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Bangladesh and World Bank Sign $850 Million Deal to Boost Jobs, Trade
The Washington-based lender announced that Bangladesh and the World Bank signed two financing deals worth $850m on Wednesday to improve the South Asian nation's trade capability, create jobs and modernise the social protection system. The majority of the funding (650 million dollars) will be used to support the Bay Terminal Marine Infrastructure Development Project. This project aims to modernise and expand port facilities in Chittagong's southeastern district. The project includes the construction of a 6-km-long (3.7-mile-long) breakwater and access channel that is climate-resilient, which will allow the port to handle larger vessels. The project is expected to reduce turnaround times and lower transportation costs. It will also boost Bangladesh's competitiveness in exports. Officials estimate that improvements to the economy could save around $1,000,000 per day. Bay Terminal will handle approximately 36% of all container traffic in the country, allowing more than a million people to benefit from improved access to regional markets and transport. The project will encourage women to participate in port operations, and help women-led companies explore trade opportunities. Gayle Martin's statement, interim country director of the World Bank for Bangladesh said that in order to remain on a path for sustainable growth, Bangladesh needs to create quality jobs, especially for the 2 million young people who enter the workforce every year. The $200 million remaining will be used to fund the Strengthening social protection for improved resilience, inclusion, and targeting project. This will provide cash and livelihood services for 4.5 million people who are vulnerable. The project will focus on youth, women and persons with disabilities as well as workers in climate-affected regions. The project will create a national database to improve service delivery and targeting. The project will provide micro-credits, entrepreneurship mentoring, and skills training. The World Bank's International Development Association has provided more than 45 billion dollars to Bangladesh since 1971. Reporting by RumaPaul; Editing and proofreading by SonaliPaul
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Chevron's tankers that were chartered to transport Venezuelan crude oil are looking for other work
Sources say that some tankers Chevron chartered this month to transport crude oil from Venezuela to the U.S. are now being sold for spot contracts in other countries after the state company PDVSA cancelled loading permits and ordered them to return the cargoes due to payment uncertainty associated with sanctions. Chevron's marketing for the vessels suggests that it does not expect all of its cargoes to be loaded in one month, even if the dispute with PDVSA is resolved. Agelef Maritime Services was marketing the Tanker Sea Dragon that discharged Venezuelan Boscan heavy oil in Philadelphia. Two sources familiar with this matter confirmed it. Sources confirmed that Chevron's Andromeda was the vessel marketing Andromeda which discharged Venezuelan Hamaca crude earlier this month at Port Arthur. Six more tankers that Chevron chartered in order to transport Venezuelan crude oil to the U.S. as part of winding down its U.S. licence through May 27, are stranded in the Caribbean Sea awaiting directions. Last week, PDVSA ordered the return of two cargoes and cancelled loading permits for others. According to sources and ship tracking data, the Chevron chartered tanker Dubai Attraction was still waiting for customs paperwork in order to return its cargo as of Wednesday. The tanker had loaded some 300,000 barrels Venezuelan Boscan oil early in April. LSEG shipping data revealed that Carina Voyager was near Aruba last week after returning its 500,000 barrel cargo to PDVSA. According to a PDVSA document, the loading window for Sea Jaguar at Venezuela's Jose Terminal, originally scheduled for late April, has been canceled. According to tracking data, the ship hovered around Aruba on Wednesday. Chevron and PDVSA didn't respond to requests for comments. Venezuela Oil Minister Delcy Rodriguez stated in a post on social media that PDVSA maintains its commitments to Chevron, but Chevron has been "victimized" by U.S. sanctions. The data and documents show that other tankers chartered through Vitol are loading and unloading normally in Venezuelan ports. Meanwhile, vessels chartered for India and Maurel & Prom to deliver to Europe have left on time, before the deadline of May 27 to wind up cargoes. Reporting by Arathy S. Somasekhar, Houston. Editing by Franklin Paul & David Gregorio.
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Venezuela exports Blend 22 crude oil ahead of US expiration of licenses
Trading documents revealed that Venezuela will export a new medium blend of crude oil this month. This is part of a strategy to prevent a collapse in its revenue-generating sales of oil once the licenses of the U.S. sanctioned OPEC members expire next month. Washington revoked a few licenses in March that it had issued in the past to partners and customers of Venezuelan state company PDVSA for cargoes of Venezuelan oil bound for Spain Italy India and the U.S. The U.S. Treasury Department has given the companies until May 27, to complete their operations in Venezuela and ship all shipments. PDVSA began preparing for a reorganization of oil production, upgrading and exports after the announcement. This is especially true at the projects run by joint ventures that were affected by the license cancellations. One of these measures is to produce and sell "Blend 22", a new crude grade from the PDVSA Western fields. PDVSA increased its Blend 22 production and storage in recent months to attract customers in Europe, Asia and other regions that are looking for a medium-sour grade to refine. Sources said that the Venezuelan company actively markets the crude oil so it can ship it to other destinations including China once the licenses expire. Documents seen by.com show that the first two Blend 22 export cargoes were delivered by La Salina Port in Western Zulia to France's Maurel & Prom as part of a swap with heavy naphtha, which was delivered by PDVSA to this month. The swap had been authorized by a U.S. licence since last year. Trading house Vitol chartered the vessels to transport crude oil that arrived in Venezuelan water earlier this month. One document shows that the first tanker will carry around 250,000 barrels. The U.S. Treasury revoked the license of Paris-based M&P in late March, with a deadline of May 27 for the completion transactions. PDVSA and M&P have not responded to requests for comments. Vitol was not available for immediate comment. It wasn't immediately clear who would buy the new crude after Vitol. PDVSA is also trying to refine crude oil domestically in order to avoid fuel crises like the ones that caused day-long queues at stations during previous years when U.S. sanctions were being tightened. Venezuelan crude oil and fuel exports increased by about 11% last year to 770,000 barrels a day (bpd), the highest level since Washington imposed energy sanctions in 2019. The U.S. President Donald Trump’s tougher stance against the oil producer will likely stop the increase in exports, if both countries are unable to find solutions for current issues such as migration and democracy. Venezuela declared an economic emergency as a response to U.S. tariffs and sanctions. Officials reject the sanctions and say they are an "economic warfare."
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Morocco expresses interest in LNG terminal
Morocco, in an effort to diversify the energy sector that is heavily dependent on coal, made the first steps toward the location of a terminal for liquefied gas near the Mediterranean City of Nador. The Moroccan energy industry has expressed interest in the LNG terminal. Morocco is also pushing forward with a plan to increase renewable energy from 45% of installed capacity now to 52% by 2030. In a press release, the ministry announced that the terminal would be connected to an existing pipeline linking Morocco with Spain, as well as to industrial zones in Mohammedia, and Kenitra in the northwest of the country. According to estimates by the ministry, Morocco's gas demand is expected to grow to 8 billion cubic meters in 2027. It currently stands at 1 billion cubic metres. In addition, the statement said that the new infrastructure would also be connected to a project in development that aims at connecting Morocco to Nigerian natural gas fields. According to the energy ministry's responses sent to, the pipeline between Morocco and Nigeria, which was agreed in 2016, will cover 6800 km including 5100 km of offshore, and cost 25 billion dollars. The same source stated that Morocco and Nigeria were preparing to set up a special-purpose company which would look at the technical and legal aspects. It said that the project, which is backed by the West African grouping ECOWAS has completed the feasibility study and Front End Engineering stages (FEED). First phases of the project will connect Morocco with gas fields off Senegal, Mauritania and Ghana as well as Ivory Coast to Ghana. According to the ministry, the second phase will connect Nigeria with Ghana and the final phase will link Ivory Coast with Senegal. (Reporting and editing by David Gregorio; Ahmed Eljechtimi)
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Mexico exports its first ULSD shipment from Olmeca Refinery amid infrastructure problems
According to data from tanker tracking and a reliable source, Mexico exported its first cargo of ultra low sulfur diesel (ULSD), reprocessed at the new Olmeca Refinery, in early April. The infrastructure needed to transport this much-needed motor gasoline across the country was not yet ready. A source familiar with operations at the Madero refinery said that the Olmeca refinery received high-sulfur unfinished diesel from Tamaulipas, to convert it into ULSD. However, its own production remains marginal. Mexico is one of the world's largest crude oil producers, but it imports hundreds and thousands of barrels every day due to Pemex, its state-owned energy company struggling to convert heavy crudes it pumps into fuels. Olmeca was Pemex's seventh refinery, located in Mexico. It has a processing capacity of 340,000 barrels of oil per day. The facility is designed to help the country become energy independent. LSEG data revealed that the tanker Torm Singapore, flying the Danish flag, loaded about 300,000 barrels ULSD at Dos Bocas in early April, on a single buoy moored off of port. The vessel discharged the first parcel a few days later in Port Canaveral, Florida. A second parcel was then delivered to Yabucoa, Puerto Rico. According to LSEG's data, which has been compiled since the beginning of 2024, this was Mexico's very first shipment from Dos Bocas. According to data, a second tanker with the Italy flag, Valleblu, also loaded ULSD in Dos Bocas late last week, but it hasn't left yet. It was not possible to determine if Pemex will export more from Olmeca after the two cargoes. PMI Comercio Internacional (the commercial arm of Pemex) did not respond immediately to a comment request. Olmeca has so far produced petroleum coke and unfinished fuels, as is typical for refineries that are in the start-up phase. Last year, it was revealed that its first export was to India. One source stated that the diesel was exported because the refinery did not have enough pipelines and rail routes for large volumes to be transported domestically. They also said there were insufficient fuel trucks to distribute the diesel throughout the rest of the nation. A document that was shared with highlighted the fact that the construction of the refinery would be expensive and time-consuming. Pemex distributes small quantities of diesel from Olmeca's refinery via fuel trucks. It would have taken at least 1,300 fuel trucks to transport the same volume as what was exported. Former Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador inaugurated in July 2022 a part of the refinery infrastructure in Tabasco. He hailed it as vital to the energy independence for the country. The delay in completing the refinery has cost more than doubled, reaching $16,8 billion. It will now be up to Claudia Sheinbaum to finish the project. (Reporting from Marianna Pararaga and Stefanie Eschenbacher, Mexico City. Additional reporting by Ana Isabel Martinez in Mexico City. Editing by Mark Porter.)
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Chevron's tankers that were chartered to transport Venezuelan crude oil are looking for other work
Sources say that some tankers Chevron chartered in order to transport crude oil from Venezuela to the United States last month are being sold for spot contracts on other markets after the state company PDVSA cancelled loading permits and ordered them to return the cargoes due to payment uncertainty resulting from sanctions. Chevron's marketing for the vessels suggests that it does not expect all of its cargoes to be loaded in one month, even if the dispute with PDVSA is resolved. Agelef Maritime Services was marketing the Tanker Sea Dragon that discharged Venezuelan Boscan heavy oil in Philadelphia. Two sources familiar with this matter confirmed it. Sources confirmed that Chevron's Andromeda was the vessel marketing Andromeda which discharged Venezuelan Hamaca crude earlier this month at Port Arthur. Six more tankers that Chevron chartered in order to transport Venezuelan crude oil to the U.S. as part of winding down its U.S. licence through May 27, are stranded in the Caribbean Sea awaiting directions. Last week, PDVSA ordered the return of two cargoes and cancelled loading permits for others. According to sources and ship tracking data, the Chevron chartered tanker Dubai Attraction was still waiting for customs paperwork in order to return its cargo as of Wednesday. The tanker had loaded some 300,000 barrels Venezuelan Boscan oil early April. LSEG shipping data revealed that Carina Voyager was near Aruba last week after returning the 500,000 barrels of cargo to PDVSA. According to a PDVSA document, the loading window for Sea Jaguar at Venezuela's Jose Terminal, originally scheduled for late April, has been canceled. According to tracking data, the ship hovered around Aruba on Wednesday. PDVSA and Chevron have not responded to our requests for comment. The data and documents show that other tankers chartered through Vitol are loading and unloading normally in Venezuelan ports. Meanwhile, vessels chartered for India and Maurel & Prom to deliver to Europe have left on time, before the deadline of May 27 to wind up cargoes. Reporting by Arathy S. Somasekhar, Houston; Editing and proofreading by Franklin Paul
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Sources say that oil loadings in Russia's western ports are expected to increase by 5-10% this May.
Sources in the trade and industry said that oil exports from Russia's western port are expected to increase this month due to lower crude production at Russian oil plants. However, the OPEC+ production limits may only have a small impact on Moscow’s export plans. The port of Primorsk may increase its daily loadings to an average of 2.0-2.1 million barrels next month, up from the 1.9 million barrels planned for April. Calculations showed that this is an increase of 5-10% per day. On account of low margins, refinery runs could fall by 80,000 to 100,000 barrels per a day. The impact of a stronger rouble, and lower damper payment is negative. Oil prices for domestic oil plants are also falling, but at a slower pace," said an industry source. According to calculations based upon data from industry sources and despite the extension of stoppages, Russia's primary oil refining offline capacity is expected to remain unchanged from April, at approximately 3.0 million metric tons. The higher OPEC+ oil output quotas could have a limited impact on Moscow's May export plans, as Russia would compensate to a great extent for a planned rise. Eight OPEC+ nations agreed to accelerate their plan to phase-out oil production cuts by increasing output 411,000 barrels a day in May. The Russian oil production quota rose to 9,083 million bpd in May, and its updated plan from OPEC required it to compensate 85,000 bpd for oil overproduction. According to OPEC, Russia's crude output fell to 8,963 million barrels a day in March, from 8,973 million bpd a month earlier. Jan Harvey (Reporting and Editing)
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South Dakota regulators deny Summit Carbon Solutions a carbon dioxide pipeline permit
The South Dakota regulators denied Summit Carbon Solutions permit application on Tuesday to run 700 miles (1126km) of their carbon dioxide pipeline in the state. This is the second time that the state has rejected the company's bid to build the largest carbon pipeline in the world to combat climate changes. This denial is just one of many setbacks for the project. Another was South Dakota's ban in March on using eminent realm to build carbon dioxide pipelines. The state denied its first permit application for 2023. Summit plans to build 2,500 miles (402 km) of pipeline in Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska. It will also run through South Dakota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and South Dakota. The pipeline will capture and store carbon dioxide produced by 57 ethanol factories. Landowners on the route have refused to sign easements because they are worried about possible pipeline leaks or their land value being affected. Members of the Public Utilities Commission of New York said in a meeting on Tuesday that Summit had failed to adequately demonstrate a viable route without using eminent Domain - the compulsory purchase of land for projects of public interest. Sabrina Zenor, Summit's spokesperson, said: "We will take all necessary steps to resubmit an application with a smaller scope and continue engagement with landowners. The groups that opposed the pipeline have celebrated this decision. The application of Summit relied on using eminent-domain to force landowners who were unwilling into the project. The route was no longer feasible, now that South Dakotans can say "no thank you", said Chase Jensen in a Dakota Rural Action statement. Carbon capture and storage is supported by the ethanol industry because it would allow them to receive lucrative tax credits on fuels with lower emissions. Carbon storage projects are costly and have not been tested at scale. Summit's permit requests have been approved by Iowa, North Dakota, and Minnesota. Nebraska has no state-approved process for carbon dioxide pipes.
Norway's FSA claims that a firm issued fake insurance to Russian oil tankers.
According to Norwegian authorities, the insurance documents issued by a small Norwegian firm to cover up the forgeries were bogus. The documents were used to circumvent international sanctions and hide the age of the oil tankers.
Romarine AS, a Norwegian-registered company, claimed to be an insurer. Their website listed dozens of tanks believed to be a part of Russia’s shadow fleet. This included vessels that were under Western sanctions.
The FSA stated that the company is not registered by the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway (FSA) as an insurer.
Western nations have sanctioned hundreds of ships that they suspect Russia uses to circumvent price caps on crude oil exports and other cargos.
These vessels are not covered or regulated by the conventional Western insurance companies, which poses the risk of unreliable tankers and environmental damages in the event that a shipwreck occurs.
The fact that Romarine made an effort in order to prove the tankers' insurance coverage by Western insurers, should they sink or be polluted, is what makes this case stand out.
Jo Gjedrem is an official with the FSA. She said, "It is an unusual case."
The FSA warned Romarine about its failure to comply with the warning in January. It then issued an order to stop operations on 4 March.
Romarine, in response to an email question from, said that it was aware of FSA's order of March 4, and had responded "with some delays through our lawyers".
Romarine stated that they operated within the applicable regulations but had decided to cease taking on new business until "positive feedback" from the authorities.
Romaine has not responded to the FSA, according to the FSA.
According to the Norwegian commercial database, Proff, Andrey Mochalin is the sole owner of Romarine AS. He is a Russian national and a former employee at Norwegian insurer Hydor AS.
Johan Gjernes is the former chairman of Romarine and chief business officer at Hydor AS. He told us via email that Romarine had been sold to Mochalin, who now owns it. Gjernes left Romarine in 2023 and Mochalin took over as chairman one year later. This is according to the official Norwegian company registry.
According to Norid AS (Norway's government-run registry for domain names), Romarine's site is located in Russia. Two commercial IP-locating websites pointed to an address in St Petersburg.
Mochalin has not returned any of the requests sent via email, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, or telephone.
SHIPS SUBJECT TO SANCTIONS
Romarine's site, as of early march, listed at least 30 oil tanksers that were subject to U.S. sanctions, EU sanctions or UK sanctions. These included the Captain Kostichev oil tanker and Ionia oil tanker, which appeared on certificates of insurance submitted to Russian port authorities.
Since then, some names have been removed.
The certificate of insurance issued by the Gabon flagged tanker Ionia on February 2, and dated January 9, listed Romarine, as its insurer.
A second document, dated 24 March and presented by Captain Kostichev of Panama to the port authorities at De Kastri (Russia's Far East), listed Romarine as their insurer.
The vessel, although the certificate stated that it was valid through April 24, has been removed from Romarine's site while the Ionia still remains.
LSEG data indicates that the Captain Kostichev's operator is Stream Ship Management based in United Arab Emirates.
Narus Maritime Corporation, based in Seychelles, owns and operates the Ionia.
I was unable to contact either company for a comment.
Romarine responded that they had accidentally listed vessels subject to Western Sanctions on their website due to a glitch in the technical system.
The company replied in an email to a question received on 12 March. "We implemented our new automatic system a few weeks ago, and we are working to figure out what went wrong."
Gjedrem stated that the FSA was concerned about Romarine when it received an email inquiry from overseas last September asking about a letterhead document certifying Romarine as a ship's insurance.
Gjedrem: "We instantly saw that it was fake." The letterhead could have been copied and pasted onto the fake document. It quoted non-existent Norwegian laws. The person who signed the document never worked for Finanstilsynet, and the stamp on it was fake."
On March 25, the FSA posted an alert on its website about using Romarine's services.
Oslo Police has also opened an investigation into Romarine’s business activities following a complaint by the FSA.
Police said they were investigating 4 people, two Norwegians, one Bulgarian and one Russian. They are suspected of falsifying documents and performing insurance mediated activities without a license.
The police said that a search was conducted on the home of one of the suspected in late March.
The Norwegian public broadcaster NRK reported the police investigation first.
Romaine did not respond to a question about the police investigation.
The Russian Ministry of Transport and the Federal Agency for Sea and Inland Water Transport have not responded to requests for comments about the Norwegian investigation of Romarine, or the Norwegian order to stop operations. Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov in Oslo, Nerijus Adomiaitis and reporters in Moscow. Additional reporting by Nidhi verma in New Delhi. Editing by Nina Chestney & Jason Neely.
(source: Reuters)