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Cutifani, Chair of Vale Base Metals, to step down. Pimenta will take over.
According to a filing with the Brazilian Securities Commission, Vale announced on Wednesday that Mark Cutifani would step down as Chairman of its copper-nickel spinoff Vale Base Metals in order to "pursue professional projects." The company announced that Vale CEO Gustavo Pimenta would replace him in July. This will "ensure strong leadership and alignment with Vale’s broader strategic goals" within the business. Vale, the iron ore giant, spun off its base metals division as a separate company with headquarters in Toronto by 2023. The goal is to eventually list it. Cutifani, who was chief executive of London-listed Anglo American for nearly a decade, until 2022, won plaudits. Cutifani stated in a press release that "we thought it would take two to three years to set them up (Vale Base Metals)," for an IPO. Since then, we have seen a 40% rise in productivity and a 20 percent reduction in costs. "Gustavo... is the one who will make the final decision as to whether and when to IPO," he said, without commenting about his new professional endeavors. Cutifani resigns just months after Shaun Usmar, a veteran mining executive, was appointed as CEO of Vale Base Metals. Marina Calero, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said: "The elephant in VBM's room is the timing for an IPO. We do not expect it to happen anytime soon."
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JSW Steel petitions India's highest court to review the Bhushan Power collapse.
JSW Steel, an Indian steelmaker, said it filed a review application before India's highest court on Wednesday in relation to the rejection by the court of its $2.3 billion acquisition plan of Bhushan Power and Steel. The Supreme Court of India, in its ruling on the resolution plan for JSW Steel to acquire BPSL, ordered the liquidation of the company four years after it was acquired. The court halted liquidation proceedings on May 26 after JSW Steel, and some BPSL creditors informed the Supreme Court they would be filing a review against the order. The court said the liquidation proceedings would continue until a petition for review is submitted and considered. Reports in May stated that the collapse of the deal has caused concern among potential buyers of distressed assets. Many lawyers and bankruptcy law specialists have said the ruling has caused concern to potential buyers of insolvent firms or bankrupt companies. JSW Steel said that the Supreme Court had cited serious procedural errors as a reason for its ruling. The company said that the order had no impact on them. (Reporting and editing by Shash Kuber in Bengaluru, Manvi Pant)
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EIA: US crude and fuel inventory falls due to higher demand
Energy Information Administration (EIA), a government agency, reported on Wednesday that crude oil and fuel stocks in the United States fell last week due to increased refining and demand. The EIA reported that crude inventories dropped by 5.8 millions barrels, to 415.1 million in the week ended June 20. This was more than analysts expected in a poll. The EIA reported that crude stocks at Cushing, Oklahoma's delivery hub, fell by 464,000 barils in the past week. This week's report is all about supply and demand. The market is likely to stabilize following all of the geopolitical news reports if there's a significant drawdown in stockpiles. The decline in oil stocks was larger than expected. Oil prices increased. Brent crude futures traded at $67.97 per barrel by 10:55 am EDT (1455 GMT), up 83 cents. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 90 cents to reach $65.27. The EIA reported that refinery crude runs had increased by 125,000 barrels a day. Utilization rates also rose, rising by 1.5 percentage points, to 94.7%, their highest level since July 20,24. The gasoline stock fell by 2.1m barrels and now stands at 227.9m barrels. This is also higher than the analysts' expectation of a 381,000 barrel build. The gasoline supply, which is a proxy of demand, increased 389,000 barrels per day (bpd) last week, to 9,7 million bpd. This was the highest level since December 2021. The data revealed that distillate stocks, which includes diesel and heating oil fell by 4.1 millions barrels to 105.3million barrels. This was in contrast to forecasts of a 410,000 barrel increase. The EIA reported that net U.S. crude oil imports increased last week by 531,000 barrels per day. (Editing by Margueritachoy)
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A2A, an Italian company, links district heating to warmth generated in data centres
BRESCIA (Italy), June 25, 2018 - Italian utility A2A, and French tech company Qarnot inaugurated on Wednesday a data center in Italy which aims to capture the waste heat from computers servers and direct it into a local heating network. The facility is located in Brescia in northern Italy and uses liquid cooling technology. The rapid expansion of data centers, and the increasing electrification in consumption, require large investments in electricity grids. Data centers offer an opportunity to cities that have district heating networks, said A2A CEO Renato mazzoncini at the inauguration. Brescia is expected to provide heating for more than 1,350 homes and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 3,500 tonnes annually, which is equivalent to the capacity of 22,000 trees to absorb CO2. Mazzoncini said that "in (the Italian region) Lombardy, alone, we estimate 150,000 apartments can be heated in this way", Mazzoncini added. The project aims to address the global challenge of managing digital infrastructure that is becoming increasingly energy-intensive. Qarnot wants to increase its presence in Italy, as a high-performance computing service provider. (Reporting Giancarlo Navach. Mark Potter edited the story.
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Brazil increases the mandated level for ethanol and biodiesel in Brazil, Energy Ministry says
According to Pietro Mendes of the Mines and Energy Ministry, the National Energy Policy Council of Brazil (CNPE) approved on Wednesday increasing the percentage of ethanol in gasoline from 27% to 30% and the amount biodiesel to diesel from 14% to 15%. Mendes stated that the changes in fuel mixtures will be effective from August 1. Before This year The CNPE has decided to keep the biodiesel mix at 14%, despite industry groups' objections. Brazil's Ministry of Mines and Energy said in March that increasing the percentage of gasoline from 27% to 30% was a good idea Tests are a good way to back up your claims demonstrating "consistent performance", "real environmental impact" benefits." The International Energy Agency states that biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel are important in decarbonizing global transport and reducing greenhouse gas emissions linked to burning nonrenewable fuels. Reporting by Ana Mano, Pedro Fonseca and Oliver Griffin Writing by Margueritachoy
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Owner says that the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant could restart in 2027.
Constellation Energy executives said that the former Three Mile Island nuclear plant in Pennsylvania could restart in 2027. This is about one year earlier than originally planned. The plant was put on a rapid track to connect with the regional grid. Constellation signed a contract in September last year to power Microsoft's data centers. This will pave the way for the reopening of Three Mile Island. Three Mile Island is widely known as the location of a partial nuclear meltdown that occurred there in 1979, which froze the industry. Constellation’s 20-year agreement to purchase power from Microsoft is indicative of the lengths to which Big Tech will go to support its artificial intelligence expansion. This began intensifying a year and a half ago. The reactor at Three Mile Island that is reentering service, and which will be renamed Crane Clean Energy Center was not involved in the 1979 accident. It shut down in 2019 due to economic reasons. Constellation CEO Joe Dominguez stated that "we're on the right track to making history ahead of time, helping America achieve economic growth and energy independence as well as winning the global AI race." Constellation announced the restart last year and said that it expected the plant would reopen in 2028. Officials from the company stated that they expect the process to be slowed down by the wait times associated with connecting projects to the regional power grid, operated by PJM interconnection. PJM can have a long queue of power projects. This is essentially an application and engineering study to connect a power station to the broader network. PJM covers 13 states, the District of Columbia and about 67,000,000 customers. In order to relieve some of this bottleneck, especially as data centers are rapidly spreading across PJM territory, the largest grid operator in the United States has accelerated its interconnection processes for selected projects. Nuclear power is gaining popularity after years of decline. New York announced this week that it intends to build a nuclear power plant. It would be the first in a decade to be built. In spite of the excitement, historically nuclear power plant construction has been overbudget and behind schedule. At least one nuclear power plant, the Palisades plant in Michigan, is currently being restarted. (Reporting and editing by SonaliPaul; Laila Kearney)
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As geopolitical tensions decrease, the focus shifts to US data
The gold price eased on Tuesday as the demand for safe-haven assets decreased due to a ceasefire agreement between Iran and Israel. Market participants were cautious in advance of important U.S. data. Gold spot was down 0.3% to $3,314.45 an ounce as of 0934 am EDT (1334 GMT), after the previous session saw prices at their lowest level in more than two weeks. U.S. Gold Futures dropped 0.2% to $3328.10. Daniel Pavilonis is a senior market strategist with RJO Futures. He said that despite the potential and momentum in the markets, gold has never reached new highs. "So, now I think that the path is more on the downside. It may reach $2,900 if the Middle East doesn't escalate." Donald Trump, the U.S. president, praised the end of war between Iran and Israel. He said he expected a new relationship with Tehran to prevent it from re-building its nuclear program. S&P 500 index and Nasdaq rose on Wall Street, hovering close to a record high. Investors will also be watching the second day's testimony of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to Congress, which is scheduled to begin at 10:00 am ET. ET. Powell said on Tuesday that the decision to cut rates can only be made after considering the impact of tariffs, the inflation rate and the weakness in the labor market. The U.S. jobs and GDP data are scheduled for release on Thursday. Meanwhile, the Price Consumption Expenditure data (PCE) is due to be released on the Friday. Traders are closely watching this data to gauge the Fed’s future policy direction. Market participants currently believe that there is a greater than 85% likelihood of a September rate cut. Bullion is more likely to perform well in periods of uncertainty or when interest rates are low. Palladium fell 1.8% to 1,046.73 dollars. Platinum lost 0.8% and dropped to $1305.74. (Reporting by Sarah Qureshi in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)
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Andy Home: LME's position rules are a reflection of a changing metals market
London Metal Exchange (LME) has tightened the regulatory screws against holders of long positions at a time when both copper and aluminium contracts are in turmoil. The unique date structure of the LME exchange has been under severe stress as traders have increased their bets despite the inventory in LME's warehouses being depleted. It's not a coincidence that these two contracts have been the most affected. Tariffs and sanctions have caused massive distortions in the physical markets for copper and aluminum. The LME, having just recovered from the 2022 nickel crisis, is keen to avoid another one. Since it cannot do much about tariffs or sanctions either, managing the effects is the best option. As with any 148-year-old market, there is always the danger that tinkering with such a complex eco system can have unintended consequences. CORNERING the Future The copper market's turmoil this week is a classic example of a massive clash of positions ahead of the cash date. On Monday, the "tom-next spread", which is a position roll for overnight, blew out to $69 per metric tonne. This helped to inflate backwardation over the cash-to-3-months period The price of a ton has increased to $397, the highest since 2021. The week began with one entity having a cash position of 80-90% or more of the available stocks. They are designed to stop anyone from cornering the market and distorting prices with a position so dominant. The LME Special Committee introduced new rules on Friday that extend the lending cap beyond the cash date to the next monthly prompt. These are temporary, at least for the moment. The recent pressure on the aluminium markets was not focused on the LME rolling cash date, but rather on the monthly prompt date for June. It's clear that this is not the only position with a mega-long term contract which has caused concern to LME senior management. The LME stated that there have been "a few occasions" where significant positions were held in the near-by prompt dates, and the special committee "at times" has directed holders to reduce their holdings "relatively to the prevailing stock level," it said. The rub. Copper and aluminium are in short supply. TARIFF DISTORTION Since the beginning of 2025, LME copper stock has shrunk 65% to 94 675 tons. The amount of tonnage available is at a 2-year low of 54 525 tons. This isn't due to a diminished global availability, but rather reflects an enormous redistribution in global inventory. Since February, when U.S. president Donald Trump began a Section 232 investigation into U.S. imports of copper, physical metals have been flowing to the United States in order to take advantage of the premium commanded by CME's U.S. Customs-cleared Copper Contract over the LME’s international product. The U.S. imported refined copper in April jumped above 200,000 tonnes, marking the highest arrival rate of this decade. LME warehouses were emptied to fuel this physical tariff trading. CME stocks have nearly doubled to 184 464 tons this year, their highest level since August 2018. SANCTIONS IMPACT The prospect of U.S. Tariffs has disrupted global copper flows. However, sanctions against Russian metal have disrupted those for aluminium. The LME stopped all deliveries of Russian aluminum produced after April 2024 when the United States and Britain announced sanctions against Rusal, a Russian aluminium producer. The Russian metal that was already part of the LME could be traded, but it wasn't as popular as other brands. Since then, there have been several dogfights over the available non-Russian stock. Each involved large positions and spread volatility. The LME's aluminium stock is now at its lowest level since October 2022. The majority of the physical stock that was awaiting loading has been removed, and what is left is mostly Russian metal. No sign of a replenishment is imminent. LME off warrant stocks, which usually rise when visible inventories fall as metal is redirected to cheaper warehouse agreements, are also lower than at the beginning of the year. Since March, there haven't been any significant new deliveries to the LME warrant. Since last year, the Russian liquidity has dried up and other brands may be reluctant to give them up in LME clearing. The LME's global supply function is dependent on a fluid, globally distributed physical supply chain. This simply does not exist at this time. Reduced Incentives LME's lending guidelines has always been criticized for favoring holders of short positions over those with longs. The regulatory focus is further distorted by extending the lending restrictions to dominant long positions in the first month of the curve. Remember that the 2022 Nickel Blow-out was caused by a dominant short, not a dominating long. The LME has stepped up its efforts to avoid another crisis, given the mismatch that is growing between the size of the position and the available inventory. It is possible that smoothing out the distortions the LME perceives in its price-setting function could reduce the financial incentives for metals to be delivered to the supposed market of last recourse. It's important to note that the United States is not receiving any Russian aluminum or copper. The author is a columnist at
FT reports that EDF is considering asset sales in light of the increased push for nuclear power.
The Financial Times reported that the new head of EDF, the French state-owned utility, is considering selling some assets in order to satisfy government demands for new investments in nuclear reactors.
The FT, citing sources familiar with the matter, reported that Dalkia and Edison may be among the units to be sold. The FT reported that renewable assets are also being considered, except for EDF's hydropower projects.
France is the main nuclear champion in Europe, as it sources around 70% of its electricity from this source. EDF's nuclear power fleet generates about 70% of France’s electricity.
Bernard Fontana, the new CEO of EDF, was appointed in March after President Emmanuel Macron lost patience with Luc Remont's former leadership due to disagreements over how to build new capital intensive nuclear reactors and provide power.
The FT reported that Fontana told insiders he was looking to determine which assets were not profitable and did not match the strategic priorities of the energy group. He added that the sale might come after this review, but he had not yet decided which parts of his business should be sold.
EDF didn't immediately respond to our request for comment. Could not verify the report immediately. Reporting by Rhea Rosa Abraham in Bengaluru, edited by Anil D’Silva
(source: Reuters)