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Maersk tests Brazilian-ethanol blend to make cleaner marine fuel
Maersk, a Danish shipping company, announced Monday that it is testing a mixture of Brazilian ethanol blended with marine diesel and methanol - also known as "bunker". This blend will be used to power its vessel engines in an effort to further reduce carbon emissions. Why it's important This initiative could help open up a new market to the Brazilian ethanol industry, while also reducing the carbon footprint of maritime shipping. At present, this sector accounts for approximately 3% global greenhouse gas emissions. By the Numbers Maersk, which accounts for 15% of the world's maritime shipping market is currently testing a fuel blend that contains 10% ethanol. The fuel blend could generate a demand of 50 billion liters per year if the entire industry adopts it. Brazil's production is expected to be around 35 billion liters this year. KEY QUOTES Danilo veras, Maersk Latam's Vice President of Regulatory Policies said: "This is the very first time that ethanol has been burned in a four-story two-stroke engine. It's a new level of research and concern." CONTEXT Veras says that Maersk chose Brazilian ethanol as a test, because it is derived from sugarcane fields or corn, if corn-based. This reduces the potential impact of deforestation. What's Next? Maersk plans to complete the ethanol blend test in methanol powered vessels by October 23. Bunker fuel tests will follow. If the tests are successful, Maersk will begin negotiations with Brazilian ethanol producers such as Raizen, Copersucar Inpasa FS Atvos. (Reporting and writing by Roberto Samora, Fernando Cardoso, Lisa Shumaker).
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Burgum, US Interior secretary, says that the key Alaska LNG pipeline study is expected to be completed in this year.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced on Monday that the backers of an 800-mile (1 287 km) proposed gas pipeline in Alaska, championed by U.S. president Donald Trump, expect to finish a major engineering and cost study before the end of this calendar year. It has been discussed for years, but Trump's desire to increase U.S. fossil fuel development has given it new life. The pipeline is the result of a joint venture by Glenfarne, a U.S. energy company, and Alaska Gasline Development Corporation. Glenfarne announced earlier this year that it would make a decision about the project by 2025. It had also hired Australian engineering company Worley to produce a Front-End Engineering and Design study (FEED), which is a cost and engineering estimate. Burgum spoke at an American Petroleum Institute event. Trump, since returning to office in 2017, has pledged to advance the mammoth plan to transport gas from Alaska’s north to be chilled before being shipped overseas as liquefied gas. Glenfarne representatives, AGDC representatives and Worley representatives were not available to comment immediately. Reporting by Valerie Volcovici, Washington; Nichola Groom, Los Angeles. Editing by Sonali Paul.
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Morocco expects modest economic growth, but a 5.5% budget increase in 2026
The Moroccan finance ministry submitted Monday to the parliament of the country a draft budget for 2026 totaling 761.3 billion dirhams (83 billion dollars), an increase of 5.5% over a year earlier. According to the government's draft budget, the country expects the economy to grow at a slower rate next year, down from the 4.8% it grew in 2025. This is due to uncertainty on the global markets and a projected average grain harvest. In its budget for 2026, the government stated that it would prioritize improving health and education as well as reducing regional inequalities. Protests led by youth In recent weeks, anger about public services has spread throughout the Kingdom. The document shows that the Moroccan government expects the public investment to rise by 12% next year to 380 billion Dirhams, mainly due to spending on infrastructure, such as ports, airports, and railways, in preparation for the FIFA World Cup 2030. Document shows that the country's fiscal surplus is expected to decrease to 3% of its GDP by 2026, from 3.5% in 2018, as increased tax revenues continue to offset higher public investment expenditure. The estimated financing needs for 2026 are 48.744 milliards dirhams, a decrease of 23.26% compared to 2025. Reporting by Ahmed El Jechtimi, editing by Mark Heinrich & Paul Simao
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Longacre Square and AI startup InvestorSight announce partnership
Longacre Square Partners, a corporate advisory firm, has formed a partnership with InvestorSight - a startup that uses artificial intelligence to analyze investor behavior during takeovers and board battles. InvestorSight is a company co-founded by Dartmouth Professor Mark DesJardine, and data scientists. It has developed the first interactive tool that models how institutional investors and mutual funds are likely to respond to different corporate situations. This tool can be used to collect advanced data including the voting patterns of investors in previous contests to determine a company's or an activist investor's vulnerability. InvestorSight, a tool interactive that allows users to model different outcomes, is offered by many institutions including investment banks. The introduction of the new board comes as activist investors target both large and small companies, pushing them to update their boards or even consider selling themselves. Longacre was founded in 2021, by Greg Marose, Dan Zacchei and Bausch & Lomb. It advised hedge-fund Politan on its successful proxy battle at Masimo and activist investor Ancora in its campaign to elect director and push management changes at Norfolk Southern. DesJardine joins Longacre's board of advisors. (Reporting and editing by Svea HerbstBayliss)
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EIA reports record US natural gas exports into Mexico
The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported on Monday that U.S. natural-gas pipeline exports to Mexico in May 2025 averaged 7.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd), the highest monthly volume ever recorded, as Mexico's natural-gas demand increases. The EIA reported that the annual average of U.S. natural-gas pipeline exports to Mexico in 2024 was 6.4 bcfd, which is a 25% rise compared to 2019 and also the highest ever recorded in data dating back as far as 1975. The EIA reported that "Total consumption in Mexico has increased from 7,7 bcfd in 2019-2024 to 8,6 bcfd in the same period. Most of the growth is concentrated in the electric power sector in Mexico." It also noted that natural gas enters Mexico through four main corridors: South Texas, West Texas Arizona and California. The combined capacity of these four export corridors is approximately 14.8 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) with an approximate utilization of 43% by 2024. The EIA reported that in 2024, pipelines exports from West Texas and South Texas would account for 91% (or more) of U.S. pipeline exports to Mexico. This report stated that there are many factors that limit the exports of gas, the main ones being the limited capacity for storage and the lack of pipeline infrastructure in Mexico. It also noted that the recent commissionings of connecting pipelines throughout central and southwest Mexico have helped to facilitate this record-breaking rise.
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Prague bans shared electric scooters from 2026 due to 'chaos on the sidewalks'
The deputy mayor of Prague has criticised the electric scooter rental option as causing confusion on the sidewalks. The city council approved Monday a new regulatory overhaul concerning shared transportation options in the city with 1.4 million residents whose cobblestoned street and rich history will attract more than 8,000,000 tourists by 2024. The regulation will only apply to bikes, both electric and pedal, but not escooters. This effectively ends the sharing of escooters. "The end of the electric scooters has been approved!" Zdenek Hirb, the national Pirate Party's chairman and deputy mayor of Prague City Hall in charge for transport, spoke on X Monday. "We're introducing rules to clear the public space of uncontrolled scooter traffic. This was used more in the city center as a tourist attraction rather than a mode of transport, and created chaos on sidewalks and pedestrian zones." Prague has joined other popular European tourist destinations that have cracked down on eScooters over the past few years. In Italy, cities have implemented strict safety regulations, including helmets and insurance, while in Paris and Madrid, rentals are banned. Finland prohibits under-15s to use them. The city of Prague has responded to complaints by residents about the dangers associated with scooters that whizzed past on sidewalks, parks or blocked sidewalks and street parking spaces when they were not in use. The city wants to encourage more people to use shared bike services. However, e-scooters have a higher accident rate than bicycles. Lime, a major operator of shared electric scooters in the city, expressed regret over the decision. Vaclav Petr, Lime's director of country in the Czech Republic, told CTK that scooters can serve citizens very well when there is a "constructive dialog" between operators and cities. Lime didn't immediately respond to any further questions.
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Air France CEO: avoiding Russia airspace compounds China rivalry
Air France-KLM CEO said that on Monday, western European airlines needed more favorable regulation as the requirement to fly around Russian airspace places them at a disadvantage compared to their Chinese competitors. Ben Smith, CEO of Air France-KLM, said in an interview with the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung as well as with French newspaper Les Echos and Lufthansa Group CEO Carsten Schohr that having to avoid Russia adds two to two-and-a half hours to flights from Europe to Asia. All costs associated with the extra flight time are to be paid by the customer. Smith added that customers don't necessarily want to spend an extra two hours on a flight already very long to Asia. He claimed that Chinese airlines' faster access to Europe was a "gift", while western airlines were at a competitive disadvantage. Both Smith and Spohr supported a proposal from the U.S. Government to deny access to U.S. Airspace to any airline which continues to fly over Russian airspace.
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Archer Aviation signs deal with Korean Air for eVTOL Air Taxis
Archer Aviation announced on Monday that it had signed a partnership agreement with Korean Air for the commercialization of its electric air taxis throughout South Korea. The potential purchase of 100 aircraft is possible. The deal reflects a race between electric vertical takeoff and landing developers who are racing to secure airline partners, win regulatory approvals and move from prototypes into paid service. Early U.S. trading saw shares of Santa Clara-based company rise 6%. Aerospace startups and incumbents are both promoting short-haul flights and airport transfers to replace congested ground transportation. However, the sector is still battling certification issues, infrastructure development and uncertain timelines for profitability. Archer stated that the agreement targets deployments of Midnight eVTOL across "multiple applications and use cases" starting with government applications. The aircraft was designed for flights of 10-20 minutes and two of the highest altitudes were achieved in a recent series of test flights. Archer, a company backed by Boeing and Stellantis and owned by IndiGo and United Airlines in India, produces six aircrafts at two U.S. facilities. Archer, a company that has yet to make a profit and is still in the red, expects a loss adjusted EBITDA of between $110 million and $130 million for the third quarter. This loss will be higher than last year's loss of $93 million. Archer announced last week that it had won the bid to purchase Lilium's patent portfolio of approximately 300 patent assets related to advanced air mobility for 18 million Euros ($21 million), bringing its portfolio to more than 1,000 patent assets.
China's record hydro and solar cut coal power throughout heatwave: Kemp
China's electrical power intake smashed the previous record in July as a prolonged heatwave settled over significant load centres, particularly in the Yangtze Delta, driving a massive increase in airconditioning and refrigeration.
Unmatched load was met by record output from hydro and solar, making sure coal-fired generation fell somewhat compared with the very same duration a year previously, showcasing the quick improvement of the system.
Overall generation increased to a record 883 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) in July from 846 billion kWh in the same month in 2023 and 806 billion kWh in 2022, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
Much of the increase was down to an extended period of exceptionally hot weather in eastern regions, especially province-level areas pushing the lower reaches of the Yangtze, consisting of Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Anhui.
Chartbook: China electrical energy generation
Daily temperatures at Nanjing in the Yangtze Delta balanced 30.4 ° C compared to 28.7 ° C a year previously and about 2.5 ° C. above the long-lasting seasonal norm.
Nanjing temperature levels have actually been above regular in 42 of 50 days. considering that the start of July, pushing airconditioning and. refrigeration demand to a record.
The delta is home to 237 million individuals, 17% of the. country's total population, and represent 24% of nationwide. financial output, making it the largest load centre.
As an outcome, regional heatwaves can drive peak intake. across the whole national transmission network and draw in. power from provinces to the west and south.
Numerous cities and provinces in the delta required. conservation throughout the heatwave to lower electrical energy demand.
However overall the transmission system coped because record. usage was more than matched by substantial boosts in hydro and. solar generation in other parts of China.
RECORD HYDRO
Nationwide hydro generation increased by 45 billion kWh. compared to the same month a year previously while output from. solar farms was up by 10 billion kWh with a smaller sized boost. from wind farms of 5 billion kWh.
The outcome was that thermal generation, practically all from. coal, decreased by 25 billion kWh compared to July 2023,. in spite of record electrical energy need.
Unmatched amounts of hydro power were sent from. dams on the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze eastwards to. the delta.
Hydro generation rose to a record 166 billion kWh in July. from 121 billion kWh in the very same month a year earlier, easily. passing the previous seasonal record of 146 billion in 2022 and. 2020.
After the dry spell lasting from the middle of 2022 to the end. of 2023, numerous monsoon rains allowed generators to make complete. use of freshly commissioned waterfall dams on the Yangtze system for. the first time.
Even now, huge volumes of water are still impounded. behind dams and in seasonal reservoirs for flood control, which. is most likely to sustain hydro generation at record seasonal levels. through August and into September.
SOLAR RISE
Electric reliability throughout the summertime peak was likewise. ensured by unmatched deployment of solar farms and record. generation from solar power.
Solar generation rose to a record 36 billion kWh in July. from 26 billion kWh in the very same month in 2023 and 21 billion kWh. in 2022.
Solar generation has actually been driven by a substantial boost in. set up capacity, which has more than doubled since the end of. 2021.
The figures do not include increasing quantities of. self-generation by property and commercial users from roof. solar panels.
COAL DOMINANT
Additional generation from hydro and solar minimized the system's. reliance on nonrenewable fuel sources throughout the summertime peak however it stayed. extremely high.
Thermal producers still accounted for 65% of all generation. in July below 71% in 2023 and 73% a decade earlier.
Thermal generation might be declining relative to other. sources of electricity but it has actually still grown in outright terms. over the last years due to the fact that total need has actually increased so quick.
Thermal generation amounted to 454 billion kWh in July, down. slightly from a record 471 billion kWh in last year's dry spell,. however up by a third from 340 billion kWh in 2014.
EFFECTIVENESS DRIVE
Most of China's finest sites for run-of-river dams have actually been. established, limiting additional gains in hydro output, though there. is increasing interest in pumped storage.
The federal government plans additional deployment of solar and wind to. boost sustainable generation and there are quickly increasing. quantities of small rooftop solar which will cut net load on. the transmission network.
Nuclear remains a small part of the system, accounting for. 5% of generation in 2023, though the federal government has actually authorized a. big reactor structure program which will enhance it substantially. by the end of the decade.
Nevertheless, more decreases in coal combustion depend upon. significant improvements in effectiveness among generators and users to. decrease coal-firing and sluggish load growth to permit renewables to. play an even larger role.
Associated columns:
- Global hydro rebound will curb nonrenewable fuel source growth in 2024. ( July 8, 2024)
- China's fast renewables rollout hits grid limitations (July 4,. 2024)
- China's hydropower generation surges and coal recedes (June. 18, 2024)
- China's transition obstructed by flat-lining energy. strength (April 26, 2024)
John Kemp is a Reuters market analyst. The views revealed. are his own. Follow his commentary on X https://twitter.com/JKempEnergy.
(source: Reuters)