Latest News
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Nuclear reactor developer Deep Fission eyes $1.66 billion valuation in US IPO
Deep Fission announced on Wednesday that it is aiming for a valuation of about $1.66 billion when it makes its U.S. IPO. The company hopes to ride a wave of investor demand as the use and consumption AI-powered electricity increases. The Berkeley-based company wants to raise up to $156m by selling 6 million shares at a price of between $24 and $25 each. Deep Fission plans to go public as investors are re-engaging in nuclear power following years of public skepticism. Data?centers, artificial intelligence and data?centers have been driving investor interest. The Gravity Reactor is a small modular reactor (SMR), designed to be operated deep underground. Deep Fission claims that the technology is based on the existing pressurized-water reactor (PWR), which powers most of the world's nuclear plants. The Trump administration has also issued a number of executive orders that aim to boost?domestic power capacity? and accelerate the deployment SMRs. In April, the nuclear reactor developer X-Energy listed. As of the last close, its shares are up 16.3% from their IPO price. William Blair, Stifel and Canaccord Genuity were among the underwriters of?the offering. It plans to list under the Nasdaq symbol "FISN". (Reporting by Pragyan Kalita in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)
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Freeport Indonesia claims that wet ore is slowing Grasberg's recovery and the full ramp-up will be completed in 2027
The recovery process of PT Freeport Indonesia’s Grasberg copper and gold mine has taken longer than expected. However, the company anticipates that?operations will "approach" their full capacity by the end of 2027. In September of last year, seven workers died when 800,000 metric tonnes of wet material flooded Grasberg Block Cave. The Grasberg Complex is the second largest copper mine in the world and the largest gold mine. Global copper prices rose due to a disruption in production caused by the?mine. Freeport Indonesia CEO Tony Wenas stated in an interview with the company's headquarters in Jakarta that "we found out that the GBC and the ore, now because of the incident, have more water... "since the ore will be much wetter than we thought, it is necessary to modify the chute." He said that the complex is currently operating at only 50% of its normal capacity. This will be increased to 65% later this year. Wenas stated that the copper cathode production in 2027 is expected to be approximately 1.2 billion pounds and gold at one million ounces. This is up from the original?2026 estimate of 800 million pounds copper cathode, and 700 000 ounces gold.
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Snapshot-Indian stocks, rupees, swaps, and call at close
STOCKS: The benchmark BSE Sensex rose 0.16% to 75 318.39 while the broader NSE Nifty index rose 0.17% to 23,659, aided?by a boost?from heavyweight Reliance Industries. Meanwhile, the Iran war-driven upswing of global borrowing costs weighed down on broader sentiment, and pushed the rupee to another record low. RUPEE: Indian rupee fell 0.3% against the U.S. dollar to 96.82. Stalled U.S.-Iran peace?talks kept oil prices high, driving global bond yields higher?and hurting equities amid fears of 'further central bank?rate hikes. Dollar to 96.82 as oil prices remain high due to the stalled U.S.Iran peace talks. This has pushed global bond yields up and hurt equities on fears of further central bank rate hikes. GOVERNMENT BANKS: The benchmark 10-year government bond was quoted at 95.955 rupies, with a yield of 7.0761%. Oil prices were cooled by hopes for a U.S.Iran peace agreement, which likely drove foreign banks to buy late in the session. OVERNIGHT SWAPS: The overnight index swap rate for a?one-year? period was down by more than five basis points at 6.21%. Meanwhile, the swap rate for a five-year period dropped four basis points to 6.8%. India's overnight call money rate was 5.25% and the overnight TREPS rate at 5.07%. Reporting by Nishit Navin in Bengaluru, editing by Mrigank Dahniwala
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Snapshot-Indian stocks, rupees, swaps, and call at close
STOCKS: The benchmark BSE Sensex rose 0.16% to 75 318.39 while the broader NSE Nifty index grew 0.17% to 23,659, aided by a boost?from heavyweight Reliance Industries. Meanwhile, the Iran war-driven upswing of global borrowing costs weighed down on broader sentiment, and drove the rupee -to another record low. The Indian rupee fell 0.3% against the U.S. dollar to 96.82. Stalled U.S.-Iran peace?talks kept oil prices high, driving global bond yields higher?and hurting equities amid fears of 'further central bank?"rate hikes. Dollar to 96.82 as oil prices remain high due to the stalled U.S.Iran peace talks. This has pushed global bond yields up and hurt equities on fears of further central bank rate hikes. GOVERNMENT BANKS: The benchmark 10-year government bond was quoted at 95.955 rupies, with a yield of 7.0761%. Oil prices were cooled by hopes for a U.S.Iran peace agreement, which likely drove foreign banks to buy late in the session. OVERNIGHT SWAPS: The overnight index swap rate for a?one-year? period was down by more than five basis points at 6.21%. Meanwhile, the swap rate for a five-year period dropped four basis points to 6.8%. India's overnight call money rate was 5.25% and the overnight TREPS rate at 5.07%. Reporting by Nishit Navin in Bengaluru, editing by Mrigank Dahniwala
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Sources say that Thyssenkrupp will consider spin-off of materials unit at summer shareholder meeting.
Two people familiar with the matter said that Thyssenkrupp may hold an extraordinary general meeting in the summer, to allow investors to vote on a possible spin-off of its materials trading division MX. The discussions?underscore Miguel Lopez's attempts to continue with the company overhaul to a holding company, despite recent setbacks after talks to sell Thyssenkrupp Steel to Jindal Steel failed. Sources said that Thyssenkrupp's supervisory board, which is meeting on Wednesday, could decide to send official invitations to shareholders in the next month. This would mean an EGM might take place at the end of July or beginning of August. The people who spoke to me said that no?firm decisions had been made, and the timeline could change. MX, which employs over?15,000 employees and represents more than one-third of the?Thyssenkrupp sales, saw its adjusted operating 'profit? nearly triple in the second quarter to EUR81million ($94million) for a margin 2.6%. MX's revenues for the quarter rose by 5%, to EUR3.19billion. In February, sources had said that MX’s performance in the second quarter would determine the division’s readiness to enter the capital market. They added that a spin-off could happen as early as this year. Thyssenkrupp stated that it was "confident" MX would be successful on the capital markets, even in a challenging environment. They declined to comment about the timing. The plans to separate MX are a response to the increasing consolidation of?the materials industry. Worthington Steel, a U.S. company, recently acquired smaller German 'rival Kloeckner & Co after combining Ryerson & Olympic Steel. Thyssenkrupp has already spun off or listed its marine and hydrogen divisions under Lopez in an effort to simplify the conglomerate, which makes everything from autoparts to cement plants.
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South Africa's Eskom begins talks on nuclear financing with World Bank and others
Eskom, South Africa's state-owned?power utility, is currently in exploratory talks? with the World Bank about funding a multi-billion dollar nuclear programme which could launch within 12 months. Eskom, the company that runs Africa's sole nuclear power plant near Cape Town is preparing an information request covering up to 5,200 Megawatts in new capacity. South Africa wants more baseload electricity - a steady, constant supply of electricity - and is moving away from coal, which supplies the majority of its electricity. Eskom proposes 4,800 MW of conventional pressurised-water reactors, and 400?MW of small modular reactors. At least half the SMR capacity is earmarked for Eskom's coal-to nuclear strategy. Bheki Nxumalo said, "We're in exploratory discussions with most potential funders... (over) the different ways to finance this," Bheki, Eskom's Group Executive for Generation, said on the sidelines an energy conference in Cape Town. Nxumalo stated that "we are...looking for anyone with ideas. There are different options", referring to the technology which is being opposed by environmental groups and local communities. Nxumalo, Eskom's spokesperson, said that Eskom is cash-strapped and cannot finance new nuclear plants by itself. It needs help from commercial banks and other institutions like the African Development Bank. A World Bank spokesperson stated that "as a policy, we don't comment on potential or exploration discussions with member nations or utilities." The World Bank announced last year that it would return to nuclear financing and support countries who choose this as part of their energy blend. FUNDING OPTIONS The World Bank stated that its engagement is guided by the countries' priorities for development and its policy framework which allows a range of technologies. Nxumalo stated that public-private partnerships, vendor financing and developer funding are all options being considered. Rosatom, a Russian company, is currently doing this at the El Dabaa Project in Egypt. He said: "We have some work to do on our end, but we're hoping to get both technologies (conventional SMR and SMR) to market within the next year." Reporting by Wendell Roelf. Nilutpal Timsina contributed additional reporting. Mark Potter (Editing)
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US power giants bet on AI build-out but power bills may affect their decision
The massive merger between NextEra and Dominion Energy may hinge on the ability of the combined company to keep electricity costs down, even as it rushes in order to supply energy-hungry data centers that are driving up consumer prices. NextEra?said?buying Dominion would allow it to quickly build new generation in areas where others have lagged, and connect proposed data centres waiting to start operations. These companies will have to pass multiple reviews by local, state and national regulatory agencies who will evaluate the consumer impact of rising power bills in certain U.S. areas due to the demand for AI data centers outpacing new generation. Paul Patterson, energy analyst at Glenrock Associates LLC, said that the main issue is to keep rates low and growth affordable. The merger was primarily to serve?data centres. Dominion's territory includes northern Virginia, also known as "Data Center Alley". This area of increasing power demand is located within the 13-state PJM Interconnection where new data hubs and other areas are expanding. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Virginia's electricity demand increased by 3.1% annually between 2019 and 2024. This is more than three times higher than the national average of 0.9%. In some areas of PJM, household power bills have risen by more than 20% in the past two years due to a?demand growth but stagnant supply. As a result of the imbalance between supply and demand, large-scale construction projects have sparked political opposition as well as increased regulatory scrutiny. SCALE, SPEED, AND SCRUTINY Analysts and investors believe that merging NextEra with Dominion, which together has built more power than the 25 next largest utilities combined, could provide the scale necessary to advance data center power transmission and generation projects, both of which have stalled. Dominion’s expertise and relationships will allow NextEra's data center ambitions to be accelerated. "Utilities need to have larger balance sheets and broader generation portfolios as well as faster infrastructure deployment in order to compete with AI," said Alex Torgerson. He is a mergers & acquisitions leader at the business and technology consulting firm West Monroe. Torgerson stated that "the biggest challenge is now for regulators who will be scrutinizing market concentration, grid stability, and whether ratepayers see any meaningful benefits from this size of a deal." In a joint press release, NextEra and Dominion highlighted that the combined company will keep rates down and offered Dominion customers from Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina bill credits worth $2.25 billion over two years. The research arm of investment banking advisory firm Evercore said in a report that "the regulatory obstacles to closing this deal are the true variables." Consumer advocates have criticized the merger, saying it's unnecessary and will ultimately benefit shareholders and executives of both companies more than utility consumers. According to Dominion’s latest proxy statement, five Dominion executives may?collectively receive? an estimated $66,000,000 in pay and benefits due to the takeover. Dominion CEO Robert Blue was paid an estimated $30.1 million for his change-in control. The Electricity Law Initiative director at Harvard University Law School, Ari Peskoe said, "Utility mergers only benefit shareholders and executives. They do not benefit ratepayers."
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Reliance boosts Indian shares but caution about Iran continues
The rupee fell to another record low on Wednesday as the Iran war-driven rise in global borrowing costs weighed on sentiment. Fears of a protracted Middle East conflict has prompted a sell-off in U.S. Treasuries. This has impacted riskier assets around the world. The higher yields of U.S. government bonds have made Indian stocks less attractive to overseas investors. They've sold more than $23 billion worth of Indian shares in 2026. This is a record-breaking outflow. The Nifty 50 index rose 0.17% on Wednesday to 23,659 while the BSE Sensex increased 0.16% to $75,318.39. Since the Iran War broke out at the end of Feburary, the indexes are down 6% and 7.3% respectively. 11 of the 16 major sectors gained. Small-caps were flat, while mid-caps rose 0.5%. U.R. Bhat, cofounder of Alphaniti Fintech, a firm that provides advisory services. Indian equity investors are most concerned about oil price. The markets could react positively if there's a 'pullback in oil prices. Reliance shares jumped by 2.8% on their best day in over three weeks. Stocks had fallen 9.6% in the last 10 sessions. Aluminium manufacturer Hindalco gained 3.5% and was the top gainer on the Nifty 50 after its U.S. based?subsidiary Novelis announced higher operating profits and that its?New Jersey facility will restart in the coming weeks. Brent Crude prices fell 1.9% but remained elevated at $109 per barrel. India imports 90% of its crude oil needs. Shipping data shows that two Chinese oil tankers loaded with oil left the Strait of Hormuz.
Yemen's Houthis state ship assaulted in Gulf of Aden might sink
Yemen's Houthi militants stated on Monday they had actually assaulted the Rubymar freight vessel in the Gulf of Aden which was at threat of sinking, raising the stakes in their project to interrupt worldwide shipping in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza war.
The Iran-aligned Houthis have made repetitive drone and rocket strikes since November in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait. U.S. and British forces have reacted with several strikes on Houthi centers however have so far stopped working to halt the attacks.
Houthi military representative Yahya Sarea stated in a statement that the Rubymar's crew was safe but that the ship was terribly harmed and at danger of sinking. The Belize-flagged, British-registered and Lebanese-managed vessel was assaulted on Sunday.
The Houthis had also shot down a U.S drone over the Yemeni port Hodeidah, Sarea added.
The U.S. military's Central Command (CENTCOM) validated that two anti-ship ballistic rockets were introduced from Houthi regulated locations of Yemen and targeted the Rubymar on Feb 18.
One of the missiles struck the vessel, triggering damage. The ship released a distress signal and a union warship in addition to another merchant vessel reacted to the call to assist the crew of the Rubymar, CENTCOM stated on X.
Security firm LSS-SAPU, in charge of security on the Rubymar, said earlier the crew evacuated after two missiles hit. They were picked up by another commercial ship which took them to Djibouti.
We understand she was taking in water, LSS-SAPU informed in remarks by phone. There is no one on board now ... The owners and managers are thinking about choices for towage.
Far, no ships have actually been sunk nor team killed from the attacks in a sea lane accounting for about 12% of worldwide maritime traffic. Some business have actually selected to go the longer and more expensive route via the southern suggestion of Africa.
Despite Western attacks on them in Yemen, the Houthis have promised to continue targeting ships connected to Israel until attacks on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip stop.
GREEK-FLAGGED SHIP HIT
In a second event within hours, the Greece-flagged, U.S.-owned bulk provider Sea Champion with 23 crew members was assaulted two times on Monday by rockets, with a window damaged but no injuries to workers, Greek shipping ministry sources stated.
The vessel was taking grain from Argentina to Aden.
Seafarers in the firing line have signed market wide arrangements providing rights to refuse to sail on ships passing through the Red Sea and to receive double pay when getting in high-risk zones.
Shipping industry associations on Monday called for the release of the 25 team members of the Galaxy Leader commercial ship pirated by the Houthis three months ago on Nov 19.
The 25 seafarers who comprise the crew of the Galaxy Leader are innocent victims of the ongoing hostility against world shipping, the associations said. It is abhorrent that seafarers were seized by military forces which they have been avoided their families and enjoyed ones for too long.
The CEO of QatarEnergy, the world's second largest exporter of melted gas (LNG) which has actually stopped cruising via the Red Sea, stated the interruption was postponing shipments.
Container shipping, which carries consumer products, is beginning to feel the impact from re-routing ships. S&P Global Market Intelligence said in a report on Friday that the garments market was now anticipating higher hold-ups and expenses.
The Houthis, who control Yemen's most populated regions, have targeted vessels with commercial ties to the United States, Britain and Israel, shipping and insurance sources say.
War risk insurance premiums have actually crept greater and are now around 1% of the worth of the vessels, excluding discount rates that are used, including hundreds of countless dollars of extra expenses per voyage, insurance coverage sources stated.
Shipping companies need to weigh up the increased expenses and journey times versus the danger to their vessels, and, most importantly, the security of the crew onboard, insurance broker Gallagher Speciality Marine stated in a report last week.
The European Union on Monday released a marine mission to the Red Sea to protect and restore liberty of navigation there, a relocation welcomed by the World Shipping Council.
The security scenario around the Red Sea continues to be alarming, with vessels trying to transit being bombarded with missiles and drones along with suffering attacks from equipped fighters on the water, the WSC said.
(source: Reuters)