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Prosecutors say that a Russian attack killed one person in Kharkiv, Ukraine.
According to local prosecutors, Russian forces launched an attack on Ukraine's Kharkiv region in the northeast, Monday. One person was killed in a village near the border. According to a report posted on Telegram, which was released after a ceasefire of 30 hours announced by Moscow for Easter had expired, a Russian drone killed a man riding a scooter in Ivashki. The statement added that an artillery attack by the Russians hit a private home area in Kupiansk. This is a place where Russian military activity has increased in recent months. Kupiansk, which was captured by Ukrainian forces later in that year in a massive counter-offensive after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, was initially occupied by Russian troops. At least once, Russian forces entered the city briefly. (Reporting and editing by Jamie Freed; Oleksandr Kozoukhar, Ron Popeski)
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US Antimony restarts Mexico Smelter Plant after Over a Year
United States Antimony Corp announced on Monday that it had restarted operations in its Madero plant in Mexico. This comes more than a year since the miner of critical minerals stopped operating in Latin America. Why it's important China has banned the export of critical minerals such as gallium, antimony and germanium to the United States. This is part of a escalating tech and trade war between two major economies. China is expected to produce almost half the world's supply of antimony by 2023. Prices of the mineral are soaring as a result of China's heavy export restrictions. This has disrupted global supply chains. U.S. president Donald Trump also pushed to increase domestic production of important minerals, such as antimony to counter China's near-total control in the sector. Minerals are widely used to make ammunition, infrared weapons, night-vision goggles and nuclear weapons, as well batteries and photovoltaic devices. CONTEXT United States Antimony announced in March of last year that it would cease all operations in Latin America, and sell its Mexican subsidiary. This decision was taken after a review of financial performance, negative cash flow of the unit and low prices of antimony. What's Next? The company announced that it had begun processing the antimony ore purchased from international sources in the Madero Smelter. Next week, the second and third shipments will also arrive at the facility. U.S. Antimony stated that it plans to produce approximately 200 tons of antimony each month at the Madero Smelter by the end of 2025. (Reporting and editing by Sahal Muhammad in Bengaluru, Vallari Srivastava from Bengaluru)
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The Russian Economy Ministry has cut its Brent price forecast for 2025 by almost 17%
According to documents obtained by, the Russian economy ministry's forecast for the average Brent crude price in 2025 has been cut by 17% compared to what they thought it would be in September. Interfax reported that in the ministry's baseline scenario for economic forecasts of 2025, the ministry assumes the average price of Brent to be $68 per barrel, down from $81.7 per barrel in its September predictions. The Ministry of Finance estimates that the price for Urals - Russia's main blend - is $56 per barrel - compared to the $69.7 barrel price on which Russia has based their budget 2025 - and lower than the $60 "cut-off" price, which determines the amount of money sent to the National Wealth Fund Reserve (NWF) budget reserve. In the baseline scenario, we assume at some point that the export price drops below the cutoff, but then goes up. In this scenario, we do not deplete our NWF," a ministry representative told Interfax. Oil and gas revenues account for a third (or more) of the budget. The representative said that "from a budgetary standpoint, these conditions are difficult, but normal." The Russian rainy day NWF is now the main source for financing Russia's persistent budget deficit. The liquid assets of the fund have fallen by two-thirds, from $112.7 to $39 billion. According to the new estimates, the rouble value of Russian oil has decreased by 21.5% to 5,281 Roubles per barrel compared to the previous forecast. In April, the Russian central bank had warned that due to a lower global demand, oil prices may be lower for several years than expected. Urals prices dropped to their lowest level since 2023 early April, trading at around $53 a barrel. They traded below $60 per barrel last week. The first quarter of this year saw Russia's oil revenues fall by 10% compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, the average price for Urals in roubles since April began was 31% lower than the planned amount, forcing the government to sell foreign currency for first time. The ministry said that it did not expect a recession to occur due to the trade wars of U.S. president Donald Trump and believes global growth will be slightly higher than 2% this year. Interfax quoted the representative of the ministry as saying: "The world's still bigger than the United States. So some flows will be directed." The Ministry maintained its forecast of 2.5% for the gross domestic product (GDP) growth in Russia and raised its inflation forecast from 4.5% to 7.6%. The rouble is also expected to be stronger this year than it was previously forecasted, with an average of 94.3% of the dollar per rouble, compared to an earlier prediction of 96.5 roubles. (Written by Lidia Kelley in Melbourne and Gleb Brnski in Moscow, edited by Leslie Adler & Darlie Butler)
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Russia's Nornickel maintains 2025 nickel production forecast
Nornickel, a Russian company that is one of the largest nickel producers in the world and also the biggest palladium producer, maintained Monday its nickel production forecast for 2025 as 204,000-211,000 tons. The company reported that it produced 42,000 tonnes of nickel in 2025's first quarter, down 1.1% from the previous year. Palladium production fell 0.6%, to 741,00 ounces. The production of platinum increased by 0.6%, to 180,000 ounces. The company's Senior Vice-President Alexander Popov stated that the modest drop in nickel production was due to short-term scheduled repairs and maintenance. This was done to ensure a steady operation of its main technological units. Nornickel said that the decrease in nickel production is due to maintenance work at its various plants. Nornickel faces pressure in the domestic market due to the 40% rise of the rouble against the U.S. Dollar, which reduces revenues, and high interest rates which impact investment plans. The company faces falling or stagnating metal prices internationally due to lower demand in the wake of market turmoil triggered by U.S. president Donald Trump's tariffs. Nornickel may not be directly subject to Western sanctions but the measures have led some Western producers to refrain from buying Russian metal. They also complicate payments and restrict access to Western equipment. BCS analysts wrote in a report that they believe the threat of a global slowdown due to tariff wars would negatively impact the metals portfolio of the company. (Reporting and writing by Anastasia Lyrchikova; editing by Kirsten Doovan and Ros Russel)
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India imposes temporary tariffs of 12% on certain steel imports
A government notification announced that India had imposed a temporary tariff of 12%, known locally as a "safeguard duty", on certain steel products in order to curb unbridled imports. India, the second largest producer of crude iron and steel in the world, announced that the tariffs will be effective for 200 days starting Monday. The Ministry of Finance stated that "the safeguard duty imposed by this notification will be in effect for a period of 200 days (unless earlier revoked or modified) after the publication of the notification." India's steel tax increase is the first major trade policy decision since U.S. president Donald Trump imposed duties on a number of countries in April. New Delhi's tariffs primarily target China, the second largest steel exporter to India in 2024/25 behind South Korea. According to government data, India became a net steel importer for the second year in a row during the fiscal year 2024/25. Shipments reached a record high of 9 million metric tonnes, a figure not seen since the early 1990s. Steel Authority of India, ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India, and JSW Steel, New Delhi's largest steelmaking body, have raised concerns about imports. Reporting by Neha Misra and Surbhi Arora; Editing and Toby Chopra and Alison Williams
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In March, India's infrastructure production rose 3.8% year-on-year.
Government data released on Monday showed that India's infrastructure production grew by 3.8% in March, mainly due to strong steel and cement output. The infrastructure output (which tracks eight different sectors and accounts for 40% of industrial production in the country) grew by a revised 3,4% in February compared to an initial estimate of 2,9%. Cement production increased 11.6% in march, compared with a revised 10.8% rise in February. Steel production rose 7.1%, against a revised advance of 6.9% a month before. Fertilizer output grew by 8.8%, compared to 10.2% the month before. Coal production increased 1.6% compared to 1.7% in February. The electricity generation in March was 6.2% higher than the revised 3.6% growth in the previous month. Refined oil products were up 0.2% compared to 0.8% the month prior. In March, crude oil production fell 1.9% compared to a 5.2% decline in February. Natural gas production also declined 12.7% compared to a 6% decrease in February. The infrastructure output increased by 4.4% during the fiscal years 2024-25.
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Climate non-profits prepare for a fight with Trump on tax status
Non-profits in the United States that are focused on climate change prepare to fight against a possible action by the Trump Administration to revoke tax exemptions this week. Climate change groups have circulated memos in the last few weeks outlining the rumored executive action they expect from Donald Trump. This includes a change to IRS regulations to remove climate changes from the list of charitable topics that qualify and blocking the use U.S. grant funding to fund overseas projects. Concerns were raised after Trump made comments criticizing the charitable status granted to Harvard University. This was seen as an initial shot at other so-called "501(c3)" organizations, which are named after the section of the tax code exempting charities from income taxes. According to three non-profit leaders who participated, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Public Citizen hosted a Zoom call Friday to discuss ways charities can prepare themselves for a potential executive action. After the maximum of 5,000 people had signed up, the call was oversubscribed. Sandler Reiff, a political law firm, sent a memo on Friday to its clients in the non-profit sector and philanthropy to tell them to not panic if they are threatened with losing their tax exemption status or having international work frozen by the government. The memo said that the President cannot unilaterally revoke the tax-exempt status of any organization. It also stated that any executive orders that attempt to do this "doesn't have legal validity". Trump has been adamant about his antisemitism-free policy since his January inauguration. He has also moved swiftly to sidestep or undo environmental regulations, eliminate climate science research, and stop federal support for renewable energy. In a post on social media last week, Trump said he was weighing whether he should seek to end Harvard’s tax-exempt designation. The Trump administration has been threatening to halt climate change work by environmental groups and grant-making charities. The foundations that donate to charities have said they will fight any attempts to limit the amount of money they give. The MacArthur Foundation has committed to spending an additional $150 millions in charitable donations over the next two year. John Palfrey, the Foundation's president, told delegates in Britain that "we have more strength and protection than we realize" at a recent meeting of philanthropic organizations. Drop any restrictions that we believe we can. "Give gifts wherever you can." Lawrence Lessig is a Harvard Law School professor who said that any order to change the tax status of non-profits would be legally questionable. He said that there was no way a court could conclude that Trump had the authority to change the tax status for any organization without an investigation that began before Trump targeted that organization and determined that the organization violated the laws. (Reporting and editing by Peter Graff, Virginia Furness and Valerie Volcovici)
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South Korea's LG Energy Solution withdraws from Indonesian EV battery investments
LG Energy Solution, a South Korean company, has officially withdrawn from an $8.45 billion project in Indonesia to develop the production of electric vehicle batteries. The company announced this on Monday. LGES and Indonesian Government signed a contract on the Indonesia Grand Package Project in late 2020. This project includes investments in the EV Battery Supply Chain in Southeast Asian Country. LGES issued a statement saying that "we have decided to formally withdraw" from the Indonesia GP project (Grand Package). The report added that "however, we will explore various avenues for collaboration with the Indonesian Government, focusing on the Indonesian battery joint venture HLI Green Power." HLI Green Power is a joint venture between LGES and Hyundai Motor Group. It inaugurated last year Indonesia's first production facility for battery cells with a capacity of 10 gigawatt-hours per annum. The second phase of the investment will see the expansion of the plant's capacity. Tri Winarno, an official from the Energy Ministry, stated that Indonesia will continue to look for foreign investors who can partner with local companies in order to develop the battery sector, taking advantage of the rich nickel reserves found throughout the country. He told reporters that "Even after LG left, Indonesia is still convinced that our nickel remains more competitive than any other country." Aneka Tambang Indonesia, a state-controlled miner that had planned to create a joint venture with LGES for nickel mining, has said it is committed to working with other companies in order to supply nickel to battery producers. Indonesia Battery Corporation (the state firm that had planned to partner up with LGES) did not respond when asked for comment.
Control System Automation Maximizes Your Operation
Pressure control equipment is the backbone of the Oil and Gas Industry. It is the first and last line of defense in pressure and flow control. Advancements in valves, chokes, blowout preventers (BOPs), relief valves, and other equipment have allowed our industry to become exponentially more efficient in the production of Oil and Gas. If pressure control equipment is the backbone of our industry, then the control and automation systems are the brain. Originally designed to eliminate human presence in hazardous areas, these systems have evolved with technology, expanding their capabilities.
As pressure control equipment has progressed, so have the control systems used to control and monitor its operation. Most of this equipment operates manually, requiring personnel to enter a high-pressure area, “red zone”, and expose themselves to potentially dangerous environments while actuating the equipment. Over time, injuries and accidents have led many operators to require this equipment to be remote-controlled using hydraulic, pneumatic, or electric actuation. This necessity led to the development of remote-control systems to monitor and control these actuators.
CORTEC Hydraulic Choke & Valve Command Center Control Panel in the Field
As recently as 30 years ago, most control systems were analog; they were generally hydraulic power units (HPUs) with minimum monitoring instrumentation. Industry standards, such as API 16C, API 16D, and others, exist that dictate the basic requirements for critical well control systems like choke and kill and BOP systems. These standards are regularly reviewed and constantly evolving, yet they only represent the minimum requirements for controlling and monitoring this equipment.
These minimum requirements are sufficient to perform pressure and flow control operations safely in most instances, but higher levels of functionality are available. Basic remote-controlled systems will open and close chokes and valves as the user directs, and will monitor pressures and positions to control the equipment as if it were being manually controlled. However, the advancements in electronic and hydraulic components have revolutionized the design of control systems. These technological developments have enabled the creation of systems that operate with higher efficiency, offer greater access to information, and empower operators to exercise better control over their equipment, significantly enhancing the overall performance and reliability of control systems across the industry.
CORTEC_CX-HB3.0 Hydra-Balance Dual Choke Setpoint System
Advanced control systems can host a myriad of sensors that display and record information based on user-specific set points, such as pressure, flow rate, and position, which has proven to be very efficient and eliminates human error. By continuously monitoring pressure levels and making rapid adjustments through automated valve and choke control, these systems prevent dangerous situations, helping optimize process performance while minimizing the need for manual intervention and alerting users to issues before they become catastrophic. The data collected by these advanced control systems can be aggregated and analyzed to develop better procedures for operations, resulting in improved efficiency. Nevertheless, control and automation systems are not “one size fits all”; they vary based on an operator’s specific needs. What is being controlled? What is the operation? What information is needed for control, such as temperature, pressure, position, fluid level, flow rate, etc.? What can we automate? What safeguards do we need to put in place? These are some of the questions we ask in the preliminary design stage of a control system.
In most cases, users are often unaware of the potential for automation and are frequently surprised by unique suggestions for automating operations they usually perform manually. Instead of settling for minimal control, CORTEC aims to create control systems that can optimize the performance of your pressure control equipment and enhance your overall operation. We provide a variety of options, including standard API 16C monogrammed drilling choke control systems, resettable relief valve controls, choke command centers, frac relief valve control, auto bleed-off and equalization systems, and automated sand dump control systems, to name a few.
CORTEC CX-EC3. MPD Choke Setpoint_System
CORTEC offers turnkey automated solutions to complement our choke and valve products for drilling and completion operations. These solutions deliver systems with precise control in a simple, manageable package. Our experienced team has designed these control system configurations to accommodate a variety of end-user preferences. Whether you need a single setpoint system or conventional well control, CORTEC has the expertise and capability to deliver custom compact control consoles or larger command centers that meet your specific requirements and result in a substantial reduction in operating costs and increased efficiency.
To learn more about how CORTEC can help you maximize your operation with turnkey automated solutions, visit uscortec.com/products/automation or contact us directly at [email protected] .
