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Nexans Plans $99M Facilities Upgrade to Support European Offshore Wind
French subsea power cable maker Nexans has unveiled plans to invest $99 million (€90 million) in the construction of new and the upgrade of existing facilities to support the development of offshore wind and subsea interconnections in Europe.The investment will include the construction of a new, 53 meter tower for the insulation of onshore cables at Nexans’ plant in Charleroi, Belgium and will allow for the production of 3,000 mm2 525kV HVDC onshore cables necessary to support TenneT’s three grid projects, BalWin 3, LanWin 4, and Lanwin 2 under the frame agreement signed in 2023.Also, the investment will support upgrades to the cable manufacturing process such as a new stranding line and a degassing system specifically designed for HVDC cables and a new aluminum drawing line to increase our volume of aluminum wire production.While the majority of the investment will be directed at upgrading its manufacturing plant in Charleroi, Nexans’ other facilities will also get a boost including a new HVDC lab with a hall specifically built for 525kV HVDC testing at its Calais facility in France, and a new injection press at its power accessories facility in collaboration with teams in Erembodegem, Belgium.The investment will begin in 2025 and run through 2026 when the work is completed.The Charleroi plant will also connect to the La Sambre channel which will allow Nexans to reduce transportation CO2 emissions by 85%.“We are pleased to announce this new investment reinforcing our position as a leader in the energy transition. The ability to produce land cables up to 525kV is a game changing capability that will enable us to drive the transition forward for years to come. We are looking forward to completing this critical upgrade in our infrastructure to keep pace with the ever-increasing electricity demand globally,” said Pascal Radue, EVP of Nexans’ Generation and Transmission Business Group.
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Gold rallies to tape-record high on United States rate-cut optimism
Gold prices soared to an alltime high up on Friday as the dollar weakened amid potential customers of a U.S. rates of interest cut next week, while palladium has gotten 15% so far this week. Spot gold was up 0.2% at $2,565 per ounce, since 0258 GMT, after hitting a record high of $2,567.93 earlier in the session. Bullion has acquired 2.7% for the week up until now. U.S. gold futures rose 0.5% to $2,593.40. The dollar fell to a one-week low, making gold less expensive for other currency holders. Gold has actually been building home following its newest foray greater. Gains have been constant in nature, and a duration of combination would not be surprising before gold maybe takes a. performed at $2,600 ought to the dollar stay on the backfoot, said. Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade. No matter the size of the initial Fed rate cut, we. look to be on the verge of a possibly long and frequent. reducing cycle, which is a situation that bodes well for assets. such as gold which are non-yielding. The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday it was. appropriate for the Fed to begin a long-awaited monetary easing. cycle at its meeting next week as upside risks to inflation have. decreased. Traders see a 43% possibility for a 50-basis-point reduction on. Sept. 18 satisfy and 57% chances for a 25 bp cut. Financiers will scan the U.S. consumer sentiment. ( preliminary) information due later on in the day for more hints on. rate outlook. Area silver edged 0.1% greater to $29.93 per ounce and. platinum got about 1% to $986.60. Both the metals are. headed for a weekly gain. Palladium climbed 0.16% to $1,048.06 and was headed. for the best week considering that Dec. 11, 2023, fuelled by export curb. issues. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that. Moscow ought to consider restricting exports of uranium, titanium and. nickel in retaliation versus the West.
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Libya still cut off from foreign banks, ousted main banker says
Libya's reserve bank, at the centre of a weekslong crisis that has actually slashed oil output, stays cut off from the global monetary system, its seasoned governor who was removed by political factions in a. objected to relocation informed Reuters on Thursday. Sadiq al-Kabir, speaking from self-imposed exile in. Istanbul, stated the Central Bank of Libya (CBL) board designated. by western Libyan factions to change him controls the country's. internal payments system however foreign banks are not handling. it. All worldwide banks that we deal with, more than 30. significant international organizations, have suspended all. deals, he said, adding that he likewise remained in contact. with other organizations including the International Monetary. Fund, the U.S. Treasury and JPMorgan. All work has been suspended at the worldwide level. Therefore, there is no access to balances or deposits outside. Libya, he stated. The U.S. Treasury did not instantly respond to requests. for comment. JPMorgan decreased to comment, stating it could not. talk about customer relationships. An IMF spokesperson said the fund was closely following. advancements on the Reserve bank of Libya's management which. it supports the United Nations Assistance Mission in Libya's. efforts to reach a contract to end the standoff. Kabir stated the board designated by the western factions had,. nevertheless, gained control over Libya's internal deals. systems, including wage payments. The internal part, the workers have actually returned and the. systems are working, he said. The contested board designated by Presidency Council head. Mohammed al-Menfi last month has said it has approved letters of. credit in dollars and euros to a number of companies and has. previously rejected that foreign banks are not handling it. Kabir hopes to be reinstated as governor through U.N.-backed. negotiations between the House of Representatives parliament in. eastern Libya and the High State Council (HSC) based in Tripoli. in the west, to resolve the crisis. He stated he is in touch with both the parliament and the HSC,. but not with Menfi or Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah. Both the parliament and HSC have opposed Menfi's sacking of. Kabir, stating it breached a 2015 contract backed by the. global neighborhood that forms the legal basis for Libyan. politics. The U.N.-backed talks are targeted at establishing a mechanism. for appointing the central bank governor and for managing a. brief interim duration. According to contacts with the parliament and the High. State Council, both are insistent on executing the laws in. force and the political contract. This implicitly indicates the. inescapable return of the governor, he said. While the parliament and HSC both opposed Menfi's termination. of Kabir, the 2 bodies have actually been lined up with competing forces for. most of the past decade and may find it difficult to settle on a. long-lasting service, analysts say.
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Louisiana oil refineries start recuperating from Cyclone Francine
6 oil refineries in Louisiana in the path of Hurricane Francine started recuperating on Thursday from the storm's passage overnight, business and sources knowledgeable about operations at the plants stated. Exxon Mobil stated there appeared to be little substantial damage at its 522,500 barrel-per-day (bpd) Baton Rouge, Louisiana, refinery on Thursday. Our Baton Rouge area facilities are operating as regular. We continue to fulfill client commitments, said Exxon spokesperson Lauren Kight. The Baton Rouge refinery's production was approaching maximum output on Thursday morning, stated individuals familiar with plant operations. Exxon minimized the refinery's production to as low as 20% of its capability throughout the storm's landfall and passage north through Louisiana over night. The Baton Rouge refinery is the sixth biggest in the United States by capacity, according the U.S. Energy Details Administration. Marathon Petroleum decreased on Thursday to talk about the status of its 597,0000-bpd Garyville, Louisiana, refinery, the 4th biggest in the U.S. . A source acquainted with the plant operations did not have info about the refinery's status. Numerous large power interruptions were reported by local power supplier Entergy in the Garyville area. The diesel-producing hydrocracker at Shell Plc's. 233,702-bpd Norco, Louisiana, refinery was shut by the. typhoon on Wednesday night, two people familiar with plant. operations stated on Thursday. Shell continues to evaluate the damage affecting the. 40,000-bpd hydrocracker at the refinery on Thursday early morning, the. two sources stated. Shell in an online declaration confirmed damage control. was underway at Norco and nearby chemical plants. At this early stage, there does not appear to be. severe damage from wind, rain or storm surge at the. facilities, the business said. PBF Energy's 190,000-bpd Chalmette, Louisiana, refinery. was running typically on Thursday, a source familiar with plant. operations stated. A PBF representative did not respond to a request for. remark. A Valero spokesperson did not respond to an ask for. comment about the company's 215,000-bpd St. Charles refinery in. Norco nor the 125,000-bpd refinery in Meraux, Louisiana.
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Dollar drops, gold near record high as bets for big Fed cut ramp up
Investors on Friday ratcheted up bets for a supersized Federal Reserve rate of interest cut next week, after media reports suggested the decision would be a. closer require officials than formerly thought. Traders raised bets back to 39% for a 50-basis point. reduction on Sept. 18, according to LSEG information, from about 28%. before short articles in the Financial Times and Wall Street Journal. appeared. This is yet another twist in the (Fed rate cut) argument,. said Tony Sycamore, an analyst at IG, noting the tug-of-war. being played out in bond futures and the dollar-yen rate in. particular. Everybody thought we were back on track for 25 basis. points, and now 50 is unexpectedly back on the table. The dollar dropped 0.42% to 141.22 yen since 0020. GMT, heading back towards Wednesday's low at 140.71, the weakest. level this year. The dollar index, which measures the currency against. the yen and five other significant competitors, dropped to a one-week. trough. Gold hovered simply below Thursday's all-time high of. $ 2,560.01, last altering hands at $2,558.55. Equities were mixed however, with Japan's Nikkei. losing 0.7% under the weight of a stronger yen, while South. Korea's Kospi edged partially lower. Australia's. criteria climbed 0.75%. Chinese markets had yet to. open. Japan, mainland China and South Korea are all heading into. long weekends, with Tokyo back on Tuesday, China on Wednesday. and South Korea not up until Thursday. U.S. stock futures punctuated somewhat following gains on. Thursday in the cash indexes. S&P 500 futures were 0.1%. greater. Petroleum continued to climb following gains of around 2%. overnight as manufacturers evaluated the effect on output in the Gulf. of Mexico after Cyclone Francine tore through offshore. oil-producing areas. U.S. West Texas Intermediate unrefined futures increased 0.5%. to $69.32 per barrel, structure on Thursday's 2.5% rally. Brent. crude futures included 0.4% to $72.26, after a 1.9% jump in. the previous session.
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Pope Francis, in Singapore, urges fair incomes for migrant workers
Pope Francis on Thursday urged political leaders in Singapore, a leading international financial center, to look for fair wages for the country's millionplus lowerpaid foreign employees. In most likely the last major speech of an enthusiastic 12-day tour across Southeast Asia and Oceania, the 87-year-old pontiff expressed concern for Singapore's quickly ageing population and its migrant labor force, centred in the building and construction and domestic services markets. I hope that special attention will be paid to the bad and the senior ... in addition to securing the self-respect of migrant employees, the pope stated in an address to about 1,000 politicians and civil and religious leaders. These employees contribute a good deal to society and should be ensured a reasonable wage, he stated. There were 1.1 million foreigners on work permits in Singapore who earned less than S$ 3,000 ($ 2,300) per month as of December 2023, consisting of 286,300 domestic employees and 441,100 workers in the building and construction, shipyard and process sectors, federal government data programs. Many of the migrant workers originate from neighboring countries such as Malaysia, China, Bangladesh and India. Many also come from the Philippines, a bulk Catholic country. A Singapore NGO that supplies services for migrant workers, Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics, invited the pope's remarks, stating they were in full contract with his call for fair incomes. Singapore's Ministry of Workforce stated in emailed comments that salaries were set by the free market and the government did not prescribe minimum salaries for employees in the country. Our employment laws are matched by extensive enforcement to ensure that our migrant employees are effectively and relatively dealt with, and their employment rights and wellness safeguarded, the ministry said. Concern for migrants has actually been a common style for Francis. Earlier on his trip, he asked leaders in Papua New Guinea to work for fair wages as that country becomes a major target of worldwide companies for its gas, gold and other reserves. ' EXAMPLE TO FOLLOW' Francis' speech came after private conferences with President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Prime Minister Lawrence Wong at the nation's parliament structure, where the pope was presented with a white orchid plant, a new hybrid that was named in his honour. Francis applauded Singapore's efforts to confront environment change, calling them a model for other nations. Singapore's government says rising sea levels due to global warming could have major implications for its low-lying coastline and it is planning to invest S$ 100 billion ($ 77. billion) over the course of the century on the concern. Your dedication to sustainable advancement and the. preservation of creation is an example to follow, the pope. stated. Francis, who has actually prioritised trips to locations never visited. by a pope, or where Catholics are a small minority, is just the. second pope to check out Singapore, following a short 5-hour stopover. by the late John Paul II in 1986. Singapore, with a population of 5.92 million, is plurality. Buddhist, with about 31% of individuals relating to that faith. The Vatican counts about 210,000 Catholics in the nation,. although that number is higher if foreign employees are consisted of. There are likewise strong Muslim, Hindu and Taoist communities,. and Francis praised Singapore as a mosaic of ethnicities,. cultures and religious beliefs cohabiting in harmony. HONG KONG PRESENCE Francis commemorated a Mass the Vatican said drew some 50,000. individuals to Singapore's national sports stadium, a place that has. also hosted entertainers such as Taylor Swift, who played 6. shows there in March. Individuals queued outside the arena, under tight security. steps, at least five hours before the start of the occasion. Connie Rodriguez, a Filipino Catholic in Singapore, said it. was frustrating to see the pope. You truly feel so. blessed, she stated. Francis visited the arena at the beginning of the occasion in. a white golf cart embellished with the Vatican seal. He welcomed. dozens of schoolchildren, babies, and handicapped individuals. He also. took a couple of selfies. Among those who participated in the Mass, which included a prayer. in Mandarin, were Catholics who travelled from Hong Kong for the. event, including the territory's archbishop, Cardinal Stephen. Chow Sau-yan. The Vatican is currently renegotiating a controversial deal. with China over the appointment of Catholic bishops in the. country, which is up for renewal in October. Francis' 12-day tour has actually also consisted of stops in Indonesia,. Papua New Guinea, and East Timor. He returns to Rome on Friday.
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MORNING BID ASIA-Weekly rebound in reach, China data deluge looms
A take a look at the day ahead in Asian markets. Asian stocks are poised to end the week on a strong footing on Friday, spurred on by another solid rise on Wall Street the day before that puts some crucial standard indexes throughout the continent on track to sign up modest weekly gains. The European Central Bank cut interest rates on Thursday and the Fed is set to begin a pretty considerable reducing cycle next week. Although the former was not a surprise and traders have actually been expecting the latter for a while, they are conducive to a 'risk. on' environment that needs to enhance sentiment in Asia on Friday. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both increased for a 4th consecutive. day on Thursday. The S&P 500 came within 1% of its record high. struck on July 15 and the Nasdaq, up 5.3% so far today, is. on track for its greatest weekly rise this year. In other excellent news, Japan's Nikkei on Thursday snapped a. seven-day losing streak in design, jumping 3.4%. Especially, it did. so without the help of a weaker yen - the yen made a new high. for the year versus the dollar and although it recoiled, it. still ended Thursday slightly stronger. However if yen strength is to persist, the outlook for Japanese. stocks is dirty. Certainly, the outlook for worldwide possession rates may. also be dirty if the yen carry trade loosen up has even more to run,. as SocGen strategists expect. This develops clear market dangers as market leverage in this. cycle comes primarily from the Japanese currency, they said on. Thursday, adding that they are increasing their yen exposure and. lowering their Japanese equities direct exposure. If markets across Asia are set to end the week on a high,. the exception when again could be China. Shanghai stocks on. Thursday posted their least expensive close because January 2019. Shanghai's blue chip index will likely end the week in the. red, its 4th weekly fall in a row and the 14th decline out of. the last 17 weeks. It's been a miserable run that has actually seen the. index lose 15%, but surely it needs to turn eventually. Right? A batch of top-tier financial information from China over the. weekend might be the trigger although that might need some rare. upside surprises. Beijing releases home cost, investment, industrial. production and retail sales figures for August on Saturday, and. financial experts surveyed typically anticipate the numbers to. can be found in weaker than July's readings. The calendar in Asia on Friday, on the other hand, sees the release. of Indian wholesale price inflation, a speech by Bank of. Thailand guv Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput and Bank of Japan. board member Naoki Tamura. Here are essential advancements that might supply more direction. to Asian markets on Friday: - India WPI inflation (August) - South Korea import & & export prices (August) - New Zealand manufacturing PMI (August)
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First Quantum expects feasibility studies for Peru mine by 2028, manager says
Canadian miner First Quantum Minerals expects upgraded drilling results for its Peru copper task La Granja in the 2nd half of next year, and expediency studies by 2028, project development supervisor Steven Lewis stated on Thursday. The drilling is advancing well, it's at 35%, and we expect to have the lead to the 2nd half of next year, Lewis stated on the sidelines of a mining market conference. About the feasibility studies slated for completion by 2028, he said: We're working to satisfy this due date. First Quantum last year bought a 55% stake in the job, which is co-owned with Rio Tinto, and at the time of the acquisition committed to investing up to $546 million for its advancement. The task overall is estimated to total up to $2.4. billion investment. According to information from Peru's mining ministry, the site. has the prospective to produce 500,000 metric lots of copper a. year, with a beneficial life of 40 years. In addition to completing drilling and expediency. studies, First Quantum will likewise deal with difficulties connected to. local neighborhoods, ecological permits and financing, Lewis. stated. La Granja has the prospective to be a bigger project, however. the ultimate focus will depend upon several obstacles, Lewis. said in a discussion at the mining event. First Quantum took a significant blow in 2015 after the. Panama federal government bought the shutdown of the Cobre Panama mine , which added to 40% of the miner's earnings, due to. public demonstrations over ecological problems.
United States nuclear plant unfit for quick resurrection, previous lead engineer states
The very first U.S. nuclear plant to ever try resuming after undergoing preparations for long-term closure is not fit to restart anytime soon because it avoided essential safety work for years before retirement, a. former official at the reactor stated.
Power company Entergy closed the Palisades reactor. in Michigan in 2022, after the plant generated electrical power for. more than 50 years. Privately-held Holtec International purchased. Palisades soon after and has given that secured a $1.52 billion. conditional U.S. loan assurance to restart. Holtec looks for to open. the plant in about a year.
The fate of Palisades is closely seen by the nuclear. industry as at least 2 other shuttered plants, consisting of a. unit at Constellation Energy's 3 Mile Island,. think about reopening.
The administration of President Joe Biden sees nuclear power. as an important tool in the fight against climate change and. supports efforts to restart closed plants, delay retirements of. existing ones, and speed permitting for new tasks.
I'm pro-nuclear, however they selected the incorrect horse to ride. to town on, said Alan Blind, who was engineering director at. the Palisades plant from 2006 to 2013 under Entergy.
Blind said the plant got exemptions from the U.S. Nuclear. Regulatory Commission, the nuclear safety regulator, allowing it. to disappoint safety design requirements that more modern-day plants. need to comply with since it was nearing retirement.
Those security standards consist of prevention of cooling systems. being obstructed by the breakdown of insulation on pipes, defense. versus earthquakes, and reduction of threats to fires, Blind. said, adding he had been monitoring the plants' exemption. demands given that his retirement.
I'm worried that the NRC will not insist that the generic. security issues be the fixed before they allow Palisades to. restart, Blind told Reuters.
Scott Burnell, an NRC representative, stated the security review. of Holtec's applications will include taking a look at how Holtec. plans to follow through on technical problems, such as what Mr. Blind describes, that were unresolved when the plant closed down. in 2022.
Those strategies will be public to the greatest degree. possible, and the NRC will allow a reboot only if Holtec fulfills. safety and environmental requirements. Burnell added NRC will. soon offer an opportunity to use legal challenges to Holtec's. requests to restart, a guideline.
Holtec thinks Palisades can restart in about a year within. the NRC's existing regulatory framework, said spokesperson Pat. O'Brien. As part of the repowering, Palisades will go through. comprehensive inspections, testing, upkeep, system and. equipment upgrades and modifications to ensure the continuation. of safe and dependable operation throughout the plant's extended. functional life, O'Brien stated.
Entergy supports the effort to re-open Palisades, said. representative Mark Sullivan. He did talk about Blind's concerns. about safety standards at the plant.
Entergy shut Palisades in May 2022, 2 weeks ahead of. schedule over a problem with a control rod, despite a $6 billion. federal program to save nuclear plants struggling with increasing. expenses and competitors from natural gas and renewable energy.
The Biden administration's Loan Programs Office at the. Department of Energy provided Holtec a conditional $1.52 billion. loan guarantee in March to reboot Palisades.
The LPO referred concerns to the NRC.
(source: Reuters)