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Blackstone and US utility PPL will build gas power stations in a JV partnership
The companies announced on Tuesday that they have formed a joint-venture to build natural gas power stations for data centers, under long-term agreements to provide energy services. Vincent Sorgi, President and CEO of PPL, said in a press release that he was excited to use the expertise PPL and Blackstone Infrastructure have to bring new dispatchable generation to Pennsylvania in order to meet new data center loads. The announcement was made at the Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit, held in Pittsburgh. Government, technology and energy officials announced investments of approximately $90 billion to advance data centers and other aspects in the artificial intelligence boom. The U.S. president Donald Trump was expected in attendance. According to the companies, PPL and Blackstone Infrastructure, which own 51% of the joint venture, will sign long-term agreements for energy services with large data centers companies. There has not yet been any agreement of this nature. The joint venture has engaged in active engagement with landowners and natural gas pipeline companies, as well as turbine manufacturers and secured multiple land parcels for this new generation buildout, according to the announcement.
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Trump's AI and tech summit announces major US investments
On Tuesday, American companies announced a series big-ticket AI investments and energy pledges as part of President Donald Trump's push to maintain the nation's advantage in the booming tech sector. Here are the most important announcements made around the Energy and Innovation Summit, held at Carnegie Mellon University. The summit is expected to bring $90 billion of investments into and around Pennsylvania. Google, owned by Alphabet, has signed a deal worth $3 billion with Brookfield Asset Management to purchase electricity produced from two hydropower plants in Pennsylvania. Google will invest $25 billion over the next two-years in data centers throughout Pennsylvania and its neighboring states, according to a report by Semafor. Jon Gray, the president and chief operating office of Blackstone Asset Management, said at a panel discussion that it plans to invest $25 billion in data centers and energy infrastructures in Pennsylvania. Blackstone also announced a joint venture for power generation with PPL Corp. First Energy is investing $15 billion in expanding power distribution and strengthening grid infrastructure. They will also operate an enhanced grid for 56 Pennsylvania counties. This was announced by the Pennsylvania office of Senator Dave McCormick. Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Meta Platforms, said on Monday that his company will spend hundreds of millions of dollars building several AI data centers. One of these is a data center with a capacity of more than one gigawatt, dubbed Prometheus. It's planned to be built in Ohio. CoreWeave, a cloud infrastructure technology company, plans to invest up to $6 billion in building a new artificial-intelligence data center in Pennsylvania. The company announced this on Tuesday. Senator McCormick’s office announced that Constellation Energy would invest $2.4 billion in upgrading the Limerick Nuclear Power Plant. Energy Capital Partners has announced a plan of $5 billion to build a datacenter at the York II Energy Center. PitchBook's report on Tuesday revealed that AI-related startups have seen a rise in investment, which is a sign of the continued growth of this field, even though venture capital firms struggle to raise funds. Reporting by Raphael Satter, Editing by Chizu nomiyama and Leslie Adler
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Pentagon will continue to work with US rare-earths projects, US Defense official says
A defense official said on Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Defense will continue to work with rare earths firms to ensure a diverse American supply of these critical minerals, which are used throughout the economy. Pentagon signed multi-billion dollar deal last week to become largest shareholder of rare earths producer MP Materials. It also agreed on several financial backstop measures. Defense official stated that the move was made to "share risk" in a vital minerals project. The U.S. Mining sector questioned whether similar investments could be made by the U.S. Military. Official: The Pentagon is "looking forward to continuing to work with companies throughout the (rare earths supply chain) to ensure that DoD, and the nation, have the secure and robust supply chains necessary to protect national and economic security in the future." The official said that the MP deal structure is a "unique" approach by the government in order to "account [for] the difficulties of establishing and maintaining production of rare earth magnets within a market where China controls a large part of the supply chain." Officials said that the Pentagon's investment in MP came through a Cold War law called the Defense Production Act and its Office of Strategic Capital. (Reporting and editing by Chris Reese, Sandra Maler, and Ernest Scheyder)
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Trump expects to meet Starmer during his visit to Scotland
Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he will meet with British Premier Keir starmer in Aberdeen, Scotland later this month, to finalize a U.S. - British trade agreement. An official at the White House said that Trump will visit his golf properties on Scotland's west coast in late August, recreating his 2016 trip to Scotland during his first presidential run. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that Trump planned to visit his Turnberry and Aberdeen properties during a trip scheduled to last between July 25-29. When asked by reporters about his trip, Trump replied that he was going to meet Starmer. He and Starmer Deal announced On June 16, on the sidelines the G7 Summit, in Canada, that reaffirmed the quotas for British automobiles. They also eliminated tariffs against the U.K. Aerospace sector. The issue of aluminum and steel remains unresolved. "We will have a meeting, most likely in Aberdeen." Trump said that they would do many different things and refine the deal we have made. Trump visited both courses in 2016 during his successful first term, using the occasion to praise Britain's vote for "Brexit", to leave the European Union. When he visited Turnberry, bagpipers dressed in kilts accompanied him. Turnberry, on the west coast in Scotland, has hosted the Open Championships four times. The last time was in 2009. Trump purchased it in 2014. The Republican President will be a guest of King Charles in Windsor Castle from September 17-19. In June 2019, during Trump's first term, the late Queen Elizabeth welcomed him to Buckingham Palace. He had a private dinner with her and tea with Charles. (Reporting by Steve Holland; editing by Chizu Nomiyama & Leslie Adler).
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Britain abandons its 'taxonomy plan' for green investments
The UK has canceled plans to create a "taxonomy", which would guide companies and investors in determining what constitutes a green investment. This is the latest indication that governments are delaying reporting sustainability requirements for businesses. Taxonomies define criteria for a sustainable activity to assist economies in achieving net zero targets. The taxonomies were created to encourage more investment in green projects, but critics claim they are difficult to follow and not very useful. After determining that the taxonomy was "not the most effective tool for delivering the green transition, and should not be included in our sustainable financial framework," the finance ministry stated it would instead focus on other green policy to drive investments. The decision is made as Europe overhauls its own sustainability reporting regulations for companies to reduce red tape and boost competitiveness. The government stated that its consultation revealed the taxonomy wouldn't deliver "in a reasonable way" its goals of channeling capital, and reducing greenwashing. The UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association called it "disappointing", that the government concluded that a taxonomy of green investments had no place within the UK's sustainable financial framework. Oscar Warwick Thompson, UKSIF's head of policy and regulation affairs, said: "We want to see rapid delivery of commitments regarding transition plans and sustainability reporting standards." The British government first proposed a taxonomy for the UK in 2020. However, the work was stopped in December 2022 because it was considered a complex task that involved multiple sectors in the economy. Gemma Woodward is the head of responsible investments at Quilter Cheviot. She welcomed the decision and said that the industry already had to deal with other regulations. Virginia Furness, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes and Alexandra Hudson edited the story.
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NOPA US soybean crush in June exceeds expectations with 185.709 millions bushels
According to data released by the National Oilseed Processors Association on Tuesday, the U.S. soy crush exceeded the average trade expectations for June, and reached its highest level ever. Soyoil stock levels dropped to their lowest point in five months. NOPA members, who account for at least 95 percent of soybeans crushed by the United States, crushed 185.709 millions bushels last month. This is down 3.7% compared to the 192.829million bushels crushed in may, but up 5.8% compared to the 175.599million bushels crushed back in June 2024. That was the previous monthly record. According to an average estimate of eight analysts, the crush was predicted to drop to 185.195 millions bushels. Estimates ranged between 182.000 million and 188.000 millions bushels with a median estimate of 185.175million bushels. The June crush exceeded expectations despite the second consecutive monthly decline in daily processing pace which dropped to 6,190 million bushels. According to NOPA, this was a decrease from the 6.220 bushels per day of May. It is also the lowest daily crush rate recorded since September. U.S. crushing capacity has reached record levels due to recent processing plant expansions, new plant openings, and a soaring demand of soyoil. Analysts said that this capacity was underutilized in some cases as the glut of soymeal prevented plants from operating at full speed. As of June 30, soyoil stock levels among NOPA member companies fell to 1.366 bn pounds. This is a decrease of 0.5% compared with the stocks at the end May, which were 1.373 bn pounds. It also represents a 15.8% drop from the stocks in place a year ago of 1.622 bn pounds. Six analysts estimated that stocks would rise by a modest amount to 1.374 trillion pounds. The estimates ranged between 1.275 billion and 1.525 billion pounds with a median estimate of 1.342 million pounds.
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The US Court of Appeals temporarily suspends Argentina's 51% stake in YPF
The U.S. Court of Appeals on Tuesday temporarily suspended an order by a judge that Argentina hand over its 51% share in the oil and gas company YPF as partial satisfaction for a $16.1-billion judgment. The 2nd U.S. The 2nd U.S. The appeals court stated that Argentina had until July 22nd to respond. The dispute arose from Argentina's 2012 acquisition of the YPF stake by Repsol, a Spanish company, without making a bid to Petersen or Eton Park. Both were minority shareholders. Burford Capital is representing these shareholders. Burford Capital has stated that it expects to receive between 35% and 73% respectively of Petersen and Eton Park’s damages. Argentina warned that its economy would be unstable if it sold its majority stake in YPF - the largest energy company in the country. The country was given a deadline of July 14 for the turn-over, but U.S. district judge Loretta Preska agreed to defer enforcement until Argentina could appeal the decision.
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Watchdog asks EU to explain the speed at which it proposes to reduce green rules
In response to complaints from campaigners who accused Brussels of weakening sustainability laws without consulting the public, the EU Ombudsman demanded that the European Commission explain on Tuesday why it had fast-tracked its proposals to curb them. In February, the Commission introduced legal changes to exempt thousands smaller European businesses from European Union reporting rules on sustainability. This was done to simplify regulations for industries that are struggling to compete against rivals in China or the U.S. where President Donald Trump has been rolling back regulations. The EU Ombudsman demanded that the Commission explain why they did not perform a full impact analysis on these proposals, consult with the public about the changes or assess if the proposals are in line with Europe’s commitments to climate change. The Commission will usually perform an impact analysis when proposing new EU legislation to determine their effects. This can be skipped when the law is an emergency response to a crises and the proposals for simplifying the green reporting rules did not include an assessment. In a letter published Tuesday, Ombudsman Teresa Anjinho stated that "based on the materials made available so far, it does not appear the Commission has adequately justified derogating its rules in this instance." She said, "The Commission has not indicated any sudden or unanticipated event that would warrant the urgency." Anjinho noted that, instead of the usual 10-day consultation, the Commission gave its departments only 24 hours, beginning on Friday evening, to evaluate the plans. A spokesperson for the Commission said that it would answer the questions and make rapid changes, since some companies have already been required to report their information this year. The spokesperson said that "businesses and members states urgently need legal certainty in order to comply with sustainability framework," during a regular briefing. The European Ombudsman is responsible for investigating cases of mismanagement in EU institutions. The Commission must respond by September 15. (Reporting and editing by Barbara Lewis; Kate Abnett)
China's steel sector is softening, but with resilience: Russell
There are two ways of taking a look at the 1.7% decrease in China's steel output last year.
The first is that it confirms that the world's largest producer of the key commercial metal is now in a developed downtrend, and even more weakness is likely this year.
The second is that the steel industry is actually remarkably resilient in the face of major financial challenges, and that output has been essentially flat at extremely strong levels for the previous 5 years.
Both are basically factual, and show the classic glass half-full or half-empty predicament.
On the half-empty side of the ledger is the truth that China's steel production peaked at 1.065 billion metric tons in 2020, and has actually trended lower ever since, with 2024 output coming in at 1.005 billion tons.
However another way to take a look at China's steel output is that it has been within a 70 million heap variety between 2019 and 2024, which is in fact rather a steady efficiency.
Perhaps the very best way to characterise China's steel production is that it likely has actually peaked, however the decrease up until now has been mild, and output remains relatively high in spite of the well-publicised battles of the world's second-biggest economy considering that the COVID-19 pandemic.
The question then ends up being, what is the likely trajectory for China's steel sector in 2025?
Comparable to other markets, the response remains uncertain and based on aspects yet to come into play, chief amongst them what trade tariffs are put in place by the brand-new administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, who resumed the workplace on Monday.
It's likewise unsure regarding whether 2025 is the year China's. struggling house sector gets back on its feet, or. whether it stays hostage to weak designer balance sheets and. consumer wariness.
A 3rd factor is what will occur to China's steel exports. in 2025, after they struck a nine-year high of 110.72 million tons. in 2024.
This was up 22.7%, or just over 20 million loads, from the. previous year, with the increase helping to balance out some loss of. domestic usage for steel mills.
The volume of Chinese steel striking global markets has actually led. to some consternation among nations such as India, which is. trying to enhance the speed of growth of its own steel sector.
This raises the possibility that China may discover it harder to. boost steel exports in 2025.
But it is worth keeping in mind that not all importing nations are. opposed to buying more steel from China, specifically those. without a domestic steel sector.
BEST-CASE CIRCUMSTANCE
The best-case circumstance for China's steel sector this year is. one where trade tariffs aren't too punitive, the domestic. economy continues to regain momentum and building activity. stabilises, or perhaps even increases.
Under such a situation, the very best result for China's steel. production would be constant output around 1 billion lots.
This also suggests that China's need for iron ore is likely. to stay stable also, although it might alleviate from the record. high of 1.24 billion heaps in 2024.
This is largely because much of the 4.9% rise in imports,. which was comparable to 57.5 million loads, went to replenish. stockpiles instead of fulfill increased need for the crucial steel. raw material.
Port stocks kept an eye on by specialists SteelHome. << SH-TOT-IRONINV > ended in 2015 at 146.85 million heaps, up 32.4. million from the 114.5 million at the end of 2023. It's unlikely that stockpiles will rise again strongly in. 2025, which is most likely to restrict iron ore imports, although if the. down trend in rates of 2024 extends into this year, traders. might be lured to make the most of cheaper products. The views revealed here are those of the author, a columnist.
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(source: Reuters)