qatar and Bahrain as well as the UAE, Jordan and the UAE are either returning or will do so once airspace is reopened.
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
State news agency WAM reports that the UAE Civil Aviation Authority plans to start operating "special flight" across all of the country's international airports in order to assist some of the tens and thousands of passengers stuck in the region to leave.
UNITED KINGDOM
The British Foreign Office reported that after 130,000 UK citizens registered for presence in the region, British chartered flight left Oman on 5 March after technical delays on 4 March. Priority was given to vulnerable UK nationals who wanted to leave the area.
(source: Reuters)