Transport Infrastructure

These are the most popular stories from the Wall Street Journal. These stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch their accuracy. Costco sued the U.S. Government to make sure it gets a refund if the Supreme Court rejected President Donald Trump’s request for broad authority to impose tariffs. Apple has appointed Amar Subramanya, a veteran researcher and AI expert, as its new vice president. He replaces John Giannandrea. The Trump administration agreed to buy a stake in xLight, a startup that is developing free-electron lasers. These lasers are seen as a key component to creating faster computer chips....

The U.S. Transportation Department announced on Monday that it could withhold up $30.4 million of federal highway funding to Minnesota due to improperly issued commercial driver's licenses to non-U.S. citizens. After a federal audit, the letter sent to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz gave Minnesota 30 days to comply and revoke licenses. After a fatal accident in Florida and an audit by the government, the Transportation Department issued emergency regulations to severely restrict commercial drivers licenses for non-U.S. Citizens. Walz's spokesperson did not respond immediately to a comment request. Separately USDOT announced that it would remove nearly 3,000 commercial license training...

According to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, and the police, flights to Philadelphia International Airport were temporarily grounded due to a threat of a bomb. The incident was resolved without incident. Soon after 7 pm local time (00:00 GMT), the FAA issued an advisory to ground staff at the airport, stating that there was a threat of a bomb. The FAA announced that the incident had been resolved and normal operations were resumed about 30 minutes after the initial announcement. A police spokesperson stated in an email that the ground stoppage occurred because of a "situation aboard the plane that...

Kenya and two Chinese firms will begin construction on a $1.5billion highway expansion in East Africa this Friday. This marks Beijing's return after years of absence to major infrastructure developments. The partners will finance the project in two phases using a combination of debt and equity. This model is becoming more popular after China's traditional loan model raised concerns about borrowers' debt loads. Kefa SEDA, Director General of Public-Private Partnerships at Kenya's Finance Ministry told the official launch that "we don't have the room to borrow more money." The project will upgrade a vital transport corridor connecting Kenya's port city...

BlackRock and MSC’s bid to buy most of CK Hutchison’s global port operations is facing a major obstacle in Europe. EU antitrust regulators are set to investigate the Spanish part of the deal. CK Hutchison, owned by Hong Kong tycoon Li Kashing, wants to sell 80% of its stake in the $22.8billion ports business. This includes 43 ports in 23 different countries. It is a politically sensitive transaction that has become entangled in tensions between China and the United States. BlackRock and MSC could be asked to make concessions in exchange for the clearance of the Spanish deal, as a...

National Storage REIT in Australia said that it received a buyout offer of A$4.02 Billion ($2.61 Billion) from a Brookfield-GIC consortium. This would be Australia's largest real estate privatisation. The consortium offered National Storage investors A$2.86 per share in cash, which is a premium of 26.5% over Tuesday's closing value. The deal would surpass Brookfield's A$1.27 Billion acquisition of Aveo Group by Brookfield in 2019. David Tuckwell said, Chief Investment Officer at ETF Shares: "This bid represents a huge vote of confidence for the Australian sector. It is also a very clever move by Brookfield." The demand for NSR is...

According to LSEG and two industry sources, Russia's Black Sea Port of Tuapse resumed exports of oil products last week, after a suspension for two weeks due to drone attacks by Ukraine. The local refinery also re-started processing crude oil. According to sources and data from ship tracking, the Gambia flagged tanker Sandhya departed Tuapse with 30,000 metric tonnes of gasoil on November 17, and was heading towards the Suez Canal. On November 18, the Satna, a tanker with the Malawi flag, loaded around 30,000 tonnes of gasoil. The traders claimed that the fuel stored in tanks on these two...

The Port of Los Angeles announced on Saturday that a fire on a cargo vessel, which sent smoke billowing throughout the second-most populous U.S. City, had been "substantially confined" after several hour. The shelter-in-place order for two neighborhoods in the city has been lifted. There have been no injuries reported. A fire started on the dock of the One Henry Hudson in San Pedro, Los Angeles at around 6:30 pm local time. Officials said that fire crews and members of the ship's crew continued to suppress the fire on Saturday after the vessel had been towed from its berth in...

The Los Angeles Fire Department reported that all crew members were evacuated from container ship One Henry Hudson on Friday after an explosion and fire disrupted its power and crane operation at San Pedro Port. The port has identified hazardous materials in several bays. Firefighters are using protective gear, including self-contained respirators. LAFD reported that marine units are continuing to cool the exterior of the ship, and no personnel is allowed below deck. ABC's affiliate broadcasts footage of firefighting boats spraying water over the containers that are on fire and the sides of the ship. Port officials announced that four...

Initial investigation has revealed that the Turkish cargo plane which skidded off of the runway in Hong Kong last month killing two airport employees experienced acceleration after landing in one of its four engine. A preliminary report released by Hong Kong's Air Accident Investigation Authority late on Tuesday stated that the flight from Dubai operated by ACT Airlines for Emirates was normal up until shortly after landing. Report: The Boeing 747 cargo aircraft was dispatched without the thrust reverser of engine 4, which is allowed under aviation regulations. After landing, thrust reversers can help to slow down the aircraft by...

Motiva announced on Tuesday that Mexico's Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste signed a deal to purchase the Brazilian infrastructure operator Motiva's airport portfolio for $11.5 billion (about $2.16 billion), which includes net debt. ASUR will pay ASUR 5 billion reais to acquire Motiva's airport stake, with the remainder being paid through net debt. This is according to a filing by Motiva. The sale is still subject to antitrust approvals. It includes Motiva's stakes at 17 Brazilian airports as well as international hubs located in the capital of Ecuador, Quito, Costa Rica, and Curacao. Motiva says that these airports serve about 45...

Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will hold a hearing to determine the probable causes of the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge in March 2024 that was caused by the cargo vessel Dali. Six people were killed. The board was prompted by the incident to demand urgent safety assessments for 68 bridges across 19 states, including iconic crossings such as the Golden Gate Bridge. Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Brooklyn Bridge. and George Washington Bridge. The review is focused on bridges that were built before 1991, and are frequented frequently by ocean-going ships. These bridges have not been subjected...

The Turkish maritime authority reported on Tuesday that a Russian-flagged oil tanker, sailing from Russia to Georgia with sunflower oil loaded aboard, was attacked near the Turkish coast. However, its 13 crew members were not injured. The Maritime Affairs Directorate reported that the vessel MIDVOLGA-2 had been attacked 80 miles (129 kilometers) off the Turkish coastline, but it did not request assistance. It was heading towards the Sinop port in Turkey. The report did not give any other details. Last Friday, Ukrainian drones targeted two tankers that were sanctioned in the Black Sea, as they approached a Russian port with...

After a drone attack that severely damaged the loading infrastructure and halted oil exports, Kazakhstan asked Ukraine to stop attacking its Black Sea terminal, which is used by the Caspian Pipeline Consortium. This terminal handles more than 1 percent of all global oil. CPC, which has shareholders from Russia, Kazakhstan and the United States, announced that it had stopped operations after an attack by a Ukrainian drone on a mooring in its Russian terminal at the Black Sea caused significant damage. In an effort to undermine the Russian war economy, Ukraine launched a wave of attacks this year on Russia's...

The city's mayor reported that Russian air defences destroyed eight drones on their way to Moscow, just a day after an attack by Ukraine on a heat and power station had cut off the heating for thousands of people outside the Russian capital. According to the Russian Defence Ministry, 10 Ukrainian drones were downed in three Russian regions, including Moscow and Kaluga, as well as Bryansk which borders Ukraine, on Monday. In a press release, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin stated that emergency services are working on the site of the drones. The drone attack on the Shatura Power Station in...

Sources say that the differentials between Russian Urals crude and other grades are under pressure due to the weakening value of the grade in India's ports. Three sources in the oil trade reported that discounts for Russian Urals crude have tripled in Indian ports since August compared to Brent dated as U.S. sanction drive key buyers from Moscow-supplied fuel. According to traders, the December Urals cargoes are currently trading at a discount of $5-$6 per barrel compared to Brent. This is about three times greater than the $1-2 seen in August. PLATTS WINDOW There were no bids or offers reported...

The Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced on Tuesday that Poland had identified two individuals responsible for the explosion that occurred on a rail route leading to Ukraine. He added that these were Ukrainians that collaborated with Russian intelligence, and that they fled to Belarus. The explosion on the Warsaw-Lublin Line, which connects Poland's capital with the Ukrainian border, came after a wave arson, cyberattacks and sabotage in Poland and other European nations since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine. Warsaw said that Poland is now one of Moscow's main targets because it acts as a hub to aid Kyiv....

Rostec, a Russian state-owned conglomerate, said that on Tuesday its defence exports had fallen by half since the year 2022 due to domestic orders becoming a priority in light of the conflict in Ukraine. However, Rostec expects a recovery within upcoming months. Sergey Chemezov, Rostec's chief executive officer, told reporters that until 2022 Russia ranked second in the world in terms of defence exports after the United States. However the volume has dropped "because we had to supply the majority of our production to our own army". He said that sanctions have caused problems in both the civil and defense...

Last week, Ukraine attacked the port of Novorossiysk in Russia and forced it to suspend its oil exports. The Neptune rocket it used was one of many long-range weapons Ukraine developed since the invasion in 2022. According to Kyiv, here is a list of the new Ukrainian weapons. LONG NEPTUNE Ukraine claims its "Long Neptune", a land-attack cruise rocket with a maximum range of 1,000 km (621 mi), is produced domestically. The missile was developed using the Neptune antiship missile, which had a shorter range before the invasion. Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the President of Russia, announced in March that its range...

The oil prices dropped in the early Asian trading on Monday, wiping out the gains of last week, as loadings were resumed at Novorossiysk, the major Russian export hub, after a suspension of two days at the Black Sea Port that was hit by an attack from Ukraine. Brent crude futures fell 58 cents or 0.9% to $63.81 per barrel at 0050 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded at $59.50 per barrel, down by 59 cents or 1.0% since Friday's closing. The benchmarks both rose by more than 2% to close the week on a modest note. Exports...

Two industry sources and LSEG data show that the Russian port of Novorossiysk resumed oil loadings Sunday, after a suspension lasting two days due to a Ukrainian drone and missile attack. Novorossiysk temporarily halted oil exports on Friday, equating to 2.2 millions barrels of oil per day or 2% global supply. According to two anonymous industry sources, loadings have resumed. According to LSEG, two tankers - the Suezmax and Aframax classes Rodos - are loading oil on the port's berths. Two oil berths were damaged by a Ukrainian drone at the Russian Black Sea port Novorossiysk on Friday, which forced...

The airport director announced on Tuesday that talks are in progress between the Moldovan government and Russia's Lukoil about buying the energy company’s infrastructure at Chisinau Airport as part of an effort to implement U.S. Sanctions imposed last month. Serdgiu Spoiala stated that he did not see any risk of the airport running out of aviation fuel, after the government proposed to buy Lukoil’s facilities on Monday. The sanctions imposed by the United States on Lukoil and Rosneft were linked to the war that has lasted for more than three-and-a-half years in Ukraine. Currently, it is the only supplier of...

Two industry sources said on Tuesday that the Russian energy company Novatek had restored to full capacity its gas condensate facility at the Baltic Sea Port of Ust-Luga following repairs of damaged equipment caused by drone attacks in August. The fire was caused by Ukrainian drones on August 24. This led to the complete shutdown of the operation, including the fuel export loading. It is one of many disruptions in Russia's energy sector as Ukraine intensifies drone attacks during the ongoing conflict between the two neighbours. One source said that the daily processing of stable condensate (a type of lighter...

In an opaque market, the differentials between urals crude and other grades remained stable on Monday as participants assessed the impact of sanctions placed on Lukoil last month and Rosneft the previous month on the supply of this grade to India and Turkey. Sources in the trade said that two Indian state refiners bought 5 million barrels from spot markets as they continued to search for alternatives to Russian oil supplies. Sources said that Lukoil declared force majore at its Iraqi field of oil, while Bulgaria was preparing to seize the Burgas refinery as its international operations buckled due to...