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IAEA chief: No way to restart Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant at this time
The head of the UN nuclear safety watchdog stated on Tuesday that the idled Zaporizhzhia plant, which is occupied by Russia, was not in a position to restart at this time due to the lack of cooling water and a stable electricity supply. IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi said that water would need to be pumped out of the Dnipro River to restart the plant. It hasn't generated electricity for almost three years. In March 2022, Russia occupied the facility in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Region, Europe's biggest nuclear plant. This was shortly after Russia launched its full-scale invasion against its neighbor. The plant produced a fifth (of Ukraine's) electricity before the war. Grossi, in an interview with Kyiv, said that the Russians "never concealed the fact" they wanted to restart the factory, but they wouldn't be able do so anytime soon. The plant is located less than 10 kilometers (6 miles) away from Ukrainian positions across the Dnipro River. The plant has six reactors. The last one stopped producing electricity in September 2022. After the Kakhovka Dam was destroyed, the water level in its cooling pond on the southern Dnipro bank dropped dramatically during the summer of 2023. The nearby areas are regularly bombarded by artillery or drones, which can damage the remaining power lines that supply the electricity required for the plant to self-cool, even when it is dormant. Both sides blame each other for the attacks. Greenpeace released a report on Monday stating that Russia is building a 90 km high-voltage line to connect its power plant with the grid. Grossi stated that the IAEA disagreed with the conclusions of this report. There are areas where some work has been done, but we have no concrete evidence to suggest that this was part of an orchestrated, concerted plan to connect the plant in some sense. "We do not have a situation where the plant is about to restart imminently." Grossi stated that it would be a long time before the plant could be restarted. He added that the plant's machinery must be thoroughly checked before any restart. "You can imagine that in a piece of machinery of this size, there are pumps, bolts, pipes and a variety of other things which may be corroded." Grossi stated that all six reactors of the plant could be restarted if sufficient water was pumped into the Dnipro River. However, "a number" of things would have to be done before. RUSSIAN TECHNICIANS Ukraine said that any attempt made by Russian technicians to restart this plant would be dangerous as they are not certified operators. Grossi stated that Russian nuclear staff was capable of restarting the reactor, and the certification issue was more political than technical. He said, "They're professionals - they know what they're doing." Ukraine also protested against the IAEA monitoring mission that visited the plant via Russian-occupied territory. Grossi explained that he was doing this to protect his staff and because he did not yet have the guarantees he needed from the Russians to transit IAEA personnel safely through the frontlines into Ukraine-controlled territory as a number of times before. (Reporting and editing by William Maclean, Frances Kerry and Max Hunder)
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Gold Reserve affiliate bids in Citgo parent auction
The company reported on Tuesday that an affiliate of Gold Reserve miner submitted a bid in the top period of the U.S. Court-organized auction for shares of the parent company of Venezuelan-owned U.S. refiner Citgo Petroleum. According to the Delaware court calendar, after the court selected a $3.7billion offer from an affiliate of Contrarian Funds this year as the starting bid, competitors may submit better bids in the topping period until June 18. The court officer who was overseeing the sale process last month stated that the resolution of parallel cases pursuing the same assets which are being auctioned off in the 8-year case encouraged new offers without giving details. In a press release, Gold Reserve said that a consortium of Rusoro Mining, Koch Minerals, and Koch Nitrogen International supported the bid made by Gold Reserve subsidiary Dalinar Energy. Dalinar Energy could revise their bid before the expiration date of June 18, adding that they have a combination of equity and debt funding and are supported by three major financial institutions in a lending consortium. The auction results will not be revealed until the judge has disclosed the specifics of the bids. Documents from the court revealed that, in addition to Contrarian Funds, the Gold Reserve Group, and Vitol, the trading house also participated during the initial bid phase. Robert Pincus, a court officer, will recommend a winner by the 27th of June. The auction is intended to compensate up 15 creditors who have defaulted on their debts or been expropriated in Venezuela. Reporting by Marianna Pararaga Editing and translation by Margueritachoy
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Wildfires in Canada are impacting oil supply
The wildfires in Canada's oil producing province of Alberta has reduced Canada's daily crude output by approximately 7%. The following is a list of oil production sites that have been affected so far. CENOVUS Energy - CHRISTINA LAKE SITE: On May 29, Cenovus began to shut down production of approximately 238,000 barrels a day at its Christina Lake facility south of Fort McMurray in Alberta. The company stated that it was not aware of any damages to its infrastructure, and anticipates a full site restart in the near future. CANADIAN NATURAL RESOURCES – JACKFISH LAKE: Canada’s largest oil-and-gas producer announced on May 31 that it had evacuated its Jackfish 1 thermal-in-situ operations south of Fort McMurray in Alberta, and completed a safe, temporary shutdown of approximately 36.500 bpd bitumen production. MEG ENERGY CHRISTINA LAKE REGIONAL PROJECT MEG, an oil sands firm, announced on May 31 that it had evacuated all non-essential staff from the Christina Lake Regional Project Site south of Fort McMurray. The company stated that the wildfire damaged the power line connecting MEG's Phase 2B project with Alberta's electrical grid. This was causing delays in the startup of MEG operations. These represent about 70,000 bpd in production. Amanda Stephenson reports from Calgary.
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Smoke from Canadian wildfires spreads to US Midwest
The smoke from three wildfires in Canada is now spreading to the Upper Midwest of the United States, bringing back memories of the heavy pollution that drifted down from Canada during the worst fire season ever recorded two years ago. Smoke pollution is already drifting to Minnesota and other states nearby. In the coming days it is expected to reach New York City and other East Coast Cities, posing health risks to tens or millions of people who live there. Doug Brugge is a researcher in public health at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. He said that airborne particulate matters are the greatest environmental health risks we know of. It causes respiratory, cardiovascular and neurological damage, and these smoke plumes are at high levels in comparison to what Americans are usually exposed to. Since the beginning of May, scores of wildfires have spread across Canada. They forced thousands of people to evacuate and disrupted crude oil production. According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center, there were over 200 active fires on Monday. Of those, 106 were out-of-control. The majority of the fires have occurred in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. The current crisis is still not close to the 17 million hectares that burned in 2023. Ely, Minnesota near the Manitoba border was one of the worst places in the U.S. on Tuesday for air pollution. According to IQAir's website, which monitors air pollution around the globe, it registered a "hazardous air quality index" reading of 336. According to the website, an air quality rating below 50 is "good." Readings between 100-300 are considered "unhealthy," "very unhealthy," or "very unhealthy," while readings higher than this are considered "hazardous." The AQI in Duluth (Minnesota) was 309 by midmorning on Tuesday. In Flin Flon (Manitoba), about 1,300 km to the north, in an area where Canadian wildfires have been concentrated, it was 359. In IQAir’s list of major cities around the world, Minneapolis ranked second with a 210 rating, behind only Kuwait City which led the list, with a reading of 318. VULNERABLE PEOPLE According to Brugge, children, the elderly, and those with chronic respiratory, cardiac and other illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease, are the most susceptible to the effects caused by smoke. He said that the risk of hospitalization or death was low for people who were healthy and young. There is evidence, however, that air pollution increases blood pressure and inflammation in these people. The problem is worse in older buildings. Experts have stated that the concentration of wildfire pollution indoors can be as high as 70% higher than outside if there is a poor seal on a building. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommends that people refrain from indoor activities which can cause fine particles to be released into the air. This includes smoking, broiling or frying food, burning incense or candles, or vacuuming without using a HEPA-filter. According to a recent California study, exposure to wildfire smoke can also increase the risk of lung cancer patients dying, especially among non-smokers. However, certain cancer treatments may mitigate this effect. Some farmers, however, believe that the fires' effects are not entirely negative. On online forums such as Facebook, some farmers claim that their best harvests have come from years when there was a pall of smoke from wildfires from Canada. They believe that the smoke can protect crops vulnerable from scorching sun.
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Russian billionaire: SAP replacement is expensive but essential
Alexey Mordashov, a Russian steel billionaire, said that creating a home-grown alternative to SAP's widely used business software will take more time and money than expected but it is a matter for survival. SAP is a software company that makes software to help businesses manage everything from marketing, human resources, and logistics, to procurement and procurement. SAP supplied software to Russia's biggest companies, such as airline Aeroflot and Russian Railways. However, it curtailed business after Moscow sent troops to Ukraine in March 2022, and eventually stopped operations. Mordashov's steelmaker Severstal and Sibur, a petrochemicals company, have been working together to find an alternative SAP software. He said, "We've done a lot of research on this issue in the last year. But it turns out that everything has become more complicated and expensive, requiring more precise refinement." He added, "We know the importance of completing this task...because we must survive." Before the Ukraine conflict, SAP held 60% of the Russian business software market. The rest was split between Microsoft and Oracle. Many Russian companies still use SAP software that was pre-installed, but they do not have access to the updates or support provided by the German company. This leaves their systems susceptible to failure. Mordashov's remarks highlighted the difficulties Russian companies face in developing alternatives to Western software while facing Western sanctions. Severstal and Sibur originally teamed up to create software with the domestic software manufacturer Consist, but they have now ended their partnership. Severstal has now begun to look at solutions offered by Business Technologies, a developer. Other Russian companies, such as Russian Railways and the oil company Gazpromneft, have also chosen to work with 1C and plan to launch an alternative SAP software domestically in 2027. (Reporting Anastasia Lyrchikova; additional reporting by Oksana Kobieva; writing by Gleb Brynski, editing Alexandra Hudson).
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Peru expects $4.8 billion in mining investments this year and a slight increase in copper production
Jorge Montero, Peru's Energy and Mines minister, said that he expects the mining investment to reach $4.8 Billion this year and the production of red metal to be at 2.8 Mt. In 2024, Peru produced about 2.7 millions tons of copper. This is a slight decrease from the previous year. Montero, speaking at a media conference, also mentioned the alarming increase in informal and illegal mining, specifically in the Apurimac region and Arequipa region of southern Peru. Top copper mine Las Bambas is controlled by a miner The mine is located in Apruimac. Teck, a Canadian mining company, is developing the Zafranal Copper Project in Arequipa with Mitsubishi Materials. Rise of artisanal Copper Mining The mines have brought the Andean Peruvians into conflict with large miners, but they've also created much-needed income. Peru's north has also been dealing with an increase in illegal gold mining, including recent incidents. The death of 13 miners. (Reporting and writing by Marco Aquino, Daina Beth Solon; editing by Sarah Morland, Natalia Siniawski).
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Moody's warns that local debt markets can protect Africa from funding cuts.
Marie Diron, global head of sovereign risk at Moody's, says that African countries need to develop liquid local debt markets within their own currencies in order to protect themselves from the volatility of global markets and fickle investors. After a series of downgrades and cuts, some credit ratings on the continent are now rising. This is due to the strain the COVID-19 pandemic has put on sovereign financial statements. Diron noted that as geopolitical risks and trade wars roiled global markets, those countries who have increased local funding are doing the best. These include Benin and Ivory Coast. She said in an interview at the Mo Ibrahim Foundation event in Marrakech that "domestic funding" was needed to bridge the gap. Diron stated that the liquidity of South Africa's domestic debt markets has helped to shield its rating and borrowing costs from the turmoil caused by President Donald Trump's antagonistic approach towards President Cyril Ramaphosa and his government. She said that reducing foreign currency exposure, increasing maturity and using revenue efficiently were all key factors in boosting the credit ratings of African countries and their market access. Moody's Research shows that the median interest rates on local currency debts in Africa are around 12%. This compares to 8% in Latin America, and 5.5% in Asian Emerging Markets. These findings highlight cost savings African sovereigns can achieve by developing their local markets. Diron stated that African governments were able to access more financing options in the past decade. These included the World Bank and affordable international bond markets. Sources are now more limited and constrained, as rich nations cut aid and the concessional financing is shrinking. She said that the flow of money from China - a major source for Angola, Zambia and other countries - is now negative, as repayments are due and new lending slows. Diron, speaking of China, said: "We are looking at a couple years where net flows will be negative because repayments will be greater." The decline in oil prices has also affected crude exporters' revenue, particularly Angola. Diron stated that Moody's expects Brent to remain at around $65 per barrel. This is a decrease of about $10 from the previous forecast. Diron stated that multilateral development banks were filling in gaps. However, the amounts are in the "tens and billions" but not enough to cover the $400 billion annual financing gap estimated by the African Development Bank. Moody's also monitored any further cuts to U.S. financing Diron said that international institutions such as the World Bank, the IMF, and the AfDB are all important. She said: "It's a risk to conclude that multilateral banks cannot lend as much money as they do now, at a time where borrowing needs, if anything are increasing."
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IAEA chief: No way to restart Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant at this time
The head of UN's nuclear watchdog stated on Tuesday that the conditions for restarting Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia plant, which is occupied by Russia, do not exist due to the lack of cooling water and the absence a stable electricity supply. In an interview with the Kyiv-based IAEA director general Rafael Grossi, he said that the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant would need to be restarted by pumping water from the Dnipro River. In March 2022, Russia occupied the facility in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Region, just a few months after it invaded its neighbor. Grossi stated that the Russians "never hid the fact" they wanted to restart the factory, but would not be able do so anytime soon. "We do not have a situation where the plant is about to restart imminently." Grossi stated that it would be a long time before the plant could be restarted. The IAEA chief said that before restarting the plant, all of its machinery would be inspected thoroughly. The Ukraine has stated that a Russian attempt to restart the Zaporizhzhia Plant would be dangerous as they are not certified operators. Grossi stated that Russian nuclear staff was capable of restarting the reactor, and the certification issue was more political than technical. Ukraine also protested against the IAEA monitoring mission that visited the plant via Russian-occupied territory. Grossi explained that he was doing this to protect his staff and because he did not yet have the guarantees necessary from the Russians to transit IAEA personnel safely through the frontlines into Ukraine-controlled territory as a number of times previously. (Reporting and editing by William Maclean, Max Hunder)
BlueScope, Australia's steel company, surges after Trump's announcement to double tariffs.
BlueScope Steel shares soared to their highest level in over three months on Monday after U.S. president Donald Trump announced he would double the tariffs on steel imported from other countries.
Early trade saw shares of BlueScope, a company that operates five businesses across North America, including the North Star Mill in Ohio, up by as much as 9,4% to A$24.88.
The ASX 200 benchmark was down by 0.4%.
Trump said on Friday that he would double the tariffs on import steel and aluminum to 50%. This will increase pressure on steel producers around the world and intensify his trade war.
Grady Wulff is a Bell Direct market analyst. He said that these proposed tariffs would be good for BlueScope as they could increase steel prices in the U.S. and thus drive tailwinds for their company.
Mid-February saw the stock rise 12%, after chief executive Mark Vassella stated that Trump's tariffs could be beneficial to the business.
The shares, however, have fallen by nearly 10% since Vassella made his statements.
Wulff stated that the uncertainty of a recovery in China's demand for steel and ingredients for steelmaking has affected all companies exposed to this market. Tariffs are also increasing the uncertainty surrounding a recovery of steel-related materials.
BlueScope is the biggest victim of low iron ore prices. They have dropped 3.5% this year.
North America was BlueScope’s largest revenue-generating segment for the six months ending December 31, 2024. It accounted for 42% or A$309 ($199.77) million of all earnings before taxes, interest, depreciation, and amortization. Australia accounted for 39% or A$288 millions. (1 Australian dollar = 1.5468 dollars) (Reporting and editing by Sherry Jacobi-Phillips, Rashmi aich and Nikita Maria Jio in Bengaluru)
(source: Reuters)