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Northvolt crisis may be make or break for Europe's EV battery ambitions
Northvolt's. monetary collapse deals a blow to Europe's strategy to establish its. own battery market to power electrical vehicles, stirring a debate. about whether it needs to do more to bring in financial investment as. startups struggle to catch up with Chinese competitors. Europe's greatest wish for an electrical car battery. champion filed for U.S. Chapter 11 insolvency defense on. Thursday after talks with investors and financial institutions consisting of. Volkswagen and Goldman Sachs for funding failed. The Swedish business, whose motto is make oil history, has. received more than $10 billion in equity, debt and public. financing since its 2016 start-up. Volkswagen and Goldman Sachs. each own about one fifth of its shares. Northvolt said on Friday it required $1.0-$ 1.2 billion in brand-new. funds under the restructuring process, which it hopes will end. by the end of March. In recent months, it has shrunk business and cut jobs in. a quote to support its finances. But it has had a hard time to produce. enough volumes of top quality batteries, and lost a 2. billion euro ($ 2.1 billion) contract from BMW in June. That has actually left Europe's aspirations to build its own battery. industry looking a remote dream. Over the last few years, Northvolt led a wave of European startups. investing tens of billions of dollars to serve the continent's. car manufacturers as they switch from internal combustion engines to. electrical lorries. But development in EV need is moving at a slower rate than many. in the industry predicted, and China has actually taken a huge lead in. powering EVs, controlling 85% of global battery cell production,. International Energy Agency information programs. Making batteries and cells, the units that keep and convert. chemical energy into electricity, is a fragile procedure and. doing so at scale is a difficulty for any battery maker. Northvolt has actually missed some internal targets and cut. production at its battery cells plant in northern Sweden,. highlighting the problems, Reuters reported on Monday. The greatest problem is that batteries are challenging to make. and Northvolt have not pleased the supply demands of their. consumers - that is a management problem, stated Andy Palmer,. creator of consultancy Palmer Automotive said. The Chinese are technically ten years ahead of the West. in batteries. That's a reality, he said. At least eight companies have delayed or deserted EV. battery projects in Europe this year, including China's Svolt. and joint endeavor ACC, led by Stellantis and. Mercedes-Benz. In 2024, Europe's battery pipeline capability out to 2030 has. fallen by 176 gigawatt-hours, according to data company Benchmark. Minerals. That's comparable to practically all the present installed. capability in Europe, according to Reuters computations. RECONSIDER Some executives state Europe must do more to attract and. support home-grown jobs so they can compete with Chinese. rivals such as CATL and BYD. Europe requires to reassess how it supports a nascent sector. before China eats up the entire value chain, which is due to. wise planning, stated James Frith, European head of Volta Energy. Technologies, which specialises in battery and energy storage. innovation. Among its $5.8 billion in financial obligations, Northvolt owes the European. Investment Bank (EIB) some $313 million. EIB vice president Thomas Östros stated it had been a. positive partner to Northvolt, but it needed to safeguard. the EIB and EU's interests. It stays the case that Europe has a tactical interest in. a European battery market for electrical cars and we will follow. developments extremely carefully. However it is much to early to say what. the result will be, he stated. The Swedish government has actually repeatedly stated it does not strategy. to take a stake in Northvolt. On Friday, Northvolt's outbound CEO and co-founder Peter. Carlsson said he was a little worried Europe is giving up on. its imagine competing with China. He said Europe would regret it in twenty years time if it. retreated. It's not a straight journey and today, we're all in a. bit of a down because journey where there's more doubts,. there's more concerns on the speed of the transition from the. carmakers, from policymakers, from the financier neighborhood, he. told reporters in a call.
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BHP bets billions on Chile mines to deal with international copper crunch
BHP Group anticipates an international copper deficit of 10 million metric lots a decade from now, a deficiency that is driving its strategies to invest a minimum of $11. billion at the world's biggest copper mine, Escondida, and other. tasks in Chile. BHP detailed to investors today prepares to invest $10.7. billion to $14.7 billion within about ten years to extract more. copper from Escondida and the smaller Spence mine, and reboot. the Cerro Colorado mine. The world's most significant listed miner's yearly production is set. to fall by around 300,000 tons to 1.6 million lots by the end of. the years, mainly driven by a slump at Escondida that is. anticipated to peak in 2025. Other top copper miners are facing similar difficulties to. increase output at aging mines. Those problems are striking just as need for copper, an. important metal for production of electric-vehicle batteries and. construction of information centers, is expected to grow. We think the deficit is going to be around 10 million tons. by 2035, BHP Americas President Brandon Craig informed Reuters in. an interview on Thursday, approximating a $250-billion cost to. develop enough mines to match demand. That's rather a challenging task for mining business. The quantity represents a little under half of existing international. production, with copper mine output at 22.4 million lots last. year. BHP is competing with diminishing ore grades at Escondida,. which it intends to balance out through expanded and brand-new processing. centers, plus leaching technologies to draw out copper from. sulphide, rather than oxide where copper is more typically mined. BHP's heaviest spending is expected around fiscal years. 2030 and 2031, Craig said, referring to a schedule that lays out. 4 Escondida jobs and three at the Pampa Norte division,. that includes Spence and Cerro Colorado. The earliest projects are set for first production between. 2027 and 2028, and the current ones between 2031 and 2032. BHP sought this year to boost its copper portfolio in a. $ 49-billion bid for Anglo American, however was rebuffed. BHP has not dismissed a restored bid. Inquired about organic growth versus acquisitions, Craig stated. BHP is keen on making the most of Escondida, Spence and Cerro Colorado. Our default is to take that resource and establish it ... We. constantly have a set of investable development alternatives. BHP aims to stagger the timing of Chile jobs to keep. them from ending up being too extreme to be able to execute. successfully, he added. BHP is likewise working with industry associations to press the. Chilean federal government to settle reforms for faster permitting,. but for now prepares for the standard timeline. The legal amount of time that they set out for how long it. ought to take are often surpassed, so it creates a high degree of. unpredictability, he said. Although the business previously checked out an underground. expansion for Escondida, Craig said the concept was not practical at. existing copper rates for a minimum of another decade. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange is. down around 20% from its 2024 peak in May, at around $8,995 per. metric lot. He likewise stated the miner reserve previous interest in selling. Cerro Colorado, which was taken into temporary care and. maintenance late in 2015 amidst problems over water use. The miner. is now trying to find a leaching solution using seawater.
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Adanis knew of US probe when they sold bribe-linked properties to TotalEnergies, prosecutors say
Gautam and Sagar Adani knew their renewable energy business was under U.S. investigation for presumed bribery when they sold part of India's largest solar park to France's TotalEnergies, prosecutors declare in legal documents reviewed . TotalEnergies did not right away react to an ask for talk about Friday on whether it knew the Adanis were being penetrated by U.S authorities over an alleged bribery and scams scheme when it bought the Khavda solar stake. U.S. prosecutors on Thursday charged eight individuals - consisting of Indian magnate Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani and the former CEO of Adani Green Energy Limited-- with appealing and after that making improper payments to Indian officials in between July 2021 and 2024 to ensure the solar job's success. In September 2024, TotalEneriges paid $444 million into a. joint venture with Adani Green Energy for a 50% stake in 1.15. gigawatts of solar setups at the Khavda solar park-- the. job at the heart of the bribery charges. The French oil and gas company is not called in the criminal. case. The Adani Group has called the claims unwarranted. It. did not immediately respond to an email looking for comment about. this story. According to the U.S. indictment, FBI unique agents served. Adani Green Energy Executive Director Sagar Adani with a search. warrant and grand jury subpoena in March 2023 - more than a year. before the sale to TotalEnergies. These documents recognized. Adani Green Energy, its former CEO Vneet Jaain, and chairman. Gautam Adani as under investigation for alleged bribery to. get business benefits for the firm. TotalEnergies bought a 20% stake in Adani Green Energy in. January 2021 - after the Indian company won what was then the. world's largest solar order, and simply months before the declared. payments to officials began. Sangkaran Ratnam, TotalEnergies' country chair for India and. the French firm's candidate to the board of directors of Adani. Green Energy, did not react to an ask for discuss. whether he had know the examination at the time. TotalEnergies bought the stake in the Khavda assets.
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ADVISORY-Holiday schedule for significant United States economic, other data
The Thanksgiving Day federal holiday on Thursday, Nov. 28 will impact the release schedule of some significant economic, energy and products reports stemming from and/or submitted from Washington during the latter half of the Nov. 24 week. Below is the schedule for the week. Times in EST/GMT. Some Treasury statements are subject to change. Monday, Nov. 25 Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago problems National Activity Index for October, 0830/1330 Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas concerns Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey for November, 1030/1530 U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) launches weekly U.S. export assessments for grains, oilseeds, 1100/1600 Treasury Department holds weekly sale of 3- and 6-month expenses, 1130/1630 Treasury Department sells 2-year notes, 1300/1800 USDA issues month-to-month Cold Storage, 1500/2000 USDA problems weekly Crop Progress, 1600/2100. KEEP IN MIND: last arranged report for 2024 Tuesday, Nov. 26 Commerce Department issues Structure Permit Revisions for October, no set time Redbook issues weekly retail sales index, 0855/1355 Federal Housing Financing Agency problems U.S. House Cost Index for September, 0900/1400 Commerce Department issues Single-Family Home Sales for October, 1000/1500 Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond problems November Study of Production Activity, November Survey of Service Sector Activity, 1000/1500 Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas problems Texas Service Sector Outlook Study for November, 1030/1530 Treasury Department announces weekly sales of 4-, 8- and 17-week expenses, 1100/1600 Treasury Department sells 52-week costs, 1130/1630 Treasury Department sells 2-year floating rate notes, 5-year notes, 1300/1800 Federal Free market Committee concerns minutes from its Nov. 6-7 conference, 1400/1900 American Petroleum Institute issues weekly national petroleum report, 1630/2130 Wednesday, November 27 Mortgage Bankers Association problems weekly Mortgage Applications Study, 0700/1200 Labor Department issues weekly Jobless Claims, 0830/1330. KEEP IN MIND: issued one day in advance due to vacation Commerce Department problems Advance Economic Indicators for October; Durable Goods for October; initial (2nd. quote) U.S. Q3 Gdp and (very first quote). U.S. Q3 Corporate Profits, 0830/1330 Commerce Department provides Personal Earnings for October,. 1000/1500 National Association of Realtors problems Pending Home Sales. for October, 1000/1500 Treasury Department holds weekly sales of 4- and 8-week. bills, 1000/1500 Energy Information Administration (EIA) problems weekly. petroleum stocks and output data, 1030/1530 Treasury Department's weekly statement of 3- and 6-month. costs sale offerings, 1100/1600 Treasury Department sells 17-week expenses, 7-year notes,. 1130/1630 EIA problems weekly U.S. underground gas stocks,. 1200/1700. KEEP IN MIND: provided one day ahead of time, time modification due to. vacation Freddie Mac issues weekly U.S. home mortgage rates, 1200/1700. NOTE: released one day in advance due to holiday Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas concerns Cut Mean PCE Price. Index for October, no set time Thursday, Nov. 28 Thanksgiving Day vacation. Federal federal government offices, stock. and bond markets, International Monetary Fund, Federal Reserve. closed. Friday, November 29 IMF closed. USDA launches weekly Export Sales, 0830/1330. KEEP IN MIND: postponed. from Thursday due to holiday Federal Reserve weekly balance sheet, 1630/2130. NOTE:. postponed from Thursday due to holiday
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Gold rallies on safe-haven need, set for best week in over a year
Gold rates breached the $2,700. limit for the first time in 2 weeks on Friday, on track. for their greatest weekly gain in over a year, as safehaven. demand outweighed dollar strength and lower expectations of a. U.S. rate cut next month. Spot gold was up 1% at $2,696.77 per ounce by 10:14. a.m. ET (1514 GMT), having earlier hit its highest since Nov. 8. at $2709.99. U.S. gold futures increased 0.9% to $2,698.90. The escalation in the Russia-Ukraine conflict seems like. it's broadening to a Russia-U.S. war, which's definitely. increasing short-term safe house appeal, stated Alex Ebkarian,. chief running officer at Loyalty Gold. Bullion has actually gained over 5% this week, poised for its finest. weekly performance because last October, when the Middle East. conflict initially fired up, triggering a rally that pushed gold to. multiple record highs. Gold's surge today has been moved by the. magnifying Russia-Ukraine crisis, raising costs more than. $ 173 from last Thursday's two-month low of $2536.71. Bullion tends to shine throughout periods of geopolitical. tension, economic dangers, and in a low rates of interest environment. Gold's increase continued Friday even as the U.S. dollar. strike a over 13-month high and bitcoin reached an. all-time peak. Expectations for a December rate cut from the U.S. Federal. Reserve have reduced, with the possibility now at 56%, a sharp. drop from 82.5% just a week previously. Some Fed policymakers this week expressed issue that. inflation progress may have stalled, advocating for care,. while others stressed the requirement for ongoing rate cuts. With continuous policy shifts, and inflation threats from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's proposed trade tariffs, gold's. outlook remains strong, with a test of $2,750 anticipated by. mid-December, Ebkarian said. Area silver increased 1.4% to $31.22 per ounce, palladium. fell 1.5% to $1,014.25, while platinum got 0.9%. to $969.25. All 3 metals were on track for a weekly rise. In our view, the price of platinum in particular should. increase considerably, as the market is likely to be in deficit for. the 3rd year in a row in 2025, Commerzbank experts noted.
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Satellite imagery shows North Korea oil imports from Russia top U.N. limits, report states
North Korea has likely received more than 1 million barrels of oil from Russia over an eightmonth duration this year in breach of U.N. sanctions, according to an analysis of satellite images published on Friday by the Britishbased Open Source Centre and the BBC. North Korean oil tankers have made more than 40 visits to Russia's Far Eastern port of Vostochny considering that March, the report on the research group Open Source Centre's site said. Dozens of high-resolution satellite images, AIS (Automatic. Recognition System) data and images launched by maritime. patrol missions entrusted with keeping track of North Korea's. U.N.-sanctions busting activities show North Korean tankers. consistently filling at an oil terminal at the Russian port of. Vostochny, the report stated, adding that Russia's foreign. ministry did not respond to a request for remark. A U.N. spokesperson did not instantly react to a request. for comment. North Korea has continued to illicitly import improved. petroleum products in violation of U.N. Security Council. resolutions, according to the UNSC. Previously this year, the United States and South Korea. introduced a new task force targeted at avoiding North Korea from. obtaining illicit oil as a deadlock at the UNSC cast doubts over. the future of worldwide sanctions. Under UNSC restrictions enforced over North Korea's nuclear. weapons and rocket advancement, Pyongyang is restricted to. importing 500,000 barrels of fine-tuned products a year. Pyongyang and Moscow have actually increase diplomatic and financial. incorporate recent years, culminating in Russian President Vladimir. Putin's see to North Korea in June when the nations' leaders. concurred a mutual defence pact. The military cooperation in between the 2 nations has been. fulfilled by worldwide alarm, with Washington, Kyiv and Seoul. condemning the North for sending out military devices and more. than 10,000 troops to Russia to support its war versus Ukraine. Russia's envoy to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia stated. last month Russia's military interaction with North Korea did. not breach worldwide law. North Korea has not acknowledged the release of troops to. Russia, but said any such move would remain in compliance with. worldwide law.
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Sony India secures $170 mln Asian cricket media rights; Reliance-Disney skips bidding
Sony's India unit said on Friday it had actually protected the media rights for all Asian Cricket Council (ACC) competitions until 2031, which a source with direct understanding of the matter put the worth at $170. million. Disney and Dependence, viewed as frontrunners,. did not bid for the rights, another source said on condition of. anonymity. The offer comes at a crucial time for the nation's media. industry, which is going through a debt consolidation stage after the. $ 8.5 billion merger of Reliance and Walt Disney's India media. possessions. Earlier this year, India's antitrust body raised some. issues about the merged entity's grip over the broadcast of. the world's most populous nation's favourite sport, Reuters had. reported. The entity presently holds the rights to the matches of the. Indian Premier League and International Cricket Council. The media rights of the ACC were with Disney-owned Star. India up until 2023, before they were temporarily extended,. according to media reports. The latest deal guarantees the coverage of Asian cricket's. marquee tournaments throughout tv, digital and audio. platforms, Sony India stated in a statement. The offer will be a substantial increase for Sony to reinforce its. foothold in India after it took out of a $10 billion merger. with Zee Home entertainment previously this year. Disney, Dependence and Sony India did not immediately react. to Reuters' requests for remark.
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United States bars more food, metal imports over China's alleged forced labor
The United States banned food, metal and other imports from 30 more business over China's supposed forced labor involving the Uyghurs, according to a government notice published online on Friday. The new additions, covering a range of products from tomato paste and walnuts to gold and iron ore, become part of the federal government's effort to remove required labor practices in the supply chain for goods getting in the United States. The business listed in the Federal Register were contributed to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, which limits the import of products connected to what the U.S. identifies as China's human rights abuses. U.S. authorities state Chinese authorities have established labor camps for Uyghurs and other spiritual and ethnic minority groups in China's western Xinjiang area. Beijing has rejected any abuses. The addition of the 30 business would bring the overall variety of companies on the list to more than 100 because the Uyghur Forced Labor Avoidance Act was signed into law in December 2021.
Why India's toxic farm fire counting approach is challenged
India prepares to count hazardous farm fires by keeping track of the scorched location they leave rather than the present approach of using orbiting satellites to determine live fires.
Here is a look at how India counts farm fires - a significant contributor to extreme contamination in the north - and why its method is being questioned.
WHY ARE FARM FIRES LIT?
Farmers in India light fires, in infraction of laws that bar the practice, to rapidly clear crop waste or stubble left behind after paddy is harvested so that they can plant wheat.
Although the federal government offers aids on harvesting machines that can replace this technique, need has been low due to their high cost or long wait for those looking to rent them.
HOW DOES INDIA DISPLAY FARM FIRES?
Officials say satellites are the only way to keep track of farm fires since they catch a much larger area.
India's area company obtains data from two orbiting NASA satellites that pass over the northern breadbasket states of Punjab and Haryana, to name a few, two times a day - around 10.30 am ( 0500 GMT) and 1.30 pm (0800 GMT).
This is then shown the federal government to count farm fires.
IS THIS APPROACH FOOLPROOF?
NASA satellites just record circumstances of farm fires throughout the minimal period when they are passing over the area, which takes them 90 seconds. They for that reason just capture any blaze noticeable at that time or lit in the previous half hour.
Specialists suspect that farmers have, over time, realise of this monitoring duration and moved the time of burning their crop waste to avert the NASA satellites.
WHY IS IT BEING QUESTIONED NOW?
An advisor to the Supreme Court, which is keeping track of pollution management by authorities in the nationwide capital region, this week said there was an inconsistency in the farm fire data gotten from orbiting and stationary satellites.
Mentioning information provided by a senior scientist at NASA Goddard Area Flight Center, she said that a South Korean fixed satellite had actually recorded farm fires at 4.20 pm (1050. GMT), well after the NASA satellites had actually carried on.
WHAT IS THE ALTERNATIVE?
The court had directed the federal government to acquire. information of farm fires from stationary satellites as an option. however the federal government said this data is sub-optimal.
Rather, India's area firm is working on a system to. count farm fires by studying the scorched area they leave.
(source: Reuters)