Latest News
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Sources say that Tatneft Russian's TANECO refinery halts its operations following a drone attack
Two industry sources have confirmed that the TANECO oil'refinery in Russia has suspended all crude 'processing after a drone attack on June 12th. Sources said that the fires and strike at the refinery led to the closure of both primary processing units: CDU-6 with a capacity?of 20,000 tonnes per day, or 45% of the total capacity?of the refinery,?and CDU-7 which?processes more than 23,000 tons each day. Tatneft did not reply to our request for a comment. TANECO is one of Russia's technologically most advanced refineries. It has?hydrocracking and catalytic cracking units, as well as delayed?coking?units. According to data from the industry, TANECO will process 17.0 million metric tons of crude oil in 2024. This will result in 2.7 millions tons of'motor gasoline', 8.5million tons of diesel fuel, and 1.3million tons of petroleum coke. Tomaszjanowski, Editor (Reporting)
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Airbus CEO criticises European regulatory costs when it opens new line
Airbus' head urged France and the European Union to tackle high regulatory and other costs that are weighing businesses down. He also said the issue of competitiveness needs to be addressed at the French presidential elections next year. Speaking to French politicians, including the transport minister of the country, at the opening of a new assembly in Toulouse in the south of France CEO?Guillaume Faury cited labour and energy costs. He called the cost?of European regulatory obstacles "absolutely horrendous". Faury spoke at the opening of a new assembly?line for the A321neo, the most popular narrowbody model. Airbus is aiming to increase the production speed of these models. This is the second line of this kind in the vast Toulouse factory that was once dedicated to the A380 superjumbo, the world's biggest airliner. Boeing, the arch-rival of the U.S., is 'also expanding production in its former 747 jumbo factory to produce its competing 737 MAX. The planemakers are reshaping their historic wide body factories to make a?way for...smaller planes which dominate today's market. Faury, a French aviation worker and politician, told workers at the former A380 factory outside Toulouse that the production of medium-haul aircraft like the A321neo is "at the core of Airbus's strategy". Airbus' A320 medium-haul family, which includes the A321neo, has surpassed Boeing's recently-problematic 737 in terms of sales. (Reporting and editing by Kirsty Donovan, Milla Nissi Prussak and Tim Hepher)
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El Al Airlines of Israel signs an internet deal with El Musk's Starlink
El Al Israel Airlines announced on Monday that it had?signed a contract with Elon Musk’s Starlink?to provide high-speed Internet across its entire fleet from next year. The financial details of the agreement were not revealed. Israel's flag-carrier said SpaceX's Starlink would be offered at no additional cost and would allow for hundreds of passengers to connect simultaneously. This would include long-haul flights. Fast in-flight Wi Fi has become a key perk for premium airlines to attract customers. Starlink, the company that operates two-thirds (or more) of the satellites in space and generates most of SpaceX's revenue, has signed up 11 new airline clients in 2026. Amazon is a competitor. El Al's Chief Executive Levy Halevy said that the integration of Starlink technology in El Al aircraft was a major step forward. Customers can now "stay connected while flying, watch live streaming, and work and communicate without interruption." The airline's fleet is a relatively young Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which it expects to grow in the coming years as well as expanding its route network. The airline has also ordered Boeing 737 MAX planes for flights to 'Europe. El Al has seen its profits increase since the Gaza War began in October 2023. Many foreign airlines have suspended flights to Israel. This is expected to change, however, if the agreement between Washington, D.C. and Tehran to stop the Iran war remains intact. Delta and United, two of the biggest U.S. airlines, have already announced that they will resume flights to Tel Aviv in September. Ookla, an analytics company, says that Starlink is faster than older systems because it uses low-Earth orbit satellites instead of geostationary satellites. (Reporting and editing by Steven Scheer, Kirby Donovan, Joe Bavier.)
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The producers call the IMO's definition of Brazil corn-ethanol carbon footprint as a milestone.
Industry executives said that the International Maritime Organization decision defining Brazilian corn ethanol's carbon foot print is a historic step. It could position maritime transport as a future major market for this?sector. The IMO set the default value for the carbon footprint of Brazilian corn ethanol at 20.8 grams CO2e per megajoule in May. This was specifically referring biofuels produced from the second or intermediate corn crop of the country. According to the IMO, the average greenhouse gas fuel consumption in shipping is currently 93.3 grams per megajoule. Gustavo Mariano is vice president of Inpasa's trading division. He said that the IMO has defined a value for Brazilian corn ethanol, which is a major step in establishing regulations to regulate lower-carbon fuels. Mariano, in an interview said that the event was "historic and symbolic" and confirmed corn ethanol's position as a viable fuel for decarbonization. Brazil's ethanol production has been dominated for decades by sugarcane farmers. According to the industry association UNEM however, corn ethanol production soared to nearly 10 billion liters during the 2025/26 seasons, up from 2,65 billion liters when the decade began. Rafael Abud is the chief executive officer of FS Fueling sustainability, a corn ethanol manufacturer. He said that once biofuels are approved for shipping, producers may benefit from possible premiums. Abud stated that "we have invested heavily in every aspect of our product to decarbonize it," citing efforts to reduce emissions from biomass, industrial efficiency, and a project to combine bioenergy and carbon capture and storage, which could make FS ethanol carbon-negative. Brazil's second crop corn ethanol won't compete with other biofuels like sugarcane and biodiesel because of the size of the shipping industry, executives say. Instead, it will complement these fuels. Mariano stated that "if the global bunker market was converted into ethanol, it would equal almost 400 billion liters," Mariano. These volumes are so huge that we require all biofuels. Reporting by Oliver Griffin, Editing by Will Dunham
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The Turkish Foreign Minister will visit Moscow to discuss Ukraine and the Black Sea
A diplomatic source revealed on Monday that Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan would reiterate Turkey's offer to host talks between Russia and Ukraine during a trip to Moscow in this week. He will also be discussing?Black Sea shipping safety? as well as the South Caucasus. The visit to Ankara on Tuesday and on Wednesday is in preparation for the NATO summit that Turkey will host on July 8-9, and after Kyiv requested Ankara's mediation by hosting a meeting of?leaders at a high level?. Since the Russian invasion of 2022, Turkey has maintained friendly relations with Moscow and?Kyiv. Fidan, according to a Turkish source, will meet his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov before meeting Vladimir Putin. Source: He will warn against "further escalation" in the Black Sea, and reiterate Turkey's proposal for a limited ceasefire over ports and energy infrastructure. In recent months, Ukraine has accused Russia of drone attacks on tankers near Turkey’s northern coast. An official in Ukraine said that Kyiv welcomes the offer of?Turkey hosting bilateral talks. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has made this proposal?multiple times. Last month, the ambassador of Kyiv to Ankara said that he wanted closer ties with Turkey. This included joint productions in the defence industry. Fidan will discuss the developments in South Caucasus after Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's?elections? this month and while?Yerevan is working with Azerbaijan to reach a peace agreement that could speed up Turkey’s normalisation of relations with Armenia.
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How will the UK social media ban for those under 16 work?
Keir starmer, British Prime Minister Keir said that he will impose a?ban on social media sites for under-16-year-olds and?restrictions to gaming and livestreaming platform in order to "give children their childhood back". Below are details on what is being banned, the measures that will be taken, and when these measures should take effect. BANNED: TIKTOK. YOUTUBE. AND INSTAGRAM The government announced that it would ban children from using social media platforms. These platforms are designed to facilitate user-to-user interaction. The government said it would block children from using social media platforms whose purpose is to enable user-to-user social interaction and? The government announced a ban on platforms such as Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube. It also includes Instagram, Facebook, Facebook, Instagram, Facebook, X. The government stated that it does not intend to include messaging services such as WhatsApp or music streaming services in the ban. Exemptions will be reviewed. How will the ban?be enforced? Keir starmer, the Prime Minister of Australia, said that the ban will be enforced by 'action against social media platforms' rather than fining children who circumvent it. Ofcom, the government's regulator of communications, will conduct a study in order to determine how to best verify that someone is older than 16 years old. They also plan to implement a new strategy for enforcement and fund it. TIME OF THE BAN Starmer stated that he aimed to pass the relevant regulations by Christmas so as to have the ban in place early next year. In July, a full response to government's consultation on the topic will be published, detailing the details of the policy. REGULATIONS?ON GAMING WEBSITES The government has also announced that it will block all livestreaming, stranger communication and gaming sites for those under 16 years old. Starmer stated that this would prevent strangers from contacting children via these sites. GOVERNMENT WILL?LOOK AT CURFEWS AND RESTRICTIONS on SCROLLING Next month, the government will provide more details in its response. It will also examine in greater detail overnight curfews and breaks in endless scrolling for those?under 18 years old. The government has announced that restrictions on functionality banned for users under 16 will be automatically applied to 16 and 17-year olds. (Reporting and editing by Jan Harvey; Alistair Smout and Andrew MacAskill)
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China targets heavy truck electric-drive in a bid to reduce diesel demand
China has?launched a campaign to electrify heavy vehicles, a policy which is likely to 'accelerate' a move away from diesel fuel that reduces fuel demand while creating new opportunities for domestic battery and truck manufacturers. According to a message posted on the Ministry of Transport's website late Friday, by 2030 EVs are expected to account for 40% of all new heavy trucks sold in China, and 20% of its total fleet. That is 1.6 million cars. On some short-haul route around Beijing, the goal is 80%. This is the first specific goal the country has set for this sector. It surpasses Rystad's September prediction that electric heavy trucks will account for 9% or China's fleet in 2030. According to CVWorld.cn data, in 2025, the electric model will account for nearly a third (33%) of all new heavy trucks. This is a product that has grown quickly over the past two years, from a niche to a mainstream product, thanks to subsidies and an expanded charging infrastructure. As part of the "zero carbon highway" initiative, the new plan calls for a massive expansion of power infrastructure. It targets 3,000 charging stations and battery swapping stations by 2030. China may move to electric trucks even faster than government targets suggest. This is similar to the way that China's renewable energy rollout has accelerated ahead of government goals. Last year, EV giant CATL forecast that up to half of China's heavy trucks sales would be electric by 2028. The new plan said that to support the rollout of electric trucks, they will be given a higher priority in China's exchange programs. These programs offer subsidies for trading out older trucks. These trade-in programs were responsible for a previous surge of LNG truck sales in recent years, along with a decline in fuel prices. SUPER-CHARGING State-backed efforts to electrify trucks?will likely boost the domestic truck?makers. Many of whom have already begun to export their vehicles. This has sparked concern among European manufacturers who are worried about an influx cheap, high-quality goods. Beiben Trucks Group officials in Inner Mongolia, northern China, showcased during a Saturday state-sponsored tour a new dump truck model equipped with an EV battery EVE Energy's 200-250-kilometre-range battery that charges in just 22 minutes. Bai Xiaolong is a senior specialist at Beiben’s strategy development /department. She said that China is the main'market' for the company, given the limited charging infrastructure in other countries. However, the company exports about a 5th of its trucks. Southeast Asia has emerged as a hotspot for electric trucks overseas, Bai stated, especially in mining applications, in countries such as Indonesia.
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HSBC Hong Kong Mobile Banking Services restored after issues
HSBC said Monday that all 'digital'services were back to normal in Hong Kong before 2 p.m. local (0600 GMT) after customers experienced problems using the HSBC?mobile banking application earlier in the day. In an email to customers, the bank stated that "all our services were back to normal before 2:00 pm today." We apologize for any inconvenience caused. It had earlier stated that some customers were experiencing difficulty in accessing certain services, and it was working on a solution. HSBC 'didn't say what caused the problem or how many customers were affected. Reports stated that'some users were locked out of the application earlier in the day. Media reports from the time said that Hong Kong services of the bank also experienced a disruption in late January.
There are some flights to the Middle East that have resumed but there is still disruption.
Some airlines have begun to restore some flights in the Middle East, although many suspensions remain in place following the U.S. and Israeli?strikes against Iran in February that disrupted global travel. Here is a list of the current status of airline flights in alphabetical order.
AEGEAN AIRLINES
Thessaloniki-Tel Aviv flights were cancelled by Greece's biggest carrier until 26 June. Dubai flights are cancelled through August 31. Erbil, Baghdad and Erbil flights will be cancelled until September 30.
AIRBALTIC
AirBaltic, a Latvian airline, has canceled flights to Tel Aviv and Dubai until the 28th of June.
AIR CANADA
Canadian Airlines has canceled flights to Tel Aviv, Dubai and Abu Dhabi until October 24.
AIR EUROPA
Spanish Airlines has cancelled all flights to Tel Aviv up until the 28th of June.
AIR FRANCE-KLM
Air France suspends Tel Aviv flights through June 21 and Beirut and Dubai flights through June 24.
KLM has suspended flights from Dubai to Riyadh until August 2, and until July 26 to Dammam and Riyadh.
CATHAY PACIFIC
Hong Kong Airlines has suspended its flights to Dubai and Riyadh through August 31.
The U.S. carrier suspended service for the Atlanta-Tel Aviv routes?through December 18th. The airline plans to resume New York JFK to Tel Aviv flight on September 6. Boston to Tel Aviv service, which was scheduled to launch in late October, will now be delayed.
FINNAIR
It has canceled its Doha flights and will continue to avoid Israel, Iran, Iraq, Syria, and the airspace surrounding those countries. The airline will resume its Dubai flights in October, which are only operated during the winter season.
British Airways, owned by IAG, delayed the resume of flights to Doha and Riyadh to August 8th. Flights from Amman, Bahrain, Amman, Dubai, Tel Aviv and Dubai are suspended until the end of'summer'. They are expected to resume on 25 October. When the flights resume, it plans to reduce service to Dubai, Doha and Riyadh to just one flight per day, while dropping Jeddah from its list of destinations.
JAPAN AIRLINES
Japan Airlines has suspended all scheduled flights between Tokyo and Doha until August 1st, and Doha to Tokyo until July 31st.
Polish Airlines has cancelled all flights to Riyadh and Beirut until 30 June. LOT will begin operating its winter route from Dubai in October.
LUFTHANSA GROUP
Lufthansa has announced that it will resume Tel Aviv flights as soon as July 1, whereas ITA Airways has confirmed they will resume them as of July 1. SWISS delayed the return of flights to August, while Brussels Airlines suspended its operations until October 24.
The suspension of Dubai flights by Lufthansa SWISS and ITA Airways continues until September 13th.
Lufthansa has suspended all flights until October 24 to Abu Dhabi, Amman Beirut, Dammam Riyadh Erbil Muscat Tehran.
Eurowings, a low-cost airline, has suspended its flights to Tel Aviv and Beirut until July 9 and July 17, respectively. Erbil and Dubai will be affected until June 30, and Amman and Abu Dhabi until October 24.
ITA Airways also?extended its suspension of flights to Riyadh till July 31.
MALAYSIA AIRLINES
From July 2, the Malaysian airline will resume limited service to Doha.
NORWEGIAN AIR
The low-cost carrier has delayed the launch of its Tel Aviv, Beirut and other services indefinitely. No new dates have been set.
QANTAS
Australia's national carrier has added flights to Rome, Paris and other European destinations to meet the increased demand. The number of flights to Paris is to increase to five weekly return flights from three, and the Perth to Singapore service will go from daily to ten a week. A new?schedule for flights will be implemented gradually from mid-April until late July.
ROYAL MAROC
Moroccan airline announced that flights to Doha have been cancelled until 30 June.
SINGAPORE Airlines
In response to increased demand, the carrier has extended the suspension of its Singapore-Dubai flights until August?2. It also added services on Singapore-London Gatwick (late March) and Singapore-Melbourne (late March-October 24).
TURKISH AIRLINES
SunExpress, a joint venture between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa has cancelled flights from Dubai to Bahrain until June 30, and Erbil, Beirut, and Erbil to July 14.
WIZZ AIR
Low-cost airlines have suspended flights from Europe to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Amman until mid-September. (Compiled by Josephine Mason and Jamie Freed. Elviira Lioma, Tiago Branao, Agnieszka Olesska, Bernadette HOG, Alexander Klyve Gudbrandsen, Romolo TOSIANI, Boleslaw LaSocki). Matt Scuffham and Alexander Smith edited by Susan Fenton, Milla Nissi-Prussak Jonathan Ananda Joe Bavier, Louise Heavens, Louise Heavens, Louise Heavens, Louise Heavens, Louise Heavens, Louise Heavens, Louise Heaven, Bernadette Hogg, Romolo Tosiani.
(source: Reuters)