Latest News
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Bickert, Meta's former content policy chief and now Harvard professor, will be teaching at Harvard.
Monika Bickert is Meta's longtime chief of content policy. She oversaw the writing and enforcement Facebook's policies and played a role in determining how to approach user safety. Bickert, who wrote an internal post on Friday that was viewed by, said she would stay with Meta until August to 'work on a plan of transition with Kevin Martin. He oversees Meta's Global Policy Team. Bickert, who is Meta's head of content policy, has been the public face of Meta during controversies surrounding its handling political content and teen health. She joined Facebook in 2012 as a former federal prosecutor. The company changed its name later to Meta. She wrote: "Yes, we are a business, and we make profit. But the idea that 'we do'so' at the cost of people's well-being or safety is a misunderstanding of where our commercial interests lie," in 2021, after documents were leaked by former Meta employee Frances Haugen. Joel Kaplan, Meta's Chief Global Affairs Officer, praised Bickert in a statement. (Reporting and editing by Peter Henderson, William Mallard, and Jeff Horwitz)
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FAA stops traffic at Washington airports due to odor
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) halted all traffic at three of the main airports in the Washington, DC area late on Friday night after an odor was detected by a Virginia air-traffic control facility. The FAA stated that the odor forced them to evacuate Potomac Consolidated Terminal RADAR - Approach Control TRACON which controls the airspace of numerous airports around the Washington region. Around 6:40 p.m.?EDT, the FAA announced ground stops at Reagan Washington National Airport and?Washington Dulles. Baltimore, and smaller airports located in Charlottesville, Richmond, and Charlottesville. The odor from the Warrenton facility, Virginia, has caused traffic to be snarled for the second time within two weeks. According to someone briefed about the issue, the burning smell was similar to the one that caused the FAA to stop air traffic on March 13. On March 13, the FAA announced that it had stopped work due to a chemical smell associated with a circuitboard that was overheating. Flightradar24 is a website that tracks flights. It said that inbound 'flights were holding or diverting. Since 6:40 pm EDT, there has not been a departure from the airports. The FAA said an update would be?expected at around 8 p.m. FlightAware reported that 25% of flights were delayed at Baltimore, National and Dulles. (Reporting and editing by David Shepardson)
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The trucking industry is stuck in a slump for years because of the rising US diesel prices
U.S. 'diesel' prices have risen by 50% due to the U.S. - Israel war on Iran, which has delayed a much-needed turnaround in the trucking industry and squeezed?cash flows?and profits of independent big-rig operators. According to the American Automobile Association's data, the national average price for diesel fuel reached $5.38 a gallon on Saturday. This is up from $3.61 per gallon a year ago and not too far from the highest price recorded of $5.82 per gallon in June 2022. This was almost four months after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. California, home to the busiest container ports in the U.S., and the state with the highest population, saw its diesel prices hit an all-time high of $7.17 per gallons on Friday. According to AAA, the diesel price in Washington State also reached a record high of $6.55 a gallon. Transportation is at the forefront of the historic energy disruption traced to Iran's chokehold over the Strait of Hormuz. This narrow stretch of water off its southern coast normally carries one-fifth of all oil and natural gas liquefied in the world. The U.S. is well-supplied with diesel but prices have risen because oil is traded on a global scale. The small carriers are really being squeezed because they can't negotiate higher rates, as demand is flat, said Dean Croke. He was referring to the U.S. Trucking Industry's four-year slump. Independent truckers are often paid a rate per load that includes fuel, and have less leverage to negotiate more money when diesel costs soar. Surcharges are used by large contract trucking companies like FedEx, JB Hunt, and CH Robinson to recover higher fuel costs. These big players can also hedge fuel risks and leverage their size to negotiate lower rates. FedEx and analysts say that customers have not resisted diesel prices yet. Experts say that truckers often pay their fuel bills shortly after purchasing them, while customers have to wait 30 days or longer before they can pay for transport. This creates a financial crunch. The off-contract rates are still about 25% higher compared to a year ago due to the thousands of drivers who have left the industry. "That is the cushion," Croke said. If these rates were not higher than last, it would be a catastrophe. The people would be screaming as they did in 2022 when diesel reached a record-high that summer. (Reporting and editing by David Gregorio; Lisa Baertlein)
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DHS pays 50,000 airport workers in the US as part of emergency measures
The U.S. Homeland Security Department of the United States announced on Friday that it would take emergency measures to pay 50,000 airport security officers who had not been paid since mid-February. Work absences caused chaos and long security lines at?U.S. airports. "(The Transportation Security Administration has) immediately begun?the process?of paying its workforce. DHS stated that TSA officers could start receiving their paychecks as soon as Monday. On Thursday, President Donald Trump announced that he would pay TSA employees. He then issued a memorandum directing payments to be made on Friday. TSA announced earlier Friday that nearly 14% of airport security agents did not show up to work on Thursday. This is the highest number since mid-February. On Thursday and Friday, major disruptions were reported, including long airport security lines. The TSA reported that more than 3,450 agents did not report to work on Thursday. This included more than a third of the officers at JFK in New York, and airports located in Baltimore, Houston, and Atlanta. TSA reported that airports in all parts of the country had lines of four hours or longer - the longest lines it has ever seen. Airlines warned that lines and absences could increase this weekend without concrete information on the payment of TSA officers. Since February, nearly 500 airport security personnel have quit their jobs. It's unclear how long funding will last, or if Trump would use the funds for Homeland Security Department that were approved last year in a massive tax-and-spending bill. Democrats in Congress are refusing to fund the?DHS and demanding changes in its immigration rules after agents in Minneapolis "shot and killed" U.S. citizens Renee Good, Alex Pretti. Citizens Renee Good, and Alex Pretti. The Republican leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives rejected on Friday a bipartisan compromise from the Senate to end the six-week funding deadlock for DHS. The Congressional Democrats proposed funding TSA separately, while negotiating reforms to the way Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents work. The TSA reiterated Wednesday that it could be forced to close smaller airports, if staffing problems worsened. The airports are dealing with an increase in school-break travel volume of about 5% compared to last year. On Monday, hundreds of U.S. Immigration agents and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) officers were deployed at 14 U.S. Airports to assist with security screening. (Reporting and editing by Chris Reese, Edmund Klamann, and David Shepardson)
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The chair of the US House Transportation panel will not run for re-election
The veteran Republican U.S. legislator?Sam?Graves said Friday that he would not run for re-election in this year. He joins more than 50 incumbents who have left the chamber. Graves has been representing a Missouri congressional district since 2001. The Republican colleagues of President Donald Trump are trying to keep their narrow majority in the House and Senate during the midterm elections in November. According to a House count, 57 House members - 36 Republicans & 21 Democrats – have declared they won't run for reelection. Graves has been a leading legislator in aviation issues, including the safety legislation the House unanimously passed on Thursday following the mid-air collision that occurred between a regional American Airlines jet and a Black 'Hawk Army helicopter last year that resulted in the deaths of 67 people. The congressman is working on a five year reauthorization for highway spending. This legislation could be delayed until the midterm elections. Graves, a member of the U.S. Senate, said this month that he supports a fee on electric vehicle owners to pay for highway repairs in the U.S. The majority of federally-funded?road repair revenue is collected by diesel and gasoline tax, but EVs don't use these fuels. The House Republicans proposed a new annual fee of $250 for owners of EVs, and $100 hybrid EVs. However, it was not included within the'massive tax bill and spending bill approved by Congress. Graves co-authored legislation that Congress passed in 2020 to increase U.S. Air Traffic Controller staffing. It also increased funding to prevent runway close-calls and speed up refunds on canceled flights. The 2024 FAA reauthorization measures prohibit airlines from charging fees for families to travel together. They also require airplanes to have cockpit recording devices that record for 25 hours. Maximum civil penalties for airline consumer violation are increased from $25,000 to $75,000, and aircraft production is scrutinized more closely.
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UN Aviation Agency limits the use of power banks on flights to two per passenger
As part of the new rules for using these 'devices in the air,' the United Nations Aviation Agency has announced that the use of portable, rechargeable battery packs, or power banks, will be limited to only two per passenger. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)?issued a?statement that passengers will be prohibited from charging their?power banks? during flights. After incidents such as the fire that occurred on Air Busan's plane in 2025, airlines like the Lufthansa Group and countries like South Korea have already introduced restrictions on power banks. Federal Aviation Administration was not immediately available for comment. The Federal Aviation Administration was not immediately available to comment. The Montreal-based ICAO usually sets global standards 'for aviation, which are mostly 'approved by its 193 member states. However, the new specifications relating to power banks are effective immediately. Reporting by Allison Lampert and David Shepardson, both in Montreal; editing by Chizu Nomiyama
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UN creates mechanism to protect Hormuz trade against Iran war
The United Nations announced on Friday that it was establishing a taskforce to design a mechanism for keeping trade flowing through the Strait of Hormuz. They warned that disruptions due to the Iran War could lead worldwide food shortages and humanitarian crisis. Stephane Dujarric, U.N. spokesperson, said: "Immediate actions are essential to mitigate these effects." U.N. Under-Secretary-General Jorge Moreira da Silva, executive director ?of the United Nations Office for Project Services, will lead ?the project, Dujarric said. He said that the task force envisioned would be inspired by other U.N. initiatives such as the Black Sea 'Grain Initiative for Ukraine' and the UN2720 Mechanism in Gaza. Dujarric stated that the task force would be in contact with all relevant member states, to determine how it could be operationalized. "We hope all the member?states will support this initiative, especially in the interest of those... already impacted." U.N. experts and others warn that disrupted fertilizer deliveries and rising energy prices are threatening to cause new 'food price surges' in countries vulnerable. This could lead to a setback of years, just as some were emerging from successive global shocks. A report released last week by the U.N. World Food Programme warned that up to tens of millions more people will suffer from acute hunger if Iran's war continues until June. (Reporting and editing by Jasper Ward, Howard Goller, and David Brunnstrom)
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Train 5 of Cheniere Energy in Texas is operating at maximum capacity
The company announced on Friday that Train 5 of the Corpus Christi Liquefied Natural Gas expansion project, operated by Cheniere Energy, is now at full capacity. Train 5 is a part of the seven-train development that will add 10 million tons of export capacity per year to Corpus Christi LNG in Texas. According to documents from the company, this new unit is expected to increase output by a little under 1.5 million tonnes per year. LNG trains are units that cool natural gas to a super-cooled, liquid form for export. The global LNG supply is currently being hamstrung by Iran's attack on Qatar's facilities, which are one of the largest producers of this fuel. Cheniere says that contractor Bechtel has handed over the operation of Train 5 to Cheniere on Friday. LSEG data shows that feedgas flows into Corpus Christi were near record levels on Friday. The facility received almost 2.5 billion cubic foot of gas. Jack Fusco, CEO of Cheniere Energy,?said at the CERAWeek conference on energy that Cheniere planned to?send?more cargoes? to Asia. The region is experiencing shortages due the attacks which shut down QatarEnergy’s LNG facilities. QatarEnergy?accounts about 20% of the global LNG supply?and warned that it could lose up to 17% of production for 'five years?after its sites were hit by an Iranian missile? Cheniere, America's largest LNG exporter, has said that it will work to complete the two remaining trains of the Corpus Christi Expansion as quickly as possible.
Texas requires more natgas pipes as rates turn unfavorable once again
Natural gas costs in the Permian shale basin in West Texas turned negative a record number of times so far in 2024, including on Wednesday, as pipeline and other constraints trap gas in the country's most significant oil-producing basin.
Area gas prices for Wednesday at the Waha center << NG-WAH-WTX-SNL > in West Texas turned unfavorable for a third time in July even as a record-breaking heatwave might boost
U.S. power demand to an all-time
high later on this week as homes and companies crank up their air conditioners. Analysts say that is a sure indication the area requires more gas
pipelines, which has actually currently prompted Kinder Morgan, Energy Transfer and other U.S. energy companies to propose brand-new projects. The only way for prices to stay in positive territory is through brand-new pipeline capability, Chad Bircher, lead quantitative analyst on North American natural gas at monetary services firm LSEG, told Reuters. There is, nevertheless, just one huge gas pipeline in fact under building in the Permian at this
time- the Matterhorn Express Pipeline -which analysts state is on track to go into service later this year. As production in the Permian Basin continues to grow and demand increases, the Matterhorn
Express Pipeline's takeaway capability supplies much required transport of gas to end markets, Matterhorn Express Pipeline spokesperson Cody McGregor informed Reuters. In the past, Matterhorn Express predicted the 490-mile (789-kilometer) pipeline capable of moving up to 2.5 billion cubic feet each day( bcfd)
of gas from the Permian to the Gulf Coast, could get in service in the 3rd quarter of 2024, however most experts now expect the job to start in the fourth quarter. Matterhorn Express is a joint venture between units of WhiteWater, EnLink Midstream, Devon Energy and MPLX, according to WhiteWater's site. The revision to the building schedule would delay by a number of months new gas volumes from the Permian and keep costs under pressure in the basin
, experts at energy consultant East Daley Analytics stated in a note. The Permian in West Texas and eastern Brand-new Mexico is the nation's most significant and fastest growing oil-producing shale basin. A great deal of gas likewise comes out of the ground with that oil. When oil costs are relatively high, like they have been this year, producers are willing to take a loss on gas due to the fact that they can still generate income offering oil. Next-day rates at the Waha averaged listed below absolutely no
22 times so far this year. Waha costs first averaged listed below zero in 2019. It happened 17 times in 2019, 6 in 2020 and when in 2023. There were no unfavorable costs in 2021 or
2022( a minimum of no daily averages listed below zero )because energy firms constructed brand-new pipelines, consisting of the Permian Highway and Whistler, to move more gas out of the Permian. PROPOSED BRAND-NEW PIPES Although numerous
companies have actually proposed to build brand-new pipes in the Permian, experts have actually said 2 projects were most innovative- Kinder Morgan's 0.57-bcfd Gulf Coast growth and Energy Transfer's 1.5-bcfd Warrior. Up until now, however, neither firm has
dedicated to develop their project. Kinder Morgan informed Reuters We continue to see interest in the project and are working with potential clients. Energy Transfer had no comment beyond what they said on past incomes calls. We're not going to run out and FID( final investment decision )Warrior when we have some capacity on our existing system,
Energy Transfer co-CEO Marshall McCrea informed analysts throughout the business's first quarter profits call in May. McCrea
, nevertheless, said There remains ... strong interest in another pipeline, probably by mid to late 2026. We are really optimistic that we will construct the next pipeline to come out of West Texas. Experts anticipate Energy Transfer to have more to say about Warrior when it launches its second quarter profits on Aug. 7.
(source: Reuters)