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Petrobras investment will drop as Lula's first budget is cut.
Three sources familiar with the matter said that Petrobras, Brazil's state-owned oil company, will cut its five-year investment program for the first time under Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva's administration due to lower oil costs. Sources said that the new plan will be announced on Thursday and is expected to have capital expenditures about 2% less than the previous plan of $111 billion for the period 2025-2029, dropping to approximately $109 billion. The board is yet to make a final decision. This is the first divestment since the Petrobras plan from the period 2021-2025 under the former president Jair Bolsonaro, when Petrobras went through a series or divestments. Lula, since he took office, has encouraged the oil company to invest more to help boost the economy of the country. The leftist leader will seek to run for a non-consecutive fourth term next year. The company informed analysts during a earnings call that there was little room for maneuvering in 2026 as the majority of planned investments had already been contracted. Petrobras' current capital budget for the next year is around $19.6 Billion. Brent crude oil traded at $62,35 per barrel on Wednesday. This was lower than the $70.85 average for the first nine month of the year, which is already a 14.4% decline compared to 2024. ASSOMALIZING PRICES LOWER A source told us that Petrobras must adapt to the current oil price environment and do more with the same amount of money. The company should not increase its debt nor change its dividend policy, she added. Sources say that the plan is to increase production and refinery by increasing the capacity of existing units. The company will map out platforms which could boost output, and it plans a revamp of almost all its refineries. The company is searching for platforms that can follow the Almirante Tamandare flotating production unit. This floating unit was designed to produce 225,000 barrels of oil per day but achieved a record 270,000 barrels of oil per day in October. Petrobras could reevaluate projects in order to reduce costs and negotiate with suppliers. This was the claim of a source. (Reporting and writing by Rodrigo Viga Gaier, Fabio Teixeira, Editing by Bill Berkrot).
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Electric cars will be subject to UK pay-per-mile tax
In her budget statement on Wednesday, Finance Minister Rachel Reeves announced that Britain would levy a per-mile tax on plug-in and electric hybrid vehicles starting in April 2028. This will offset the revenue lost from fuel duties as more drivers opt for cleaner cars. The charge for electric cars will be 3 pence per kilometer and for plug-in hybrids 1.5 pence, with a total annual amount payable along with the car tax. Reeves stated that "because all cars contribute to the wear and tear of our roads, I'll ensure that drivers pay taxes based on how much they drive rather than just what type of vehicle they own." New Zealand and Iceland both introduced road pricing on EVs. In the first case, demand dropped, whereas in the second, it was maintained. A driver who drives 8,000 miles per year in Britain will pay around 240 pounds. This is about half of the fuel duty that a driver driving a petrol vehicle or diesel pays. Tax expected to bring in 1.1 billion pounds in first year The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which published the details of the budget unexpectedly early, stated that it was expected to generate about 1.1 billion pound in the first year. This figure would rise to 1.9 billion pound by 2030-31. The new charges are intended to offset the estimated 0.6% of GDP that will be lost in taxes due to the switch to electric vehicles by 2050. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, a trade association for the auto industry, said that the new tax "would suppress demand, discourage consumers and make ever-tougher targets more expensive and difficult to achieve". It said that "no mitigation measures, such as additional grant funding, can offset the message sent to consumers by this measure." In order to achieve net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050 in Britain, the country wants to phase out new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2030. The demand for electric vehicles has stagnated, with consumers citing the high upfront costs of buying an electric car as their main obstacle. In July, the government announced that it would give discounts of up to 3,750 pounds for electric cars with a price below 37,000 pounds. $1 = 0.7581 pounds (Reporting and editing by William James, Ed Osmond and Catarina Sandle)
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Trafigura accuses Gupta weaving an incoherent web for $600 million nickel scam
Lawyers at Trafigura said that Prateek Gupta’s claims that the group devised a secret plan to exchange expensive nickel for low value metals are full of contradictions. The Indian businessman was giving evidence in an ongoing fraud case. Trafigura, a Swiss commodity trader, sued Gupta two years ago. It claimed that he was behind a scam where he and his firms agreed to deliver pure nickel but instead delivered scrap steel or other metals. Gupta countered by claiming that Trafigura staff themselves designed the scheme at the heart of the case. Trafigura, however, has denied this claim repeatedly. Gupta, who was testifying for the very first time in court, said that he thought the Trafigura executives had approved the scheme of substitution. Nathan Pillow, Trafigura's lawyer at the London High Court said: "You lie." Why would it be necessary to keep it secret if the decision was made at the highest level? Gupta said that a small group would be discussing the operation of the scheme. He was testifying remotely, from Dubai, where he resides. Pillow asked Gupta why he said that the material to replace nickel should be stainless steel. He also suggested including stainless, which is not similar to nickel. Pillow told Pillow, "The story that you have given is nonsensical and incoherent." Gupta stated, "I just followed the instructions (from Trafigura)." Pillow replied, "You can't tell the truth and say that none of this happened." TRAFIGURA ALLEGES HISTORY FRAUDULENT ACTIVITY Trafigura's lawyers had earlier accused Gupta that he had been involved in fraudulent deals before the alleged Trafigura fraud. Gupta admitted that he was under investigation in India for fraud, but denied all allegations. Pillow cited other fraud cases in which low-value metals were substituted with nickel, but Gupta claimed he wasn't aware of the practice. Other fraud cases included commodity broker Sucden Financial Ltd, and U.S. Trading House Kataman Metals LLC. Pillow said to Gupta, "It's a fact that you are an expert in dealing with fraudulent bills of Lading." Gupta, a member of Gupta’s UD Group in India, is being investigated for bank fraud, he confirmed. The investigation is in relation to Ushdev International Ltd. Trafigura made its first metals deals with Gupta, in 2014, with Ushdev. Ushdev later experienced financial problems, declared bankruptcy in 2018, and is now under the control of insolvency professionals. Trading with an aggressive approach Gupta countered the claim that Trafigura staff devised a secret plan, stating he was told in 2019 to dramatically increase nickel trading by Sokratis oikonomou, then Trafigura's head nickel trader. Gupta stated in a court filing that "Oikonomou's trading approach and outlook was aggressive and he wanted to expand Trafigura nickel trading operations to a dominant position in the market." Oikonomou denies he is involved in the fraud. He also says that the increased trading volume with Gupta was modest when compared to Trafigura nickel's overall operations. Trafigura terminated Oikonomou’s employment in January of 2023. Harshdeep Bhattia, a Trafigura trader based in India, told Gupta that Trafigura was looking to increase trade volume to 50,000 tons of nickel per year, which is about three times the previous amount. Bhatia did not reply to an email request for comments. He no longer works at Trafigura. Gupta stated that the large amount of pure nickel at the time was worth $625 million and would prove difficult to obtain. It could also be problematic for credit insurance limits. (Reporting and editing by Jan Harvey; Eric Onstad)
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No injuries reported after a LOT passenger plane veers from the Vilnius taxiway
The airport operator reported that a passenger plane from Polish carrier LOT veered from a taxiway on the Lithuanian Vilnius airport's Vilnius after arriving from Warsaw, halting traffic. The airport announced on Facebook that all passengers of flight number LO771 had disembarked. There were no injuries reported. A LOT spokesperson posted on the social media platform X that the Embraer 170 was carrying 63 people and four crew. The spokesperson said that "after landing, all passengers safely debarked via mobile stairs. They were then transported to the terminal." Airport officials have announced that the runway will be closed until 5pm local time (1500 GMT). Reporting by Louise Breusch Rasmussen, Editing by Terje Solsvik and David Goodman
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MOL, the MOL of Hungary, will increase crude oil and fuel supplies to Serbia
The Hungarian Oil and Gas Company MOL will increase its crude oil and fuel supplies to Serbia, after the crude oil shipments out of Croatia stopped. Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto announced this at a press conference in Belgrade. Szijjarto stated in a Facebook video that MOL doubled its deliveries to Serbia in the month of November, and will deliver 2.5 times as much crude oil and fuel in December than normal. Szijjarto stated that "Hungary would use all means available to ensure Serbia's crude supply remains secure." Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said that Serbia needs to secure an operating licence from the U.S. Treasury Department before the end of the day on Wednesday in order to keep the NIS refinery running and avoid major problems for the nation. At the briefing, Energy Minister Dubravka Handanovic stated: "We will see - I hope today or tomorrow - what kind of response we will get." The state will do everything it can to ensure uninterrupted supply. Serbia wants to continue operating the refinery while it negotiates a sale for NIS from its Russian owners. Ana Brnabic said, in the meantime, that the ruling party is preparing an amendement to budget law which would allow Serbia to take over NIS from Russian owners. Last month, the U.S. imposed a ban on the refinery. This prompted Croatia to reduce its crude supply. Szijjarto said that Hungary, Serbia and other countries were also ready to speed up the construction of an oil pipeline planned between them. In April, the minister said that by 2028, the pipeline would be able to supply all of Serbia's needs for crude oil. Reporting by Anita Komuves and Aleksandar Vaovic in Budapest, and editing by Jan Harvey and David Goodwin
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UK reforms its'motability scheme' to curb 'generous taxpayer subsidies
Rachel Reeves, British Finance Minister, said that she intends to reform the "motability" scheme, which allows disabled people to lease cars with state funding. She described this as a "generous subsidy". This scheme allows those who qualify for a public-funded allowance to improve their mobility, to use that funding in order lease a vehicle. Tax breaks are available on both the leasing and insurance cost. According to the company that manages Motability, the number of customers is more than 850,000. The scheme was criticised because in some cases it was used to lease luxury cars, but the list of vehicles eligible for the scheme was narrowed earlier this week. Reeves stated in her budget that the'motability scheme' was created to protect those who are most vulnerable and not to subvention the lease of a Mercedes Benz. I will therefore be making reforms to reduce the generous taxpayer subsidies," she said. (Reporting and Editing by Catarina demony; William James)
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Brookfield and GIC offer record $2.6 Billion for Australia's National Storage
National Storage REIT in Australia said that it received a buyout offer of A$4.02 Billion ($2.61 Billion) from a Brookfield-GIC consortium. This would be Australia's largest real estate privatisation. The consortium offered National Storage investors A$2.86 per share in cash, which is a premium of 26.5% over Tuesday's closing value. The deal would surpass Brookfield's A$1.27 Billion acquisition of Aveo Group by Brookfield in 2019. David Tuckwell said, Chief Investment Officer at ETF Shares: "This bid represents a huge vote of confidence for the Australian sector. It is also a very clever move by Brookfield." The demand for NSR is not cyclical. It is driven by life changes such as moving, downsizing or changing relationships. National Storage, founded in 1995, provides self-storage services to more than 94,500 residential customers and businesses at over 270 locations throughout Australia and New Zealand. In 2020, Warburg Pincus, a private equity firm, and Public Storage, a U.S. company, also expressed interest in Australia's biggest self-storage provider. A consortium led by Nathan Kirsh, a South African billionaire, and Public Storage made a bid of A$2,17 billion to buy Abacus Storage King, a local competitor, earlier this year. National Storage owns around 10% of Abacus, and Tuckwell considers this a "crucial piece" to the puzzle. It gives Brookfield an advantage that prevents other global players from sweeping in. "It's like purchasing a seat at any future consolidation activity." LSEG data revealed that trading in National Storage shares was halted pending an announcement. The stock then jumped 19,5% to A$2.70 at the final settlements following the market close. The company has agreed to give exclusive access to due diligence to the consortium up until December 7.
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Trafigura lawyers claim Gupta has a history of fraud prior to the alleged $600 Million nickel scam
Lawyers for Trafigura accused Prateek gupta, an Indian businessman who gave his first testimony on Wednesday, of a long history of fraud. Gupta admitted that he was under investigation for fraud in India but denied these allegations when he appeared in the High Court of London. Trafigura, a Swiss company, sued Gupta two years ago. It claimed that he was behind a scam where he and his firms agreed to deliver pure nickel but instead delivered scrap steel or other metals. Nathan Pillow, a Trafigura lawyer, cited two more fraud cases in which low-value metals were substituted with nickel. Gupta claimed he wasn't aware of the substitution. Pillow said to Gupta who was testifying from Dubai, where he lives. Gupta, a member of Gupta’s UD Group in India, is being investigated for bank fraud, he confirmed. The investigation is in relation to Ushdev International Ltd. Trafigura made its first metals deals with Gupta, in 2014, with Ushdev. Ushdev later experienced financial problems, declared bankruptcy in 2018, and is now under the control of insolvency professionals. Gupta countered the claim that Trafigura staff devised a secret plan, stating he was told in 2019 to dramatically increase nickel trading by Sokratis oikonomou, then Trafigura's head nickel trader. Gupta stated in a court filing that "Oikonomou's trading approach and outlook was aggressive and he wanted to expand Trafigura nickel trading operations to a dominant position in the market." Oikonomou denies he is involved in the fraud. He also says that the increased trading volume with Gupta was modest when compared to Trafigura nickel operations. Trafigura terminated Oikonomou’s employment in January of 2023. Harshdeep Bhattia, a Trafigura trader based in India, told Gupta that Trafigura was looking to increase trade volume to 50,000 tons of nickel per year, which is about three times the previous amount. Bhatia did not reply to a request for comments sent via email by Trafigura. Gupta stated that the large amount of pure nickel at the time worth $625 million would be difficult for Gupta to obtain and could also pose a problem in terms of credit limits. Gupta reported that Oikonomou, in order to circumvent these issues, proposed extending the trading scope to include other metals during a meeting held in Dubai in June 2019. Gupta stated that the real identity of these metals, such as nickel alloys and scrap, must be kept secret, because Trafigura’s financing bank Citi will only provide funds for pure Nickel. Citi declined to comment on this fraud case. (Reporting and editing by Eric Onstad, Jan Harvey).
Berlin wants to buy TenneT Germany in early 2026 according to a letter from the ministry
According to a letter sent by the German economy ministry, the German government hopes to sign a deal early next year for the purchase of a 25,1% stake in TenneT's local division.
In the letter sent to the federal finance commission, Berlin says it has allocated 5.8 billion euro ($6.7 billion) to purchase the aircraft and to pay for future payments as part of the capital increases between 2026 and 2029.
The Dutch government agreed in September to sell up to 9.5 billion euro of TenneT Germany shares to a consortium of investors consisting of Singapore's sovereign fund GIC, pension fund manager APG and Norges Bank Investment Management.
Berlin is considering purchasing a 25,1% stake in order to maintain greater control over vital energy infrastructure assets.
Germany holds minority stakes of TransnetBW, 50Hertz and other power grids via the state-backed lender KfW. KfW is expected to purchase TenneT Germany.
The letter from November 13 stated that the aim was to complete the transaction as quickly as possible while exercising due diligence. It added that the goal would be to sign the deal by 2026's first quarter and to close it in the second quarter.
A source with knowledge of the situation said that a deal would likely be signed in January.
In the letter, it was stated that there are no current plans to purchase a stake in Amprion - Germany's fourth high voltage power transmission network.
The German economy ministry refused to comment on this letter. It was first reported in the trade publication Tagesspiegel Background. Reporting by Holger Hanen and Christoph Steitz, Editing by Bill Berkrot
(source: Reuters)