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Fico, the Prime Minister, says that Slovakia wants to normalise its relations with Russia by increasing gas imports.
Robert Fico, the Slovak prime minister, told Vladimir Putin that Russia wants to normalise relations with Slovakia and will increase imports of Russian natural gas via TurkStream. These comments were in direct conflict with the European Union's position, which seeks to reduce its dependence on Russian energy to punish Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine 2022. They also come at a crucial time in the efforts to end this conflict. Both Slovakia and Hungary, both EU member states, are led by populists who have maintained political ties with Russia which supplies most of their oil requirements. Fico told Putin during their meeting in Beijing, on the sidelines China's World War Two Anniversary celebrations. He added, "Let us get back to the old ways of countries in terms of economic cooperation." The EU has pledged to end decades-old relations with Moscow, its former largest gas supplier. It aims to eliminate all Russian energy imports before the end of 2027. Hungary and Slovakia oppose this plan. They claim that switching to alternative energy sources would raise the price of energy. Fico thanked Putin for the regular and safe gas supply that the two of them receive via TurkStream. TurkStream is the only pipeline that carries Russian gas into Europe, after blasts stopped the Nord Stream 1 pipelines from exporting in September 2022. Transit via Ukraine has also been halted since January 1, 2019. According to data provided by the Slovak transit firm EUstream, Slovakia imported approximately 1.7 billion cubic meters of gas this year through Hungary. This is its closest link to TurkStream. The project is underway to increase the capacity of the gas flow between Hungary and Slovakia, which includes gas from the Turkstream pipe, from 3.5 to 4.4 billion cubic meters per year. Fico said Slovakia has resumed the issuing of visas to Russians, a service which was suspended after Russia's invasion in Ukraine. He also said that Slovakia is interested in Russian firms potentially participating in the new nuclear power plants, which the government hopes to award to U.S. company Westinghouse. Fico is scheduled to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Uzhhorod on Friday, according to the official. This meeting was originally scheduled to be held in eastern Slovakia. The Prime Minister said that he would raise the recent Ukrainian attacks which temporarily stopped Russian Oil flowing through the Druzhba Pipeline to Slovakia and Hungary during the past two weeks.
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Source: Kazakhstan's oil production rose by 2% in August
A source familiar with these data said on Tuesday that the daily crude oil production of Kazakhstan, excluding gas-condensate (a type light oil), rose from 1.84 to 1.88 millions barrels per day in August. According to calculations, the daily crude oil production in Kazakhstan increased by 2% compared to July. The level exceeded Kazakhstan's quota for August of 1,53 million bpd under an agreement with oil producer group OPEC+. Kazakhstan has been exceeding its quotas for several months, set by OPEC+. This grouping includes the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other producers including Russia. The source spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the subject. The Kazakhstan Energy Ministry has not responded to a request for comment. (Reporting and Editing by William Maclean).
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Plains buys stake in EPIC Crude for $1.6 billion in oil pipeline deal
Plains All American Pipeline, Plains GP Holdings and Diamondback Energy announced on Tuesday that they had agreed to purchase a 55% share in the pipeline operator EPIC Crude Holdings. The deal is valued at $1.57 billion including debt. Sources familiar with the situation said that the owners were seeking a buyer for the pipeline in August. EPIC Crude, one of the largest pipelines in the United States, transports oil from the Permian shale and Eagle Ford basins of Texas. The facility has a daily capacity of 600,000. It can be expanded to 1,000,000 bpd. There are also around 7 million barrels in operational storage. The transaction should be completed in early 2026. (Reporting and editing by Vijay Kishore in Bengaluru, Katha Kalia and Sumit Saha from Bengaluru)
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Air Lease accepts Sumitomo's $7.4 billion offer to buy out the group, backed by SMBC
A group of investors led Sumitomo Corp. and SMBC Aviation Capital announced on Tuesday they would purchase Air Lease Corp. for $7.4 billion in cash, in an attempt to create the largest aircraft leasing company worldwide. The combined company will be able to compete with AerCap as the leading lessor of aircraft in the industry. The combined company's headquarters will be in Dublin. This is the real global hub of the aircraft leasing industry. It finances over half of new passenger aircraft deliveries. Air Lease will pay $65 for every Class A Common Share it holds. This is a 7.9% increase over the last closing price of the company. Air Lease shares were up 6% or so in premarket trading. The aircraft lessor will be valued at approximately $28,2 billion including debt. The deal will combine Air Lease's global network with SMBC Aviation’s financial power, and expand Sumitomo’s aircraft leasing business by scale and profitability. SMBC Aviation Capital was the second largest aircraft lessor in the world. It traded under RBS Aviation Capital until it was purchased by a Japanese consortium consisting of SMFG and Sumitomo Corp. Steven Udvar Hazy, unofficial godfather of the industry, founded Air Lease Corp in 2010 after he had left ILFC. At the time, ILFC was the largest aircraft lessor in the world. Hazy sold ILFC in 1990 to AIG, but continued running it until the global economic crisis, which impacted ILFC's borrowing and purchasing of aircraft. Hazy stepped aside from Air Lease after an unsuccessful attempt to buy ILFC. Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan Securities are advising SMBC Aviation Capital. (Reporting and editing by Shreya Biwas, Shinjini Gauli, Shreya Parmar and Anshuman Tripathy. Additional reporting and editing by Nathan Gomes and Padraic Humphries.
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Russian seaborne diesel exports fell in August, data shows
Data from LSEG and market sources showed that Russia's seaborne gasoil and diesel exports dropped 6% in August compared to the previous month, as drone strikes from Ukraine affected production. Ukraine intensified its drone attacks against Russian oil facilities last month, targeting major refineries in the south and central Russia on a daily basis. This was done ahead of a scheduled meeting between U.S. president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin. According to calculations, this led to the shutdown of at least 17%, or 1.1m barrels per day in Russia's oil-processing capacity. Shipping data revealed that the amount of diesel and gasoil loaded from Novorossiisk, a Black Sea port, fell by about 12% in July from 0.83 million tonnage. As planned maintenance was completed by the main fuel suppliers, diesel exports via Primorsk in the Russian Baltic Port, the country's largest outlet for ultra-low-sulphur Diesel (ULSD), increased by 5.4% on a monthly basis to 1.33 millions tons. According to LSEG, data shows that Morocco, Tunisia, and Senegal were among the top importers of Russian gasoil and diesel last month.
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Commonwealth LNG obtains the final non-FTA Export Permit for Louisiana Facility
The U.S. Department of Energy has granted the final export authorization for Commonwealth LNG's export facility in Louisiana. The United States is making an effort to consolidate its position as the largest exporter of LNG after replacing Qatar and Australia, who were previously LNG export leaders. Soon after taking office, Donald Trump lifted the pause placed by the previous administration on the new LNG export permits in 2024. This was to allow for an assessment of the criteria of public interest. The United States could triple their export capacity by 2030, with new projects currently under construction or awaiting financial approval and others that are expected this year. Commonwealth is the first company that has obtained a LNG export license since the suspension during the Biden era. The facility of the company in Cameron Parish (Louisiana) is designed to produce 9 million tonnes LNG per year. With Both DOE approval and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission now in hand Commonwealth intends to make its final investment decision by the fourth quarter 2025 and target first production in 2029. LNG developers usually make a final decision on their investment once they have secured enough long-term contracts to finance construction. Commonwealth has already signed long-term and binding agreements for the offtake of LNG with global energy companies Glencore, JERA, and PETRONAS, totaling 4 Mtpa. (Reporting and editing by Shinjini Ganguli, Tasim Zahid, and Vallari Srivastava from Bengaluru)
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Enbridge will proceed with the Algonquin Gas Transmission Pipeline Expansion Project
Enbridge announced on Tuesday that it had reached a final decision on whether to proceed with the Algonquin Gas Transmission (AGT) Pipeline Expansion to take advantage of the increasing natural gas demand in America. Gas production is expected to rise in the U.S. despite a plateau in oil production. This will be to meet an increase in electricity demand and a boom in exports of liquefied gas. To meet the growing demand, U.S. Pipeline firms such as Kinder Morgan, Williams and Energy Transfer are investing billions of dollars to build hundreds and miles of new pipelines. This includes the Northeast. The expanded pipeline, once completed, will supply an additional 75 million cubic feet of natural gas per day under long-term contracts to the U.S. Northeast. Natural gas is an important component of the region's energy mix. Enbridge plans to invest $300 Million in system upgrades, and complete the AGT enhancement by 2029. Typically, companies will only sign a FID for a project after they have secured sufficient supply agreements to get the financing needed for construction. Enbridge's Matterhorn joint venture reached FID last month for the construction of Eiger Express Pipeline. (Reporting from Sumit Saha, Bengaluru. Editing by Leroy Leo).
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China's Xi urges Pakistan to improve safety for Chinese workers
China urged Pakistan on Tuesday to improve security measures for Chinese nationals working in multi-billion dollar infrastructure projects funded by Beijing, which have repeatedly been attacked by militants. Pakistan is a showcase of President Xi Jinping’s global Belt and Road Initiative, but the security threats facing Chinese workers have caused tension between the two close allies. According to a report from the Chinese state-owned news agency Xinhua, "China supports Pakistan in its fight against terrorism, and hopes that Pakistan will take effective steps to ensure the security of Chinese personnel, institutions, and projects within Pakistan. This will create a safe environment for bilateral co-operation." Xi made the remarks at a meeting between him and Pakistan's Prime Minister during a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, which is sponsored by China. Xi hosted more than 20 leaders from non-Western nations in the Chinese port of Tianjin. According to a statement released by the office of Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Shaif, Sharif met Xi and did not discuss security issues. In his statement, Sharif reaffirmed that he wanted to implement the Belt and Road project's next phase, and added, "This will help both countries create a stronger Pakistan-China Community with a Shared Future." Pakistan has deployed tens-of-thousands of troops from the army, paramilitary forces and police to guard Chinese personnel and projects. Beijing is pushing Islamabad, which has resisted the pressure from Beijing to allow their own security personnel to operate within Pakistan. The Pakistani foreign and interior ministries, as well as the Pakistani military, did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Over the past decade, China has developed Gwadar in Pakistan and built roads, power plants and other infrastructure. Security concerns have led to the suspension of a large portion of the $60 billion Chinese Belt and Road Investment. Separatists and jihadists have both targeted Chinese personnel. Separatists have also intensified attacks on Pakistani security forces over the past few months in this region. A suicide bombing outside the Karachi airport killed two Chinese engineers late last year. In March 2024, the suicide bomber drove a vehicle through a convoy consisting of Chinese engineers who were working on a project to build a dam in northwest Pakistan. Five Chinese nationals as well as their Pakistani driver died. The 2021 bombing of a bus in Dasu, where the dam is located, killed 13 people. Nine were Chinese. Abdul Basit Senior Associate Fellow of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Singapore, stated that security had improved for Chinese nationals living in Pakistan. Since the bombing at the airport, there have been no more attacks. Basit stated that Xi was highlighting that the situation in China is not good and that their projects aren't moving forward.
Kim Jong Un's slow train to China:
Kim Jong Un, the leader of North Korea, arrived in Beijing Tuesday aboard his green armoured trains. The leaders of this reclusive nation have relied on this slow but highly specialized form transport for decades.
Experts say that bulletproof trains are a better alternative to North Korea's aging fleet of passenger planes. They offer more comfort, security, food, amenities and space to discuss agendas before meetings.
Kim, who became the leader of North Korea in late 2011, has traveled by train to China, Vietnam, and Russia.
What's inside the trains?
Ahn Byung Min, a South Korean expert in North Korean transportation, said that multiple trains were required for security purposes.
Ahn stated that these trains each have between 10 and 15 carriages. Some of them are only used by the leader. This includes a bedroom. Other carriages carry medical staff, security guards, or both.
He added that they also have room for Kim's desk, communications equipment and a restaurant, as well as carriages for 2 armoured Mercedes.
State media pictures on Tuesday showed Kim and senior officials having a smoke break in front of an office with wood panels and a gold crest.
Kim's desk was adorned with a laptop computer embossed in gold, a bank telephones, a box of his signature cigarettes, and bottles filled with liquids that were either blue or clear. The windows were decorated with blue and gold curtains.
In 2018, a video by North Korean state TV featured Kim with Chinese top officials in a train car with pink couches.
State TV footage from 2020 showed Kim on a train, visiting a typhoon hit area. The carriage was decorated with flower-shaped lights and fabric chairs printed in zebra.
In his 2002 book, "Orient Express", Russian official Konstantin Pulikovsky describes a journey of Kim Jong Il's father Kim Jong Un made to Moscow over a period of three weeks.
According to the book, live lobsters and cases of Bordeaux wine and Beaujolais were also flown into that train from Paris.
How does it cross borders?
Ahn explained that when Kim Jong Un traveled to Russia in 2023 to meet with President Vladimir Putin at the summit, the wheel assemblies of the train had to be reconfigured because the rail gauges are different between the two countries.
Kim Han-tae is a former South Korean train engineer and author of a book about North Korea's railroads. While China does not have such a requirement, a Chinese engine pulls the train after it crosses the border because a local train engineer knows the rails system and signals.
According to media images, Kim's special train carriages were usually pulled by DF11Z engines, Chinese-made engines with the China Railway Corporation emblem, and at least three serial numbers.
Ahn noticed that the serial numbers of the engines were either 0001 and 0002, indicating China provided him with engines reserved only for senior officials.
On Tuesday, a DF11Z locomotive bearing the serial number 0003 pulled more than 20 carriages emblazoned with the North Korean flag and official emblem in gold.
Six Chinese carriages, with double yellow stripes and bright yellow colors, were attached to the dark green North Korean train. Ahn suggested that these carriages may have been used by Chinese officials who greeted Kim as he crossed the border.
Kim's train, which travelled from China to the 2019 summit in Vietnam with U.S. president Donald Trump, was pulled by a locomotive with China’s national rail logo.
Ahn stated that the train could reach speeds of up to 80 km/h (50mph) in China, as opposed to a maximum speed of 45 km/h (28mph) for North Korea.
Who uses the trains?
Kim Il Sung's, Kim's, grandfather, was the North Korean founding leader. He travelled regularly abroad by train during his reign, until his death in 1995.
Kim Jong Il visited Russia three times by train, including a trip of 20,000 km (12 400 miles) to Moscow in 2001.
The carriage from his mausoleum is displayed in his train. He was reported to have died of a heart attack late 2011, while riding on one of the trains.
State propaganda has focused on the train as the main vehicle for the Kim family to travel long distances by train in order to meet North Koreans.
State television in 2022 showed Kim Jong Un on what they called an "exhaustive tour by train" of North Korea, inspecting corn crops and promoting a "communist paradise". (Reporting and editing by Ju-min Park, Josh Smith and Edmund Klamann; Alex Richardson and Frances Kerry)
(source: Reuters)