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Europe's aviation agency boasts improved ties with FAA and Boeing
The European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) has'signaled improved relations with U.S. FAA' and said that Boeing is responding "in an appropriate manner" to regulatory oversight, indicating recent transatlantic tensions regarding aviation safety may have eased. The relationship between the European Union Aviation Safety Agency and the Federal Aviation Administration has soured since fatal Boeing 737 MAX accidents in 2018 and 2019. These crashes were linked to flawed software, and poor oversight. This prompted EASA to look closer at Boeing designs. "Very transparently and honestly, I believe it has improved quite significantly." In an interview, EASA Executive Director Florian Guiillermet said that they now work as trusted partners. He said: "We're in a phase of trusting that the FAA will do?the correct things. I don't see any indication that they aren't doing their homework or that Boeing is not responding appropriately." He said that Boeing was responding appropriately to the FAA's actions, adding that his comments referred both to certification issues and production concerns. EASA is responsible for Airbus jets. It's also one of the major agencies that certify domestic planes. In January, the international system of mutual approval was put under pressure when U.S. president Donald Trump threatened to?decertify Canadian business jets? and impose additional tariffs until Canada approved certain U.S. models. Guillermet refused to comment directly on the dispute, but stated that the "overall certification system" should be free from interference. He said, "It's a job that must remain a job." (Reporting by Joanna Plucinska, Tim Hepher. Mark Potter edited the article.
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Iran-linked hacker claims breach of FBI Director's Personal Email; DOJ official confirms the break-in
Hackers with Iranian links have claimed that they were responsible for the breach of FBI Director Kash patel's inbox. They posted photos and his alleged resume on the internet. The hacker group Handala Hack Team posted on their website that Patel will now "find his name among the list" of successful hacked victims. The?hackers were unable to?authenticate the emails published by Hanadala. However, a sample of material that was uploaded and analyzed by appeared to show a?mixture of personal and professional correspondence dating from?2010 to 2019. An official from the Justice Department confirmed that Patel's email was compromised, but did not elaborate. The FBI didn't immediately respond to an?invitation for comment. The hackers did not respond immediately to messages. (Reporting and editing by Deepa Babyington, Raphael Satter)
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WTO is at a 'critical junction' and requires deep reforms, EU and CPTPP claim
The World Trade Organization is at "a critical juncture", and it needs deep reforms, said the European Union on Friday. On Friday, the EU and CPTPP, which includes 12 countries including Australia, Japan Canada, Mexico, Malaysia, and Britain, met in Cameroon at the WTO Ministerial Conference. In a joint statement, they stated that "the WTO is at an important juncture amid?heightened tensions within the global trading system." Both groups of representatives agreed that "urgent reform" was needed for the WTO. The WTO said that they want to "enhance" cooperation among members who share similar views in order to improve the global trading system. They also plan to work together on areas of mutual interest, such as trade diversification and supply-chain resilience. Both expressed concern about "market distortion practices", "oversupply" and "economic coercion". In the past year, the United States imposed tariffs on the EU and CPTPP members. In response to concerns over China, the EU has recently called for a revision of the WTO’s Most Favored Nation Principle, which requires trading countries to treat each other equally. Maros Sefcovic, EU Trade Commissioner, recently said that the bloc should condition low-tariff market access for Chinese firms on the opening of the Chinese economy to European companies. Benjamin Dousa, Sweden's trade minister, said earlier that if the WTO negotiations in Yaounde fail to make progress the EU-CPTPP may look to expand their cooperation and forge agreements among willing members. (Reporting and editing by FriederikeHeine and Hugh Lawson, with Olivia Le Poidevin)
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WTO is at a 'critical junction' and requires deep reforms, EU and CPTPP claim
The World Trade Organisation is at a 'critical juncture' and needs a 'deep re-structuring, said the European Union and the parties to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership on Friday. On Friday, the EU and CPTPP, which includes 12 countries including Australia, Japan, Canada Mexico, Malaysia, and Britain, met in Cameroon at the WTO ministerial conference. In a joint statement, they stated that "the WTO is at a crucial juncture amid increased tensions in global trading." Both groups of representatives agreed that "urgent reform" was needed for the?WTO. They also said that they want to work together to cooperate in areas of mutual interest. Reporting by Olivia Le Poidevin and Editing by Friederike Hne
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Rosatom and DP World, a joint venture between the UAE and Russia, plan to develop logistics in Russia
The Russian state-owned nuclear company Rosatom announced on Friday it had agreed to form a joint venture in logistics with the UAE-based port operator, DP 'World. Rosatom, a Russian company that builds nuclear plants in Russia and abroad, and owns transport assets there, will hold 51%, and DP World, 49%, according to DP World's spokesman. Rosatom will contribute its 92.4% share in the Russian container logistics group FESCO. DP World, on the other hand, will?provide cash based on FESCO's market value. The Federal Antimonopoly Service and the Government Commission on Foreign Assets must approve the deal. Rosatom stated that the partnership was in line with its strategy to become a global logistics provider and increase cargo flow, including through the Northern Sea Route - the Arctic transport corridor along Russia's north coast. DP World is one of the largest container port operators in the world. The deal will 'give Rosatom access to their global infrastructure. DP World - which is expected to help 'Russia find new cargo volumes, including on the Northern Sea Route. (Reporting and writing by Anastasiyalyrchikova, Editing by Louise Heavens).
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Sources say that Russian oil producers may declare force majeure in response to attacks on Baltic ports
Two 'industry' sources said that Russian oil producers warned buyers on Friday they could declare force majeure over supplies from major Baltic Sea ports, as Ukraine continues to attack Russian energy infrastructure. The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said this week that Kyiv uses long-range attacks to maintain pressure on Russia, after international sanctions against Moscow were eased because of global supply disruptions caused by the Iran War. Sources said that Ukrainian drones targeted the port of Ust-Luga on Friday, where an ongoing fire from a strike made Wednesday still burned. The raids have halted oil loadings in the port since Wednesday, according to sources. They also said that the official suspension notice issued by the Ust-Luga Port Authority did not specify a timeframe for the resumption. According to one source, oil loading from the Ust-Luga Terminal may not resume before mid-April. Primorsk was also damaged by the recent attacks. However, it resumed partial oil and fuel loadings on Thursday. Alexander Drozdenko is the governor of the north-western Leningrad region, where the two ports are located. He said on Friday in a Telegram post that the area has been experiencing "unprecedented drone attacks" since March 22. According to calculations based upon market data, at least 40% of Russia's capacity to export oil is at a standstill because of?Ukrainian attacks on drones, a disputed attack on a pipeline, and the seizure or tankers. (Reporting and Editing by Joe Bavier).
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The high shipping costs and contract structure limit Russia's ability to reroute LNG away from Europe
Industry analysts say that Russia's threats to stop LNG deliveries to Europe and divert cargoes towards Asia would be difficult to achieve due to its long-term agreements and the need for more Arctic class tankers. In a television interview conducted in early March, President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia would'stop gas deliveries to Europe immediately and seek long-term commitments from other buyers. Gas prices have risen due to the impact of the U.S. and Israeli war on Iran, which has effectively cut off 20% of the global LNG supply. Russia could be forced to look for alternative customers in order to obtain LNG, as the European Union has banned Russian LNG imports under short-term contracts starting April 25, and long-term agreements beginning January 1, 2027. In a TV interview, Putin said that he had been "thinking aloud" and said: "Perhaps we would be better off if we stopped supplying the European Market right now." Analysts said that the structure of Russia’s LNG contracts left it with limited flexibility to ship gas elsewhere. Kpler data shows that the European Union will import 14.94 million metric tonnes (mt) or 20.3 billion cubic meters (bcm), from the Yamal LNG Project in Russia's Western Arctic by 2025. Around 70% of the Yamal volumes are bound to long-term agreements. Tom Marzec Manser, Director Europe gas & LNG, Wood Mackenzie, stated that Russian companies had around 2.4 mt spot LNG available in this year. It would be uneconomical to send those volumes before the Arctic routes reopen in the summer. Marzec-Manser said that based on the available volumes for the remainder of the year, "a maximum of 1.7 mt can be diverted from Europe to Asia." According to Eurostat, this represents approximately 1.7% of EU LNG imports in 2025, which total 100.5 million tonnes. Shipping the gas can be a challenge, despite the fact that there is a supply. The Northern Sea Route along the Russian Arctic coast is the fastest way to reach Asian customers, but it is only navigable part of the time. Kjell Eikland of Eikland Energy, a shipping consultancy that analyses energy shipping, says that ARC7 ice class vessels are able to travel via the Northern Sea Route between July and late November. Analysts and shipping data indicate that cargos bound for Asia must always travel through the Suez Canal, or via the Cape of Good Hope. This can take up to twice as long, depending on the route. According to Eikland, Yamal LNG exports 18 millions of tons per annum. He said that to maintain this level, and to serve customers in Asia by 2027, Novatek, Yamal LNG’s majority owner, would have to charter 25 to 35 additional tankers for the winter to ship LNG through the Suez Canal, or Cape of Good Hope. Eikland stated that re-routing 30 percent of the volumes sold in spot contracts this year from Europe to Asia could require ten additional vessels. Since early March, Russia has avoided using the Suez route after a tanker containing 'Russian LNG' caught fire near the coast of Libya. Moscow described the incident in Libya as an attack launched by Ukrainian drones. Ukraine has not responded. Need for Big Discounts The issue of financing is another major obstacle for Russia. Yamal does not face direct sanctions by the U.S. and?Europe but many other Russian LNG facilities, vessels, and finance companies do, making it difficult to obtain trade financing. LNG trading sources told that ?payment for extra LNG flows would likely have to be outside conventional banking channels, largely through government-to-government arrangements. According to a Rystad Energy analyst, Masanori Odaka: "LNG freight rates have risen following the Middle East Crisis, so diverting to Asia only makes sense at substantially discounted prices." Analysts said that given the rise in LNG prices, even a steep discount on Russian LNG could still be "too expensive" for Asia's price-sensitive buyers. Analysts said that China, which is already Russia's largest customer, would likely seek large price discounts if it were to purchase any additional Russian LNG. China has taken in all volumes of Russia's Arctic LNG-2 project sanctioned by the United Nations, but at a steep discount of 30-40% to LNG benchmark prices.
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Sources: Novatek suspends operations in Ust-Luga after drone attack
Three market sources have confirmed that Russian energy company Novatek suspended 'gas condensate export loadings and naphtha processing at its Ust-Luga facility following drone attacks which caused a fire at the facility. Novatek's cuts to naphtha exports will have an impact on Asian markets. They already experienced a feedstock shortage last March when the U.S./Iran conflict disrupted Middle East fuel shipments. These attacks were one of the most intense drone strikes in Russia's western energy corridor. The Baltic ports Primorsk, Ust-Luga, and the surrounding area were repeatedly targeted by drone strikes. Explosions tore through terminal infrastructure and ignited storage tanks, forcing emergency crews to battle huge columns of smoke. The fire that broke out at Novatek’s Ust-Luga Complex damaged some of the processing units as well as a part of the fuel tanks. Sources said that the time frame for repairs would be determined after a "full assessment" of the damages. Novatek did not immediately respond to an inquiry for comment. Three processing units of the Ust-Luga Complex, each with a 3 million ton capacity, refine stable condensate and produce light and heavy naphthas, jet fuels, ship 'fuel oil, and gasoil. Data from the company show that in 2025?the complex processed 8 million tons of condensate gas.
Kazakhstan claims that the attack on Ust-Luga did not impact its oil exports
Kazakhstan's Energy Ministry said on Friday that the attack on Russia’s major port in the Baltic, Ust-Luga, did not affect?Kazakhstan’s oil exports. It added?that flows were operating normally.
The Ministry said that it continues to monitor the situation.
Three processing units at the Ust-Luga Complex, each with a capacity of three million metric tonnes per year, refine stable condensate to light and heavy naphthas, jet fuel, ship fuel oils and gasoil.
Kazakhstan exports part of its crude oil through Russian ports along the Baltic Sea. This includes Ust-Luga which was 'hit by a Ukrainian drone on March 25.
Both Ust-Luga port and the nearby Primorsk Port were forced to suspend crude oil and oil-products loadings after this attack.
When the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), its main hub for oil-exports, is disrupted, Kazakhstan will use Russian Baltic ports to find alternative routes.
CPC transports oil to the Black Sea Terminal near Novorossiysk from western Kazakhstan, accounting for 80% of Kazakhstan’s?oil? exports.
Drones struck CPC's equipment for exporting oil on the Russian Black Sea coast on?November 29. This led to a drop in oil exports through the pipeline. This prompted Kazakhstan's decision to divert 300,000.0 tons of crude oil in December.
(source: Reuters)