Brazil








Energy Markets

Environment

Pollution

BHP says claim it put safety over earnings 'unjustified' in Brazilian dam collapse case

BHP said on Wednesday that accusations a pursuit of profit over security added to Brazil's worst environmental catastrophe were unlikely and unjustified, as the miner opened its defence to a massive claim at London's High Court. More than 600,000 Brazilians, 46 local governments and around 2,000 services are suing BHP over the 2015 collapse of the Mariana dam in southeastern Brazil, which was owned and run by BHP and Vale's Samarco joint venture. The dam's collapse released a wave of harmful sludge that eliminated 19 individuals, left thousands homeless, flooded forests and polluted the length of the Doce River. The...

Environment

Dam catastrophe offer must suppress claims versus Vale and BHP, sources say

An agreement by Vale, BHP and their joint endeavor Samarco to pay 170 billion reais ($ 29.85 billion) in settlement for a. lethal dam collapse in Brazil could end more than a hundred. lawsuits versus the mining business in the South American. country and perhaps limit legal action abroad, three sources. near the matter said. The contract could be signed this week, almost 9 years. after the 2015 disaster in the city of Mariana in southeastern. Brazil that eliminated 19 people, left hundreds homeless, flooded. forests and contaminated the length of the Doce River. Under the deal, the mining companies...

Environment

Leaders advise world to pay up to save nature as COP16 talks open

The nearly 200 countries fulfilling in Colombia for the United Nations COP16 top must act urgently to mobilize billions of dollars to stop quick nature destruction, U.N. leaders and nationwide agents advised as the talks opened on Monday. The planet does not have time to lose, COP16 President Susana Muhamad told the opening meeting in Cali, southwest of Bogota. All of us concur that we are underfunded for this objective, stated Muhamad, who is also Colombia's environment minister. 2 years earlier, nations embraced the landmark Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework agreement with a. list of 23 objectives to help halt nature...

Environment

COP16: From forests to oceans, nature in an alarming state

Worldwide damage of nature has reached extraordinary extremes. As the United Nations two-week COP16 biodiversity top starts on Monday in Cali, Colombia, here is what you require to learn about nature's fast decrease - and its importance to the worldwide economy. ANIMALS AND PLANTS Plants and animals play considerable parts in keeping nature humming, from biking nutrients throughout a community to aerating soils and engineering rivers. Without plants and animals, the world would not be habitable for human beings. However, more than a quarter of the world's known types, or an overall of about 45,300 species, are now threatened with...

Environment

Australia cashes in on beef exports as United States cattle herd shrinks

storyp1> COOMA, Australia, Oct 17 (Reuters) In a refrigerated room, around two lots personnel in hats, gloves and blue plastic aprons carve and pack carcasses into boxes within minutes of their massacre. The Monbeef slaughterhouse, owned by Bindaree Food Group and located about 100 kilometres south of Canberra, processes some 200 cattle a day, up from 30-40 two years earlier, and could increase to 220 in the coming months. It's an ideal time, stated Ryan McDonald, the plant's livestock supervisor. Need out of the U.S. export market is driving the prices up in abattoirs, which then drives the market up...

Carbon Emissions

BMW CEO: Europe must cancel fuel engine restriction to lower dependence on China

Europe needs to cancel its strategy to ban brand-new fossil fuelemitting cars from 2035 to minimize dependence on China's battery supply chain and play to its technological strengths, BMW's president said on Tuesday. Oliver Zipse, who has long pushed for regulators to allow various technologies - consisting of alternative fuels like e-fuels or biofuels and hydrogen fuel cell cars and trucks - stated the state of mind in Europe was trending towards one of pessimism and the region needed a brand-new regulatory framework to remain competitive. A correction of the 100% BEV target for 2035 as part of a. extensive...

Environment

BMW CEO states Europe must cancel restriction on petrol engines to decrease dependence on China

Europe needs to cancel its plan to ban new fossil fuelemitting cars from 2035 to reduce reliance on China's battery supply chain and play to its technological strengths, BMW's president said on Tuesday. Oliver Zipse, who has long pushed for regulators to permit different technologies - consisting of alternative fuels like e-fuels or biofuels and hydrogen fuel cell automobiles - said the mood in Europe was trending towards one of pessimism and the area required a brand-new regulative structure to stay competitive. A correction of the 100% BEV target for 2035 as part of a. thorough CO2-reduction plan would also...

Environment

UN firm introducing platform to assist small farmers meet EU logging guidelines

A United Nations trade company is releasing an online platform this month to help little farmers in establishing nations maintain access to Europe as soon as brand-new deforestation rules start. The rules, which will bar exports of products to Europe connected to deforestation, have actually currently seen a reduction in orders to some little farmers in the developing world. The European Commission recently proposed delaying the guidelines for a year, phasing in from 2025 to 2026. Pamela Coke-Hamilton, executive director of the International Trade Centre, told Reuters that the platform was part of a broader effort by her organisation to...

Environment

Climate Investment Funds eyes $1 bln to assist green industries

The multilateral Environment Mutual fund stated on Thursday it would invest up to $1. billion to assist accelerate the development of technologies to. cut climatedamaging commercial sector emissions in developing. countries. The group, which works with the World Bank and other leading. global lending institutions, is a crucial cog in advancement. financing as it has the ability to take on more risk and offer money at. cheaper rates, which in turn assists other investors to take part. Ahead of the 15th Tidy Energy Ministerial (CEM15) in Brazil. on Thursday, CIF stated in a statement the cash - moneyed through. CIF's...

Environment

Brazilian state to host COP30 environment top protects gold mining rules

The Brazilian state of Pará, which will host the COP30 global environment talks next year in the Amazon, is defending regional guidelines that encourage prohibited gold mining, according to files in the case before the Supreme Court seen . Brazil's Green Party has actually challenged the guidelines enabling local authorities to accredit gold potential customers of up to 500 hectares. The Green Celebration argues the guidelines encourage wildcat mining in the state where most unlawful gold is produced. The federal government through the environmental protection agency Ibama, its lawyer basic and the country's top public prosecutor are backing the claim...

Environment

Fires in Brazil's Amazon jungle region rise for 3rd month

Fires in Brazil's. Amazon jungle area surged to the highest number for. September in nearly a decade and a half, initial federal government. data showed on Tuesday, after reaching similar highs in the two. preceding months. A prolonged dry spell across much of South America, connected to. climate change, implies the fires in Brazil's Amazon have actually burned. more intensely this year and sometimes smoke has covered more. than half of the continent. Satellites detected 41,463 fire hot spots in Brazil's Amazon. in September, the largest number for that month given that 2010, information. from the National Institute for Space...

Environment

Energy companies shut output, evacuate non-essential personnel in Gulf of Mexico as cyclone risk develops

U.S. overseas oil producers were taking initial steps ahead of a storm anticipated to become a. hurricane in the middle of the week, evacuating nonessential. staff from Gulf of Mexico production platforms. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said that the capacity. tropical cyclone system Nine near the western suggestion of Cuba was. anticipated to turn into a cyclone on Wednesday as it moves. throughout the eastern Gulf of Mexico. It might likewise turn into a significant cyclone when it reaches. the northeastern Gulf Coast on Thursday, including the Florida. Panhandle and parts of the Florida west coast, with risk of....

Mining

Mining

China iron ore imports head for record even as steel output slips: Russell

China is on track to import record volumes of iron ore in October, increasing the divergence between the need for the steel raw material and the still weak output of the ended up product. China, which buys practically three-quarters of global seaborne iron ore, is likely to import as much as 120 million metric loads this month, according to vessel-tracking and port data. This would be a strong increase from the official custom-mades number of 104.1 million heaps in September, and likewise represent an all-time high, eclipsing the previous record of 112.7 million in July 2020. The strength in iron...

Mining

Rains might have come too late for Brazil's coffee

Rain is falling across the coffee growing regions of top producer Brazil after among the driest durations on record, but it may be too late for trees to fully recuperate before the new crop is collected, state farmers and specialists. Coffee prices have repeatedly hit multi-year peaks over the past two years, driving up the expense to customers worldwide and requiring some roasters to alter blends and lower the quality of the coffee they sell. Production issues in Brazil and Asia due to the fact that of unfavorable climate conditions have meant supply has lagged need for three years. If...

Mining

Sibanye deals with $522 million claim over cancelled Brazil mines deal

Sibanye Stillwater faces a $522 million compensation claim from investment company Appian Capital Advisory over the termination of a $1.2. billion offer to buy Appian's Brazilian nickel and copper mines,. the South African miner said on Monday. Appian currently declares damages of up to $522 million,. Sibanye spokesperson James Wellsted informed Reuters. Sibanye's. case is for that reason that Appian is entitled to either no or. significantly reduced damages. A representative for Appian declined to comment. London's High Court last week ordered Sibanye to compensate. Appian for the unsuccessful deal and said the damages would be. identified at a hearing...

Mineral Resources

Climate Change

Climate Change

Brazil launches platform to bring in foreign investment for environment and eco-friendly tasks

Brazil's federal government launched a climate and eco-friendly improvement investment platform in Washington on Wednesday, called BIP, targeted at setting in motion global capital with a preliminary target of $10.8. billion. As Reuters reported on Tuesday, the platform unveiled on the. sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. annual meetings will unite projects throughout three. sectors: energy, industry and mobility, and nature-based. services. Initially, the platform will look for financial investments for seven. pilot projects, including one from Vale to attract. around $2.5 billion for developing industrial hubs in Brazil. focused on producing green hydrogen and hot-briquetted iron...

Climate Change

Caiman-eating jaguars survive fires in Brazil's Pantanal wetlands

They call him Bold and he is Brazil's most popular jaguar, seen on social networks diving into rivers to capture a caiman and wrestle his victim ashore. Bold and his fellow jaguars are making it through the worst fires to engulf the world's biggest tropical wetlands in central-western Brazil, the Pantanal. Unlike other animals caught and burnt to death, jaguars understand how to look for refuge on the banks of rivers where food is offered in the caimans and capybaras they hunt. Strong, or Ousado in Portuguese, survived a devastating fire in 2020 when he was rescued with 2nd degree...

Carbon Emissions

Brazil state to speak with Indigenous people on carbon credits sale

The government of the Brazilian state of Para in the Amazon will speak with Indigenous communities on how they will benefit from the future sale of carbon offset credits that U.S. business have actually accepted purchase to try to protect the rainforest. In a statement received on Monday, the Para federal government's environmental secretariat Semas stated it will begin a brand-new stage of discussion with Native individuals and other traditional neighborhoods in the rain forest. Researchers state maintaining the Amazon rainforest is essential to combating worldwide warming. Amazon.com Inc and a group of companies agreed last month in New york...

Climate Change

Native groups in Brazil: We were not sought advice from on carbon credits

Indigenous organizations in the Brazilian state of Para said they were not spoken with by the federal government before it signed a deal with multinational business to offer carbon offset credits to support preservation of the Amazon rain forest in the state. Amazon.com Inc and other firms agreed last month to purchase carbon credits valued at $180 million through the LEAF Union conservation initiative, which it assisted establish in 2021 with a group of companies and federal governments, consisting of the United States and United Kingdom. At the time, Para Guv Helder Barbalho stated the offer had the involvement of...

Climate Change

Severe drought isolates Amazon communities in Brazil

Francisco Mateus da Silva, 67, spent an hour walking across sandbanks and dry riverbeds where he lives in the Amazon to fetch food and water in the middle of the worst drought on record in the area, which has paralyzed river transport. It's really tough for us due to the fact that we are used to traveling here on the river. The river is our street, and without water we can't even leave. We are practically separated, Silva told Reuters. The state of Amazonas has 62 towns in a state of emergency due to the fact that of the dry...

Climate Change

Depth of significant Amazon tributary in Brazil drops to record low in serious drought

The Solimoes, one of the two largest tributaries of the Amazon River in Brazil, fell to its least expensive level ever on Monday in the worst dry spell on record in the Amazon region, leaving villages on its banks stranded without food, water and transport. At Manacapuru, some 100 km (63 miles) upriver from state capital Manaus where it fulfills the Rio Negro to form the magnificent Amazon, the depth of the Solimoes determined at simply 3 m (9.8. feet), according to the Civil Defense agency. That is 11 cm (4.3 inches) lower than the previous record. low signed up...

Climate Change

Meta closes deal to buy up to 3.9 mln carbon credits in Latin America

Facebook owner Meta agreed to buy up to 3.9 million carbon offset credits from Brazilian investment bank BTG Pactual's. forestry arm through 2038, the companies stated on Wednesday in a. statement. They did not reveal the worth of the deal. The average. price for forestry carbon offsets recently was $4.22 per. credit, according to data company Allied Offsets. That could. worth the deal at as much as $16 million based on that rates. Carbon offsets allow companies to balance out greenhouse gas. emissions by paying for actions to cut emissions somewhere else to. meet business environment objectives. Each credit represents...

Climate Change

As Bolivia wildfires rage, smoke turns day into night

In the lowland Bolivian region of Santa Cruz, being grasped by a few of its worst wildfires on record, nurse Raúl Gutiérrez stated that the acrid sting of smoke almost never ever disappears and day has started to look almost like night. The South American country is on track for possibly a. record year of fires, exacerbated by dry spell and land clearances. linked to flourishing production of livestock and grains, specifically. around the wealthy farm city of Santa Cruz. While the fires have been raging for weeks, in current days. the smoke over cities like Santa Cruz and Cochabamba...

Pollution

Wildfire ruins 20% of Brasilia forest, arson believed

Firemens was successful on Wednesday in decreasing the extent of a huge wildfire that blazed for two days and destroyed 20% of a forest in the Brazilian capital, cloaking the city in clouds of graywhite smoke, according to officials, who believe that it may have been begun by arsonists. The National Forest of Brasilia is a conservation area that crosses 5,600 hectares of forest that protects the springs that are the source of 70% of the city's freshwater. The fire broke out at the peak of the dry season when vegetation is parched and temperature levels high permitting flames to...

Climate Change

Brazil's Amazon rainforest fires in August reach 14-year high

The number of fires in Brazil's Amazon rainforest region for the month of August rose to the highest level considering that 2010, government data revealed on Sunday, after a record dry spell that has been plaguing the biome. Last year's rains came late and were weaker than usual due to the fact that a weather pattern, called El Nino, was supercharged by environment change, leaving the jungle particularly vulnerable to this year's fires. Satellites found 38,266 fire hotspots in the Amazon in August, more than double compared to the previous year and the largest number for that month because 2010,...

Climate Change

Drought-threatened Amazon dolphins studied for environment modification effect

A team of biologists, vets and anglers momentarily recorded uncommon freshwater dolphins in the Amazon this week to study their health in hopes of avoiding a repeat of the deaths of numerous the mammals last year due to a severe drought. The dolphins were brought ashore for blood tests and other examinations and returned to Lake Tefé in the Amazon basin as quickly as the researchers had actually finished their work, which included placing a microchip to monitor their habits through satellite. Anglers took care not to hurt an adult female dolphin during capture and kept her near to her...

Pollution

Rare Amazon river dolphins studied for environment change effect

A group of biologists, veterinarians and fishermen caught rare freshwater dolphins today on a. lake in the Amazon to study their health in the hopes of. preventing numerous deaths of the mammals due to a serious. drought in 2015. The dolphins were brought ashore for blood tests and other. exams and went back to Lake Tefé as soon as the scientists had. completed their work that included inserting a microchip to. follow their behavior via satellite. Anglers bewared not to harm an adult female dolphin. throughout capture and kept her near her offspring. She relaxed and we could do the...