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Dutch transportation minister defends Tesla FSD approval
The Netherlands' transport minister denied on Tuesday that the influential 'RDW' authority had used statistics provided by Tesla to approve the "Full Self Driving" software of the company for use on Dutch highways. RDW approved Tesla's software on 10 April, a European-first. It said it thought it would contribute to safety. The agency has requested that the European Union approve FSD for use in the entire 27-nation block. This led to preliminary approvals being granted to Belgium, Denmark and Estonia. Minister Vincent Karremans who oversees infrastructure faced questions in parliament after a report that claimed Tesla had misled the RDW and European agencies about safety data. Karremans stated that it is possible to doubt the statistics presented by Tesla, but they have not been the basis for the RDW's acceptance. "We asked RDW about this, and they said that it was not true," he added, adding that RDW approval is based on "independently verifiable testing". MINISTER SAYS THERE HAVE BEEN NO INCIDENTS SO FAR Tesla's FSD, or driver assistance system, can steer, brake and accelerate a vehicle. Drivers should keep their eyes on road and be ready to take control. Karremans stated that Teslas fitted with the system have driven 24 million miles in Dutch roads so far "without any notable incident". This is in line with a 'Tesla Europe's statement on X from June 9, which stated that cars fitted with the software have driven in the Netherlands 23.6?million km (15 million miles), with no highway accidents and?three on smaller roads. Tesla's statement covered a period from April 10 to June 5. RDW was unable to confirm Tesla's statement immediately. It stated that it did not rely on data provided by Tesla in its assessment. In an email response to questions, the RDW said that it "takes note of any information provided by manufacturers" but bases its decision solely on a comprehensive independent assessment in compliance with European regulations. (Reporting and editing by Barbara Lewis; Toby Sterling)
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Riyadh Air, a Saudi-backed airline, has been granted permission to fly US routes
The U.S. Transportation Department announced Tuesday that Saudi Arabia's Riyadh Air won the rights to fly to and from the United States. Last week, the airline began its first London flight using its new Boeing fleet. Riyadh Air, Saudi Arabia's next national airline, will be launched in 2023. It is owned by Saudia's Public Investment Fund. USDOT stated that "the grant of this authority is in the public's interest." Riyadh Air informed the?USDOT last month when it requested approval that it intended to operate to more than 100 destinations Delta Air Lines, for example, has or is planning partnerships with at least 10 international airlines. Delta plans to launch nonstop flights to Riyadh in October from Atlanta. Last week, Tony Douglas, CEO of Riyadh, said that the company plans to deliver eight aircraft by the end of July and fly to 22 destinations by March 2027. Douglas describes it as "the largest global aviation startup in recent history" with up to 72 787s, 60 A321neos, and 50 A350s ordered. The airline is part of the plan for the oil-producing nation to diversify their economy by focusing on new industries like tourism, logistics, and technology. Douglas stated that Riyadh Air has so far announced routes to Cairo, Dubai, Jeddah and Manchester, with cities in India likely to follow.
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Sources say that the Moscow oil refinery stopped production on 16 June after a drone attack.
Two industry sources confirmed that a Moscow oil refinery stopped operations on Tuesday after a?Ukrainian drone attack. Sources said that the strike was claimed by Ukraine and caused a fire at the primary refinery CDU-6, which can process 21,400 metric tonnes of oil per day. This is 53% of its capacity. Sources who requested anonymity as they were not authorised to speak in public said that the refinery is expected to resume its operations at its second primary unit soon. This unit can process 18,800 tons per day. The local?emergency service said earlier on Tuesday that the fire at the refinery was put out, and operations were not affected. Sergei Sobyanin, the Moscow mayor, said that a facility on site was?damaged without providing further details. The refinery, located in the southeast part of Moscow?supplies fuel to Russia?s capital. Gazpromneft did not respond immediately to a comment request. Sources claim that the refinery will process?11,6 million metric tonnes of crude oil by 2024 (or about?230,000 barrels a day) and produce 2.9 millions?tons gasoline, 3.2million tons diesel and 1.3million tons bitumen. Reporting by Kirsten Doovan; Editing by Kirsten Doovan
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US natgas at Waha turns positive for the first time since February, as pipeline constraints ease
?U.S. The spot price of natural gas for Tuesday at the Waha Hub, in West Texas, turned positive for the first time since February. This is because the demand for fuel has increased with the arrival of summer air conditioning and as energy firms are finishing spring pipeline maintenance. Electric companies use more gas during summer as businesses and homes crank up the air conditioners. Gas-fired power plants account for about 40% of U.S. electricity generation. Prior to Tuesday, Waha's next-day price had been below zero for an unprecedented?90 consecutive days as pipeline restrictions from spring maintenance trapped the gas in the Permian basin, the nation’s largest oil-producing region in West Texas and eastern New Mexico. Analysts have said for years that negative prices, forcing some energy companies to pay other firms to take gas in conjunction with their oil production were a sign the Permian needed more gas pipelines. There will be more pipes later this year but not fast enough to deal with the current gas production. Analysts predict that energy firms will boost Permian production as new pipes are put into service, and as rising oil prices due to the Iran war encourage oil producers to extract more oil. The U.S. Energy Information Administration predicts that Permian Gas output will reach new record highs each month between May and November as new pipes enter service. In November, it is expected to reach 30.1 billion cubic foot per day (bcfd). This amount of gas could provide around a quarter of the fuel used in the U.S. One billion cubic feet of gas is enough to fuel five million U.S. households for one day. NEGATIVE GAS PRICES Permian energy firms are willing to accept some losses in gas, as they can compensate for the profits made from selling oil. In the past decade, negative gas prices were rare. Environmental rules were less strict and drillers were able to?flare off or burn some of their unwanted gases. In recent years, this gas has gained in value as a fuel for data centers that need a lot of power. It can also be exported via pipelines to Mexico or as LNG to other markets. Waha Hub: Spot prices The price of a million British thermal unit (mmBtu), which was minus 8 cents on Monday, rose to 42 cents on Tuesday. Daily Waha prices?averaged under zero for the first time in 2019. The price of Daily Waha was first?averaged below zero in 2019. The average Waha price per mmBtu has been negative $2.19 so far in 2026. This compares to a positive $1.15 for 2025, and a $2.88 positive over the last five years (from 2021-2025). (Reporting and editing by Louise Heavens, Paul Simao, and Scott DiSavino)
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There are some flights to the Middle East that have resumed but there is still disruption.
Despite the fact that most of the suspensions remain in place after the U.S. and Israeli strikes against?Iran, which disrupted global travel in February. The following is a list of the current status of flights by alphabetical order. AEGEAN AIRLINES Thessaloniki-Tel Aviv flights were cancelled by Greece's biggest carrier until June 26. Dubai flights are canceled until August 31. Erbil and Baghdad flights will be canceled until September 30. AIRBALTIC AirBaltic, a Latvian airline, has cancelled all flights to Dubai and Tel 'Aviv until June 28. AIR CANADA Canadian Airlines has cancelled all 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 suspended flights to Tel Aviv until June 23. Flights to Beirut will be suspended until June 24, and flights to Dubai will be cancelled until June 30. 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 until August 31. The U.S. carrier suspended service for the Atlanta-Tel Aviv routes through December 18. The airline plans to resume New York JFK to Tel Aviv flight on September 6?while its Boston to Tel Aviv route has been postponed until further notice. FINNAIR Finnair has cancelled all Doha flights up until October 2 and continues to avoid the airspace over Iraq, Iran Syria, and Israel. In October, it will resume Dubai flights that are only operated during the winter. British Airways, owned by IAG, has delayed the return of flights to Doha and Riyadh to August 1st. Flights from Amman, Bahrain, Amman, Dubai, Tel Aviv and Dubai are suspended until the end the summer season. They are expected to resume on the 25th of October. It plans to reduce the number of flights to Dubai, Doha and Riyadh to just one per day when it resumes, and to drop Jeddah from its list of destinations. JAPAN AIRLINES Japan Airlines has suspended its scheduled Tokyo-Doha and Doha-Tokyo flight until August 1, as well as Doha-Tokyo until July 31. 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 early as July 1, while ITA Airways confirms they will resume them on July 1. SWISS delayed the resumption until August, while Brussels Airlines suspended flights until October 24. The suspension of Dubai flights by Lufthansa SWISS and ITA Airways continues until September 13th. Lufthansa and SWISS have suspended flights until October 24 to Abu Dhabi, Amman Beirut Dammam Riyadh Erbil?Muscat Tehran. Eurowings, a low-cost carrier, has suspended its flights to Tel Aviv and Beirut until July 9 and until July 17. It also suspends its flights to Erbil and?Dubai until June 30, and to Amman and Abu Dhabi until October 24. ITA Airways also extended its suspension of flights to Riyadh through July 31. MALAYSIA AIRLINES From July 2, the Malaysian airline will resume limited service to Doha. NORWEGIAN AIR Low-cost carrier has delayed its planned launch of Tel Aviv and Beirut indefinitely and no new dates have been determined. ROYAL MAROC Moroccan airline announced that flights to Doha have been cancelled until 30 June. SINGAPORE Airlines In response to a?higher level of demand, the carrier has extended its Singapore-Dubai suspension until August 2. It also added services on Singapore-London Gatwick as well as?Singapore - Melbourne routes from late-March until October 24, in order to accommodate?higher demand. TURKISH AIRLINES SunExpress, Turkish Airlines joint venture with Lufthansa has cancelled flights to Dubai, Bahrain, Beirut, and Erbil, until 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.
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Sources say that the freight rates for Russian Urals are expected to ease in June.
Two trade sources reported that freight rates for tanker shipments of Urals crude oil from Russia's western port 'to India' eased in June compared to last month due to seasonal factors, increased 'availability' of vessels and shippers' optimistic view of the opening of Strait of Hormuz. Two trade sources said that the United States and Iran reached a deal on a peace agreement, which would end the?war? in Iran and allow free passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Sources said that the blockade caused a dramatic increase in freight rates around the world, including on the Russian oil shipping markets. The agreement is expected to reduce freight rates and facilitate shipping through the Strait. Sources claim that the cost to ship Aframax cargoes from Primorsk (typically 100,000 tons) to India has dropped to $10 to $11 millions, down from over $13 million at the end of May. The cost to?ship Urals from Novorossiisk, a Black Sea port, to India via Suezmax tanks (140,000-ton cargo) has dropped to $15 million. According to sources, the'summer?season' facilitates tanker loading in Russia's western port and increases vessel turnover due to more favourable weather conditions. The tanker market was cooled by an expected drop in exports for June. The sources did add that the final June export programme could exceed expectations due to the ongoing drone attacks on Russian refineries, which are releasing available crude oil volumes.
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Seven anarchists arrested in Italy over Winter Olympics rail sabotage network
Seven people have been arrested by the Italian police for allegedly 'belonging to a militant anarchist network' and sabotaging a high-speed rail line during the Winter Olympics in February. In a?statement? on Tuesday, the police stated that a judge ordered that five suspects be kept in prison while two were placed under house-arrest. Charges include terrorist associations and subversion of democratic order. Two of the arrested people were accused by police of being involved in an attack on the Rome to Florence high-speed railway line that took place on February 14. Investigators claim that the'sabotage' was committed using improvised explosives. The damage caused to infrastructure is estimated at EUR455,000 ($528,000). The sabotage caused delays of over an hour during the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics which took place from February 6-22. "The sabotage, along with another attack carried out at the same time on the Rome-Naples line, was claimed on the website ispiraazione.noblogs.org, created specifically a few months earlier," police ?said. The police added that the statement of the anarchists explicitly referred to timing and the Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina, as well as anti-militarist goals and violent attacks on infrastructure. According to police, this group is based in Rome, but maintains links with other cells located?in Bologna Milan and Naples. Rome's prosecutors issued search warrants for other suspects in investigation across?several Italian towns. The '40-page statement, posted on a website cited by the police, also claimed responsibility for the March sabotage of the Transalpine Pipeline.
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Yandex Bank is the target of UK sanctions against Russia's shadow navy
Britain imposed new sanctions on Russia Tuesday. They targeted Yandex Bank and a network that is linked to Russian military intelligence. Also, they targeted dozens of vessels suspected of shipping Russian gas and oil into third-country countries as part Moscow's shadow fleet. The package also included Evofinance Mosnarbank, Wildberries Bank and insurer Rosgosstrakh. "These sanctions are aimed at the ships, the money, and the people who support Russia's war economic, which in turn threatens European security," stated Prime Minister Keir starmer, who is in France for a Group of Seven summit. The G7 countries have sanctioned more than 20 oil tanks and several LNG vessels in the first ever sanctions imposed by a G7 nation on ships connected to Russia's Arctic LNG 2 project. According to the British government, Britain has sanctioned over 600 shadow fleet ships to date. In?March, Starmer granted permission to the military to board and detain vessels suspected of helping Russia to export oil in spite of Western restrictions. British 'commandos' intercepted an oil tanker sanctioned by the shadow fleet in the Channel, Sunday. The new sanctions target what Britain called a 'Russian military intelligence procurement network, centred around Neptune Co Ltd. They accused the company of secretly acquiring Western technologies for Russia's defense sector. $1 = 0.7443 pounds (Reporting and editing by William James, Sarah Young and Alistair Smout)
BYD, a Chinese battery manufacturer, increases production in Brazil
BYD, the Chinese electric carmaker, is increasing battery production in Brazil. A senior executive said that BYD was investing about $100 million into energy storage systems for Brazil's national grid. In a recent interview, Alexandre Baldy said that the expansion was part of a larger push to reach a 50% domestic content for its Brazilian-made vehicles by 2027.
Baldy stated that "we are localizing" so we can become a Brazilian producer. Battery is another item that's important. In order to meet government demands and reduce its tax burden, BYD has increased local sourcing in its Bahia plant. The company aims to become the top-selling auto brand in Brazil by 2030. BYD already ranks among the top five car brands in Brazil.
The launch of the passenger car battery production is part of a plan to invest $1.08 billion in its flagship factory in Camacari in Bahia. BYD will invest between 50 and 60 millions reais in order to expand the line that produces bus batteries.
The company is also planning to invest up to 500 million reais (98 million dollars) in a production line for its Battery Energy Storage System, which stores electricity for the grid. This will be done in advance of the December auction for industrial-scale batteries. BYD's BESS units are seen as a key solution to the crisis that has been affecting solar and wind generators in Brazil. These companies have suffered heavy losses and stopped investments due to the fact that the national grid could not absorb their output during peak hours.
Baldy stated that "this truly opens up a new segment for batteries." BYD must decide within 90 days whether to use its?BESS investment for a new production line in Manaus, which is currently focused on bus battery production, or build a facility somewhere else. The Chinese automaker, which has purchased mineral rights in a lithium rich?part?of Brazil, has no immediate plans to develop these areas, due to the low cost of the'mineral used in battery production.
He said: "It's not on our agenda, and it isn't a topic of discussion within the company." "We're concentrating on consolidating BYD's passenger car factory and expanding our electric bus production capacity."
(source: Reuters)