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Fugro Secures Offshore Wind Site Survey in German North Sea
Fugro has secured contracts to conduct both geophysical and geotechnical site investigations for the development of two large-scale offshore wind farms in the German North Sea.The project, known as Windbostel Ost and Windbostel West, is a joint venture between RWE and TotalEnergies, with a combined generating capacity of 4 GW.Fugro’s comprehensive site characterization work will provide essential geo-data on the seabed and subsurface conditions northwest of the island of Borkum.The geophysical surveys will provide initial detailed mapping of the seabed and shallow subsurface layers, identifying potential hazards and informing early design considerations.The geotechnical investigation will provide data on the seabed’s soil composition and characteristics through in situ testing and sampling.The combined geophysical and geotechnical data will be crucial for foundation design, structural analysis, cable routing, and risk assessment during the construction and operational phases of the project.“This project aligns with our goal of supporting the development of sustainable energy solutions and using our expertise in complex offshore investigations. We are committed to providing the critical Geo-data needed for the safe and efficient development of these important wind farms, contributing to the growth of renewable energy in the North Sea,” said John ten Hoope, Fugro’s Regional Business Line Director for Marine Site Characterisation in Europe and Africa.This contract follows Fugro’s previous geotechnical investigations for the 1.6 GW Nordseecluster project in Germany and builds upon preliminary geotechnical data acquired by Fugro for the German Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH).
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Prio Aims to Double Oil Output in 2026
Brazilian oil company Prio expects to double its daily output next year when compared with 2024 levels, driven by the development of some key offshore fields, CEO Roberto Monteiro said on Monday.Prio forecasts production to exceed 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) next year, Monteiro told an event marking the company's 10th anniversary, up from the 100,000 bpd reported last year.Independent oil producer Prio has expanded in recent years through some high-profile asset purchases, including those of the Wahoo field from TotalEnergies and BP, and the Peregrino field from Equinor and Sinochem.The production target reflects the development of those assets, Monteiro said, with the company currently awaiting approval from Brazil's environmental agency Ibama to connect wells and begin output at Wahoo.The outlook comes amid heightened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, which have pushed global oil prices higher in recent weeks due to concerns over potential supply disruptions.Global benchmark Brent prices oscillated on Monday, touching a five-month high before falling more than 1% as oil and gas transit continued on tankers from the Middle East after U.S. air strikes against Iran over the weekend."It's horrible to say that a war is a positive thing, but that's a reality," Monteiro told reporters, referring to the recent surge in oil prices. "Brazil, in general, is a geopolitically stable country and a significant oil producer."The CEO emphasized that while Prio monitors global geopolitical developments, its strategic decisions would remain based on operational efficiency and productivity. "Our portfolio was designed with efficiency in mind," he said.Sao Paulo-traded shares of Prio were up around 1% on Monday, outperforming the broader Bovespa stock index, which slid 0.6%.(Reuters)
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China's demand for iron ore is countering Australia's supply outlook.
The price of iron ore futures fluctuated within a narrow range on Tuesday as traders assessed the balance between the strong demand for near-term supply in China and the possibility of an improved supply coming from Australia, a major producer. As of 0310 GMT, the most traded September iron ore contract at China's Dalian Commodity Exchange remained unchanged at 706.5 Yuan ($98.45). The benchmark July Iron Ore at the Singapore Exchange fell 0.18% to $93.7 per ton. According to Chinese consultancy Mysteel, hot metal production, which is a measure of iron ore consumption, increased 0.24% week-on-week to 2.422 millions tons as of 20th June. Analysts at ANZ said that "volumes have remained around 2.4 millions tons since April. This suggests resilience on the largest steel market in the world." Hexun Futures stated in a report that the market still prices in seasonal demand weakness. Mysteel said in a separate report that "Chinese iron ore prices continued to fall during the period of June 16-20 as the seasonal decline in steel consumption during the summer undermined the demand for this steelmaking material." Rio Tinto, world's biggest iron ore producer and Hancock Prospecting enter a joint venture to develop the Hope Downs 2 Project in Western Australia. Rio announced in a press release that the two pits of iron ore will have an annual combined production capacity totaling 31 million metric tonnes. Coking coal and coke, the other steelmaking ingredients traded in a sideways manner. Jiang Mengtian is the chief analyst of Horizon Insights. He said that the Middle East conflict intensification has had little direct impact on ferrous prices, but the coking coal price did benefit from the energy concerns. The benchmarks for steel on the Shanghai Futures Exchange have lost ground. Rebar fell 0.13%, while hot-rolled coils dropped 0.16%. Wire rod slipped 0.75% and stainless steel was down around 1%.
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Gold nears 2-week low following Trump's announcement of Israel-Iran ceasefire
Gold prices dropped to their lowest level in nearly two weeks on Tuesday, as risk appetite increased after U.S. president Donald Trump announced that Iran and Israel agreed to a truce. This lowered demand for safe haven assets. As of 0257 GMT spot gold fell 0.5% to $3351.47 per ounce after reaching its lowest level since the 11th of June earlier in session. U.S. Gold Futures fell 0.9% to $3365.30. Ilya Spirak, the head of global macro for Tastylive, said: "It appears that there is a lot of geopolitical risks leaving the market in the near-term after we've seen signs of deescalation between Iran and the U.S." Trump announced that Israel and Iran would cease all hostilities. This could end the 12-day conflict which saw millions of Iranians flee Tehran, and raised fears about further escalation. Israel did not immediately comment. Israel has not yet responded. An Iranian official confirmed earlier that Tehran had agreed on a ceasefire. However, the country’s foreign minister stated there would be no cessation unless Israel stopped their attacks. Oil prices fell to their lowest level in a week after Trump announced a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. Michelle Bowman, Vice-Chairperson for Supervision at the U.S. Federal Reserve, said that it is time to lower interest rates due to possible risks on the job market. Investors are awaiting the testimony of Fed Chairman Jerome Powell to be given before the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday. Powell has been careful to signal near-term ease. Spivak stated that "the bias is in favor of gold prices, but there could be a short-term correction and an increase in the dollar in the near term if Powell can convince markets they won't cut more than two times this year." In an environment with low interest rates, gold tends to flourish. Silver spot fell by 0.1% at $36.10 an ounce. Platinum dropped 0.2% to 1,292.39 and palladium was down 0.4% to $1,000.05. (Reporting and editing by Rashmia Aich, Mrigank Dhaniwala and Anmol Chaubey from Bengaluru)
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Metals are on the defensive after Iran-Israel truce announcement
On Tuesday, the London Metals Exchange (LME) and Shanghai Futures Exchange (SFE) were largely rangebound as caution reigned following the announcement by U.S. president Donald Trump of the Iran-Israel ceasefire. As of 0103GMT, LME's three-month copper rose 0.04% to $9671.5 per ton. SHFE's most-traded Copper gained 0.09%, to 78400 yuan. Trump stated in a post to his Truth Social website that a "complete" and "total" ceasefire would be implemented between Israel and Iran with the aim of ending the 12-day conflict. The commodity market has been unpredictable this year, and traders and investors are likely to wait and see how things turn out. As news of a ceasefire eased fears of supply disruptions, the U.S. Dollar fell and oil dropped to its lowest level in over a week. The greenback price of commodities is cheaper for buyers who hold other currencies. LME Aluminium fell by 0.77%, to $2.568.5 per ton. On Monday, it had reached a three-month peak on fears that the conflict could push up energy costs and disrupt supply. SHFE aluminium fell 0.37% to 20 345 yuan. LME zinc fell 0.37%, to $2677 per ton. Tin dropped 0.13%, to $32,650, and lead declined 0.05%, to $2,000. Nickel rose 0.21% to $14.835. SHFE nickel fell 0.58% to reach 117,280 Yuan. Zinc rose 0.68% to 22080 yuan, while lead increased 0.3% to 16920 yuan. Click or to see the latest news in metals, and other related stories. Data/Events (GMT) 0500 Japan Chain Store sales YY May 200800 Germany Ifo Business climate, current conditions, expectations New Jun 1400 US consumer confidence Jun ($1 = 7,1790 Chinese Yuan) (Reporting and editing by Hongmei LI; Sumana Niandy).
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Australia starts formal sale process of Gupta’s Whyalla Steelworks
The Australian government officially opened on Tuesday the sale process of commodity tycoon Sanjeev Gupta’s Whyalla Steelworks. It said that global steelmakers interested in expanding into low-emission manufacture have shown strong interest. In February, the steel plant in South Australia, whose operating company owed creditors tens and tens millions of dollars, was placed into administration. This forced the federal and state governments to provide a bailout package of A$1.9 billion ($1.23billion). Federal Industry Minister Tim Ayres announced that "selected prospective buyers" now have access to a secured data room. This allows for initial due diligence, and parties can prepare non-binding indication offers. A number of potential buyers have expressed an interest in purchasing and transforming integrated operations. Ayres stated that the independent sale process would be led by administrator KordaMentha, and sales advisors 333 Capital. Gupta’s family conglomerate GFG Alliance did not respond immediately to a comment request. GFG reported in March that it was the largest creditor of Whyalla Steelworks with A$536m ($347m). Since March 2021, when its main backer, the supply chain finance company Greensill, declared insolvency, the privately-held conglomerate has refinanced its global business in steel, aluminum and energy. Liberty Steel East Europe was placed into administration at the end of last year. ($1 = 1.5444 Australian dollars)
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AVZ Minerals will resume legal proceedings against DRC in dispute over disputed Lithium deposit
AVZ Minerals, an Australian company, announced on Tuesday that it would resume legal proceedings against the Democratic Republic of Congo over mining rights for the Manono Lithium deposit. The parties had been unable to settle a dispute regarding the deposit. Unresolved issues could pose a problem for the plans of California-based metals company KoBold Metals to purchase AVZ Minerals stake in one world's biggest hard rock lithium deposits. AVZ originally held the permit for the Manono Project, but the DRC mines ministry revoked it in 2023 on the grounds that the project hadn't advanced fast enough. The rights were granted later to a unit of Zijin Mining, which prompted AVZ, to seek relief from both the International Court of Arbitration of International Chamber of Commerce and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes. In late May, the AVZ temporarily suspended the ICSID proceedings after the U.S. Government encouraged the parties to resolve the dispute. AVZ's shares were suspended by DRC in May 2022, and then delisted from the stock exchange two years later, due to a dispute. DRC said that it did not interact with AVZ at all during the suspension, and therefore the suspension is now void. The company announced that the ICSID proceedings will resume. KoBold Metals didn't immediately respond to our request for comment. (Reporting and editing by Sherry Phillips and Alan Barona in Bengaluru, and John Biju in Bengaluru)
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Trump's announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Iran has caused oil prices to fall over a week.
The oil prices fell on Tuesday, to their lowest levels in over a week. U.S. president Donald Trump announced that a ceasefire had been reached between Iran and Israel. This eased concerns about a supply disruption. Brent crude futures dropped $2.69, or 3.76%, to $68.79 per barrel at 0006 GMT. This follows a session in which Brent crude futures had fallen more than 4% and reached its lowest level since the 11th of June. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude fell $2.7 or 3.94% to $65.46 a barrel after hitting its lowest level since June 9 during the session. It also dropped around 6%. Trump announced Monday that Israel has agreed to a full ceasefire with Iran. He added that Iran would begin the ceasefire immediately and Israel 12 hours later. The war will end officially after 24 hours if both sides keep peace. He stated that a "completely and totally" ceasefire would be implemented to end the conflict between both nations. Tony Sycamore is an analyst at IG. He said, "With the ceasefire announcement we now see a continuation of risk premium built in to crude oil prices last week almost disappear." Iran is OPEC’s third largest crude producer. The easing of tensions will allow Iran to export more oil, which would prevent any supply disruptions. This has been a major reason for the recent spike in oil prices. The oil contract prices fell by over 7% in the previous session, after reaching five-month highs following the U.S. attack on Iran's nuclear facility over the weekend. This stoked fears of an expansion in the Israel-Iran war. "Technically speaking, the overnight sale reinforces a resistance layer between approximately $78.40 ($October 2024 to June 2025 highs), and $80.77 ($the year-to date high). It's clear that something unexpected and detrimental to crude oil supply will be required to break through this resistance layer," Sycamore said.
Gold prices rise as tariff worries boost demand for safe-havens
Gold prices rose on Monday, as investors sought refuge in gold bullion due to the escalation of the Russian conflict in Ukraine and President Donald Trump’s threat to double tariffs against imported steel and aluminium.
As of 0204 GMT, spot gold rose 0.5% to $3,305.85 per ounce. U.S. Gold Futures increased 0.4% to $3329.80.
Tim Waterer is the chief market analyst for KCM Trade.
Gold is being supported by a drop in the dollar and a decline in risk assets.
Trump announced on Friday his intention to increase tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to 50%, up from 25%. The European Commission warned that Europe was prepared to take retaliatory action.
Ukraine and Russia intensified hostilities in advance of their second round peace talks in Istanbul. The wave of attacks included one of Ukraine’s most daring strikes of the conflict and an overnight drone attack by Russia.
Bullion is now cheaper for foreign buyers due to the 0.2% decline in the U.S. Dollar index.
The markets are waiting for clues from the Federal Reserve's officials on the outlook of monetary policy. Fed Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to speak at the end of the day.
Fed Governor Christopher Waller stated that rate cuts are still possible this year, despite the Trump Administration's tariff regime likely to temporarily increase price pressures.
In an environment of low interest rates, gold, which is regarded as a safe haven asset in times of geopolitical or economic uncertainty, thrives.
According to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Trump and Chinese president Xi Jinping will likely speak soon in order to resolve trade issues, including a dispute about critical minerals.
Other than that, silver spot was unchanged at $32.99 per ounce. Platinum was down 0.6% to $1,049.72, and palladium was down 0.5% at $965.77.
(source: Reuters)