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ADNOC manages offshore output and onshore operations continue
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company announced on Saturday that it was 'actively managing offshore production levels to meet storage requirements amidst the U.S. -Isaeli war on Iran', and its onshore operations are continuing. ADNOC stated in a press release that "this approach will preserve operational flexibility and enable the company resume normal operations with no prolonged delay." Eight-day war has now blocked shipping through the Strait of Hormuz - the vital waterway that supplies 20% of the world's oil and LNG. Analysts predicted that the UAE and Saudi Arabia would soon be forced to reduce production as their oil reserves fill up. ADNOC stated that its operations were 'continuing' and that it was using export capacity which?bypasses strait, as well as international storage facilities to guarantee supply continuity to global market. The UAE can bypass this strait by using the Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (also known as the Habshan Fujairah Pipeline). The pipeline transports oil directly from Abu Dhabi to Fujairah, on the Gulf of Oman. It has a daily capacity of between 1.5 million and 1.8 million barrels. "Business units ?are assessing the situation on a product-by-product and transaction-by-transaction basis, considering the ongoing disruption that is ?affecting shipping through the Strait of Hormuz," it ?said. ADNOC said it has activated protocols that are well-established and works closely with authorities to safeguard its people, assets and operations. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation cut oil production on Saturday, declaring force majeure. This was in addition to the earlier reductions of oil and gas from Iraq and Qatar. Yousef SABA, Timothy Heritage and Jan Harvey edited the report.
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Trump aggressively launches Latin America cartel alliance
Donald Trump, the U.S. president, welcomed Latin American leaders to Florida on Saturday, to launch a coalition against drug cartels. He also struck a dismissive note toward the region by telling officials that their countries had allowed gangs seize territory, and joked about not having time to learn their language. Trump described the effort as "an aggressive campaign to combat drug cartels", citing them as the primary reason for increasing U.S. involvement Latin America. This included a pressure campaign on Venezuela, which culminated in January with the capture of President Nicolas Maduro. Trump said at one point that the United States would use missiles to take out cartel leaders, if their partners asked for it. He said that Mexico was the hub of cartel activity, and predicted a major political shift in Cuba. The country is "very close to the end," he said. He repeated previous statements about Cuban officials negotiating with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and him. A dozen leaders of Central America, South America and the Caribbean attended the "Shield of the Americas", where Trump signed the proclamation that launched the coalition. Trump stated that "leaders in this area have allowed large swaths to land in the Western Hemisphere come under the control of transnational gangs and they have run parts of your country." "We won't let that happen." In a speech lasting more than 30 mins, Trump touched on many other topics besides drug cartels. These included Iran, Ukraine?Pakistan, India, political endorsements by former president Jimmy Carter and Dominican sugar. He also spoke about building battleships and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s "soothing personality". Trump made jokes about the language differences between him and the majority Spanish-speaking leaders. He said, "I am not going to learn your language." "I don't want to." Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants who spoke briefly in both English and Spanish later, echoed Trump’s position. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth also spoke. Hegseth joked, "I only speak American." Trump joked that Kamla Persad Bisssar's name sounded similar to the former U.S. vice president Kamala Harris. Trump has worked to create a regional coalition to fight organized crime and drug cartels more aggressively. The event on Saturday gave him the opportunity to show his strength at home, as the war against Iran escalates. This could push global oil and gas costs higher. Trump had earlier in the day said that Iran would be "hit hard" on Sunday and that he considered expanding the areas and people targeted. He did not provide any details. Allies of the Right Attend SUMMIT Among the attendees were Argentine president Javier Milei and Chile's newly-elected President Jose Antonio Kast, as well as Salvadoran President 'Nayib' Bukele. His gang crackdown has been criticized by rights groups but is now a model of sorts for some parts of Latin America. Politicians from the region toured Bukele’s sprawling "mega prison", where the United States deported over 200 Venezuelans last year without trial. The Honduran president Nasry Asfura was also in attendance. He narrowly won an disputed 'election' with Trump's support. And Ecuador's president Daniel Noboa who has echoed some of Trump's agenda on the economy and who recently announced joint military operations with the U.S. to 'crackdown' on drug trafficking. Many of these?leaders are in agreement with Trump's hardline views on crime and immigration, preferring crackdowns to deeper social fixes, and private enterprise over the state. Their rise is a reflection of a wider rightward shift in Latin America, at a moment when the region finds itself caught between Washington and Beijing. CHALLENGING CHINA'S GROWING RELATIONAL INFLUENCE Trump didn't mention China directly, but warned the United States that it would not allow "hostile influence" in the Western Hemisphere to take root, including at the Panama Canal - a major global freight route. Washington, while not explicitly saying so, increasingly views Latin America as a strategic rivalry with Beijing. According to Ryan Berg, of the Center for Stratégic and International Studies, China's trade in the Western Hemisphere will reach $518 billion by 2024. Beijing has also extended loans worth more than $120 million to government officials in the Western Hemisphere. The U.S. has been concerned about China's increasing footprint, from satellite tracking in Argentina to the Chinese-backed Peruvian port and its economic support for Venezuela. The Trump administration has responded by urging governments in the region to curtail Beijing's involvement in strategic infrastructure, such as ports, energy projects, and other strategic infrastructure. (Reporting from Nandita BOSE in Miami, Florida; David Brunnstrom, Washington, and Sarah Morland, Mexico City. Additional reporting by Simon Lewis, Washington, and Natalia Siniawski, Mexico City. Editing by Sergio Non and Himani Sarkar.
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Sweden claims ship confiscated in Baltic Sea was falsely flagged, and one crew member has been notified of the crime
The Swedish police announced on Saturday that a ship taken by 'Sweden' in the Baltic Sea was sailing under a false flag and had been suspected of 'violating maritime law and the national ship-safety act due to its lack of seaworthiness. Johan Andersson said at a press briefing that one crew member had been notified of the suspected violation of national and international laws. The police and coast guard took control on Friday of the Guinea-flagged Caffa off southern Sweden. They said it was unclear about its flag status, and therefore suspected of being a stateless vessel. Andersson said on Saturday that "our investigation has confirmed our suspicions, and we are of the opinion that this ship is a sea vessel with extensive safety deficiencies." He said that he had also received information that the ship would be on the Ukraine sanctions list. Andersson stated that the majority of the 11 crew on the?Caffa ship, which, according to?ship-tracking service MarineTraffic, is a 96 meter general cargo vessel, are Russian.
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Floods in Nairobi kill 23 and disrupt flights at a major airport
Authorities said that aid workers pulled bodies from the floodwaters in Nairobi after flash floods began over night. The floods killed 23 people and swept away cars, disrupting flights at East Africa’s largest airport. William Ruto, Kenyan president, said that he has deployed a team to coordinate rescue efforts. This includes soldiers. He also offered condolences for the communities affected. In a statement on social media, he added: "I've also ordered that food relief from our?national strategically reserves be released immediately and distributed to the families affected by floods." John Lomayan (34), a security guard in the industrial area of Grogan, saw the body of a man trapped under a car washed away when the Nairobi River burst its banks. He pointed up the road and said: "I saw him getting carried by the water up there." "We didn’t know where he was. We only just now see him underneath the car. John Mwai, a bus driver in Kenya, described how he converted his bus to a rescue vehicle so that he could move people up to higher ground. Kenya Airways reported that rains disrupted some flights to Nairobi, forcing them to divert. Scientists claim that global warming is causing droughts and floods to worsen in East Africa, by concentrating rain into short bursts of 'intense rainfall. A 2024 World Weather Attribution Study found that climate change made the likelihood of devastating rains twice as high as it was before. The reporter saw three bodies pulled from underneath cars. A reporter saw three dead bodies being pulled out from under cars. Some of the dead were electrocuted due to damaged power lines. Kenya Power, the national provider of electricity, said that water had damaged equipment in a substation. It listed 14 affected neighbourhoods. "I don't even know how many cars there are, or what all the stuff is. All washed away. "All of the water came from that river," said Cedric Mwanza, an astonished resident, referring the Nairobi River. Humphrey Malalo contributed additional reporting from Nairobi. Tim Cocks is the writer. Mark Potter (editing)
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Ten people killed by flash floods in Nairobi, disrupting flights at a major airport
Authorities said that aid workers pulled bodies out of floodwaters in Nairobi after overnight flash flooding killed at least ten people and swept away dozens cars. Flights at East Africa's largest airport were also disrupted. John Lomayan (34), a security guard in the industrial area of Grogan, saw the body of an elderly man that he recognized - a roadside seller. The car had been washed out by the Nairobi River. He pointed up the road and said: "I saw him being carried by water up there." "We didn't even know where he was. We only just now see him underneath the car. Three bodies were pulled out from under cars by a reporter. The police said that 10 people have been confirmed dead so far. Scientists claim that global warming worsens floods and dry spells in East Africa because it concentrates?rainfalls into shorter, intense bursts. The 2024 World Weather Attribution Study found that climate change made the likelihood of devastating rains twice as high in the region. Kenya?Airways reported that the rains disrupted?flights into Nairobi, forcing some to divert their flights to Mombasa. "I don't even know how many cars there are, or what all the stuff is. All of it was (washed away). "All of the water came from that river," said Cedric Mwanza, a shocked resident. (Written by Tim Cocks. Mark Potter edited the text.
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Shipper MSC introduces emergency fuel surcharge
Shipping company MSC announced on Saturday that it would implement a fuel surcharge for all cargo from the Mediterranean (including West Mediterranean and Adriatic Sea, East Mediterranean and Greece) and Black Sea, to the Indian Subcontinent, the Red Sea and East Africa. This will be effective March 16, 2019. The surcharge was set at $30 per twenty-foot equivalent unit for dry containers and $50 per TEU refrigerated containers from the Mediterranean, Black Sea and Red Sea. The world's largest ocean container carrier said that dry containers traveling from the Mediterranean, Black Sea, and East Africa would be charged at $60 per TEU. Refrigerated containers, however, will be charged at $90. MSC will also charge a surcharge for dry containers of $40 per TEU from the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea, to the Indian subcontinent. For refrigerated containers the surcharge is $60 per TEU. (Reporting by Chandni Shah in Bengaluru. Mark Potter edited the article.
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At least seven people were killed in Kharkiv by Russian drones and missiles.
Russian officials reported that overnight on Saturday, Russia fired a barrage of drones and missiles into Ukraine, killing at least seven people, including two children, in Kharkiv. Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, said that Russia had launched 480 drones as well as 29 missiles against the energy sector and rail infrastructure in the country. "Partners should respond to these brutal attacks against life," Zelenskiy said on Telegram. "Russia is not giving up its efforts to destroy Ukraine's critical infrastructure and residential areas, so?support should continue," Zelenskiy said. He urged partners to continue their air defence and weapon supplies. Oleh Syniehubov said, Kharkiv Regional Governor, that seven people were killed, including two kids, after a Russian missile struck a five-storey building. He said that rescue workers are still clearing rubble from the site. According to?Syniehubov, the Russians attacked Kharkiv and damaged seven residential apartment buildings, 'commercial and administrative' buildings, electricity distribution lines and cars. Officials in Ukraine said that Russia attacked four railway stations in central Ukraine and other rail infrastructure, as well as port infrastructure in the southern Odesa area. They also claimed that containers containing vegetable oil were set on fire and a grain storage facility was damaged. Reporting by Olena Hartmash. Tom Hogue, Mark Potter and Tom Hogue edited the article.
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Azerbaijan claims to have foiled Iranian plots, including a plan to attack a major pipeline
Azerbaijan has said that it prevented several "terrorist" sabotage plots by Iran's Islamic?Revolutionary?Guard?Corps (IRGC), which included a plot to target a major oil pipeline running -through the South –Caucasus and into?Turkey. According to the Azertag news agency, a statement from the State Security?Service late Friday night, targets included the Baku, Tbilisi, Ceyhan (BTC), oil pipeline and the Israeli Embassy in Azerbaijan. Also, there was an Ashkenazi Synagogue as well as a leader of an ancient Jewish group in Azerbaijan known by the Mountain Jews. Iran has not responded to the statement. BTC is a pipeline that travels through?Georgia, Turkey, and Europe to deliver oil. It also accounts for about a third of Israel's oil imports. The Middle East war is now in its second week. Any damage to the?infrastructure of the BTC pipeline could increase global energy prices. Azerbaijan's statement was made just one day after Baku had vowed retaliation for what it claimed were four Iranian drones that intruded into its Nakhchivan Exclave and injured four people, as well as damaging airport infrastructure. Iran denied that it had sent the drones to Azerbaijan. Baku reported that an investigation revealed that 'two Iranian citizens and an Azerbaijani citizen had colluded in bringing over seven kilograms C-4 'explosive?into Azerbaijan under the orders of the IRGC. Four people have been issued with international arrest warrants. Azerbaijan ordered the evacuation of its diplomats from Iran on Friday, citing'safety concerns.' This comes amid already strained relations between the two nations over Baku’s ties with Israel and Turkey.
Kurdish oil smuggling to Iran flourishes
Heading for Turkey to the north and Iran to the east, numerous oil tankers snake every day from near Kurdistan's capital Erbil, clogging the Iraqi region's typically winding and mountainous highways.
The tankers are the most noticeable element of a huge operation to truck oil from the semi-autonomous area of Iraq to Iran and Turkey in murky, off-the-books transactions that have actually grown since an official export pipeline closed last year.
pieced together the information of this thriving trade through conversations with over 20 individuals consisting of Iraqi and Kurdish oil engineers, traders and federal government authorities, politicians, diplomats and oil industry sources.
They painted a picture of a flourishing service in which more than 1,000 tankers bring at least 200,000 barrels of cut-price oil every day to Iran and, to a lower degree, Turkey - generating about $200 million a month.
The scale of the informal exports, which has not previously been reported, is one reason Iraq has actually been unable to stick to output cuts agreed with the OPEC oil cartel this year, Iraqi authorities stated.
Iranian and Turkish officials did not respond to requests for remark.
Iraqi oil ministry spokesperson Assim Jihad said the Kurdistan trade was not approved by the Iraqi federal government and state oil marketer SOMO was the only authorities entity permitted to offer Iraqi crude.
He said the government did not have accurate figures for how much oil was being smuggled into Iran and Turkey.
OPEC now has less perseverance for smuggling and has even been known to slap punitive measures on offending members. I question we'll see any retribution against Baghdad because it's well known that the Kurdish region lies outside central control, said Jim Krane at Rice University's Baker Institute in Houston.
Business might likewise put Kurdistan on a collision course with close ally Washington, as it evaluates whether the trade breaches any U.S. economic sanctions on Iran, according to a. U.S. official.
Up until in 2015, Kurdistan exported the majority of its crude via. the main Iraq-Turkey Pipeline (ITP) ranging from the Iraqi. oil city of Kirkuk to the Turkish port of Ceyhan.
However those exports of about 450,000 barrels per day (bpd). halted in March 2023 when a worldwide tribunal ruled in. favour of the Iraqi federal government's call for the shipments. to stop - leaving the pipeline in legal and monetary limbo.
The federal administration in Baghdad, which has long held. that it is the only celebration authorised to offer Iraqi oil,. effectively argued that Turkey organized the exports with the. Kurdistan local federal government without its authorization, in breach of. a 1973 treaty.
' NO TRACE'
Tankers soon began taking Kurdish oil to neighbouring. countries rather and business accelerated this year after. talk with resume the pipeline stalled, industry sources, oil. authorities and diplomats stated.
Regional officials said none of the proceeds are represented,. or signed up, in the coffers of the Kurdistan Regional. Government (KRG), which has been having a hard time to pay thousands of. public workers.
There is no trace of the oil revenues, said regional. legislator Ali Huma Saleh, who was chair of the oil committee in. Kurdistan's parliament until it was dissolved in 2023. He put. the trade at over 300,000 bpd, greater than the majority of other price quotes.
Hiwa Mohammed, a senior official in the Patriotic Union of. Kurdistan (PUK), one of Kurdistan's 2 judgment parties, said the. oil was going through border crossings with the knowledge of the. local and federal governments.
KRG Treasury authorities did not respond to ask for. comment. The KRG Ministry of Natural Resources, which oversees. oil trading in Kurdistan, does not have a spokesperson.
A U.S. authorities stated Washington was looking at the oil trade. to examine compliance with sanctions on Iran.
The U.S. Treasury Department declined to comment.
A State Department official stated: U.S. sanctions on Iran. stay in location, and we regularly engage with partners on. sanctions enforcement concerns, but we do not detail those. conversations.
A senior authorities at Kurdistan's natural deposits ministry. stated oil production in the region was running at 375,000 bpd, of. which 200,000 was trucked to Iran and Turkey, and the rest. refined locally.
No one knows what occurs to the incomes from the 200,000. smuggled abroad, or the oil derivatives offered to refineries in. the region, stated the authorities, who decreased to be called because. the sensitivity of the matter.
CUT-PRICE CRUDE
The crude is offered by oil companies in Kurdistan to local. purchasers at cut-price rates of $30 to $40 a barrel, or about half. the worldwide rate, which equates to at least $200 million. a month in revenue, industry and political sources said.
Kurdistan's oil production is bulk managed by 8. worldwide oil firms: DNO ASA, Genel Energy. , Gulf Keystone Petroleum, ShaMaran Petroleum. , HKN Energy, WesternZagros, MOL's Kalegran and. Hunt Oil Company.
Hunt Oil, based in the United States, declined to comment. The other seven business did not react to requests for. comment, nor did regional business KAR Group, a significant player in. Kurdistan.
While many oil production halted when the pipeline closed,. some companies including DNO, Keystone and ShaMaran have actually said in. declarations they have actually since begun producing crude for sale to. purchasers within Kurdistan.
ShaMaran stated the average rate of oil it offered in the very first. three months of 2024 was $36.49 per barrel while Keystone said. in June that sales of crude from the Shaikan Field this year. were bringing in about $28 a barrel.
The market sources stated approved local purchasers take the. crude from oil companies and sell it on through middlemen for. export, without the knowledge of the producers.
The large majority of the trucked oil goes to Iran, most of. the market and political sources said, by means of main Iraqi. border crossings consisting of Haji Omaran, or through Penjwen even more. south.
From there, it is packed onto ships at Iranian ports in the. Gulf at Bandar Imam Khomeini and Bandar Abbas - a trade path. utilized in the past for Kurdish oil exports - or moved by. roadway to Afghanistan and Pakistan, industry, political and. diplomatic sources said.
could not determine what Iran, which deals with. difficulties selling its own oil items since of sanctions,. gets out of the trade, nor who is receiving the oil in Iran.
The PUK's Mohammed said it was sent out to Iran to be improved. into gas.
Pakistan's petroleum ministry declined to comment. Afghan. officials did not react to ask for comment.
BLACK-MARKET LABYRINTH
The trade is the current model of a long-standing Iraqi. black-market oil business commonly viewed as benefiting political. elites who are carefully connected to business interests.
Twelve individuals said authorities in Kurdistan's two judgment. celebrations, the Kurdistan Democratic Celebration (KDP) of the Barzani. clan and the PUK of the Talabani clan, were the recipients.
There is a maze of black-market salesmen getting. paid, and individuals authorizing those sales. It's not that they are. just looking the other way. They're taking their share, an. industry source working in the Kurdish oil trade said.
A senior diplomat in Baghdad said political interests were. so vested in the trade that resuming main exports by means of the. pipeline, when seen as a priority, had dropped down the. diplomatic program.
I'm not going to be advocating for this while they're all. having a party, the person stated.
KDP authorities did not react to requests for remark about. the black-market trade. Mohammed, the PUK authorities, did not. comment on who may be behind it.
Kurdish authorities say the area was pushed into the trade. by the pipeline closure, which they view as part of a broader. effort by Iran-backed Shi'ite celebrations in Baghdad to curb the. relative autonomy they have actually delighted in given that the end of the first. Gulf war in 1991.
A senior Iraqi parliamentary authorities familiar with oil. matters stated Baghdad was aware of the details of the business. however was avoiding public criticism as officials look for to fix. outstanding disputes with Erbil.
Putting pressure on Erbil to stop oil smuggling would corner. the region and deprive it of all sources of financing, which could. lead to its collapse, stated the individual, who decreased to be. named due to the sensitivity of the problem.
The trade has actually been cited independently by Iraqi authorities as. lagging Baghdad's failure to stick to its OPEC production. quotas, a bone of contention with OPEC's de facto leader Saudi. Arabia.
Jihad, the oil ministry representative, said Iraq, which has. vowed to downsize output this year to offset the. overproduction, was committed to voluntary production cuts.
For now, the sheer volume of tankers snarling up highways,. and getting associated with accidents, is outraging homeowners along. major roads.
It's very agonizing, said Rashid Dalak, checking out the tomb. of his sibling Rouzkar, who was eliminated in a crash with a tanker. in May on the highway in between Erbil and Sulaimaniya that leads. to the Iranian border.
Despite travelling through and damaging our roadways and killing. our liked ones ... no-one here has actually seen a dollar.
(source: Reuters)