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Vietnam weighs resuming nuclear power advancement plans
Vietnam is thinking about resuming strategies to establish nuclear power to ensure nationwide energy security and to support economic growth, according to a. federal government file reviewed . The Southeast Asian nation, a regional commercial hub. greatly reliant on coal for power generation, is likewise looking for to. improve its cleaner energy production to meet its net zero target. by 2050. The Ministry of Industry and Trade is to perform research study. on the nuclear power development experience of other nations. and make a proposition to develop nuclear power in Vietnam,. according to the file, which was dated Thursday. The ministry did not instantly react to an email looking for. comment. The file stated Vietnam has a target of raising its power. generation capacity by 12% -15% a year to ensure national energy. security ... and support an annual financial growth of 7%. The nuclear power development proposal will be sent to. the Politburo, the nation's most powerful decision-making body,. for evaluation, according to the file, although no time frame. was provided. In 2009, Vietnam authorized plans to develop its first two. nuclear reactor, but the strategies were shelved in 2016. following the Fukushima nuclear catastrophe in Japan and due to. budget plan constraints. The proposed nuclear plants, with an integrated capability of. 4 gigawatts (GW), were prepared to be developed by Russia's Rosatom. and Japan Atomic Power Co in the central province of Ninh Thuan. The nation has more than the current years been seeking to. develop cleaner energy but its offshore wind and LNG advancement. targets are at risk due to regulative and rates difficulties. Officials stated Vietnam has for years been thinking about. resuming its nuclear power choice and has actually talked about possible. support from Russian, South Korea, Canada and others on small. reactors. Nuclear power was not mentioned in the country's. long-awaited master power development strategy that was approved in. May last year. The plan, referred to as PDP8, would raise the. nation's overall installed power generation capability to over 150. GW by 2030 from over 80 GW at the end of in 2015. The Ministry of Industry and Trade is now seeking opinions. to upgrade the PDP8, state media reported previously this month. The federal government workplace document said appropriate ministries and. agencies had actually also been told to get rid of hurdles facing offshore. wind and gas-fired power advancement, without elaborating.
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Private equity MBK, Young Poong launch $1.5 bln tender offer for Korea Zinc shares
Private equity fund MBK Partners and South Korean zinc producer Young Poong introduced a 2 trillion won ($ 1.5 billion) tender offer for shares in Korea Zinc, which the target called a hostile. takeover attempt. The tender offer will look for to purchase in between 1.44 million and. 3.02 million Korea Zinc shares, or between a 6.98% to 14.61%. stake at 660,000 won per share, according to regulative filings. on Friday. The shares were 556,000 won per share as of Thursday's. close. Shares in Korea Zinc leapt 19.8% on Friday to trade. slightly above the tender deal rate as of 0327 GMT, while. Young Poong shares rose by the everyday limit of 30%. Young Poong is already Korea Zinc's largest investor,. with a 25.4% stake as of end-June. If the tender offer is. effective, MBK Partners and Young Poong combined will manage a. 40% stake in the firm. MBK Partners said in a declaration it plans to become the. largest investor in Korea Zinc, partly by working out a call. choice to purchase some Korea Zinc shares already owned by Young. Poong and associated entities. The tender offer was intended to maximise shareholder worth. by consolidating management rights, enhancing governance, and. boosting corporate value, MBK and Young Poong stated in a filing. MBK Partners said Korea Zinc, as a company, should remain. neutral when there is a conflict in between shareholders, and included. that its board was failing to operate typically. Korea Zinc said in a separate regulatory filing the deal. was a hostile, predatory M&An effort to wrest management. manage away from management that has preserved the firm's No. 1 market share in non-ferrous metal production. It also kept in mind a series of current safely-related deaths at. Young Poong's Seokpo smelter that led to its CEO's arrest,. saying Young Poong was trying to take over Korea Zinc with a. personal equity firm's aid after stopping working in its own business. Young Poong declined remark. Korea Zinc's shares had increased 12% year-to-date as of. Thursday's close compared with a 42% depression in Young Poong's. shares this year.
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Iron ore firms on China stimulus hopes, set for weekly gain
Iron ore futures rates extended gains to a second straight session on Friday and were headed for a weekly rise, as the possibility of fresh Chinese stimulus and a recovery in the top customer's steel need lifted market belief. The most-traded January iron ore agreement on China's Dalian Product Exchange (DCE) ended morning trade 0.79%. greater at 701.5 yuan ($ 98.70) a metric load. The agreement has acquired 2.86% up until now this week. The benchmark October iron ore on the Singapore. Exchange, however, was 0.27% lower at $94.5 a ton, as of 0331. GMT. China is poised to cut rates of interest on more than $5. trillion of outstanding mortgages as early as this month,. Bloomberg News reported on Thursday. We would not expect anywhere close to a 1:1 transmission. into retail sales, given customer self-confidence is near all-time. lows and homes' desire to conserve was near historic. highs. However, it is a considerable relocation that needs to supply. genuine tangible advantages to families and assistance intake,. ING analysts said in a note discussing the relocation. Real estate cost information anticipated on Saturday will be scrutinised. carefully for indications of stabilisation, ING stated. On the other hand, inventories of 5 major finished steel products. held by Chinese traders reduced for a ninth successive week. over Sept. 6-12 to a nearly eight-month low, data from Chinese. consultancy Mysteel revealed. The 6.3% week-on-week fall showed the further enhancement. in area trading and a modest rise in replenishment needs among. end-users before China's Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, stated. Mysteel. Chinese markets will be closed from Sept. 16-17 for the. vacation and resume trading on Sept. 18. Other steelmaking components on the DCE were stronger, with. coking coal and coke up 0.55% and 1.77%,. respectively. Many steel standards on the Shanghai Futures Exchange. published gains. Hot-rolled coil climbed 1.25%, rebar. advanced about 1.1%, wire rod included almost. 1.0%, although stainless steel dipped 0.26%.
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Copper strikes 2-week high as Xi remarks fuel stimulus hopes
Copper prices increased to a twoweek high on Friday, raised by hopes of stimulus in top metals customer China after President Xi Jinping pushed for the nation to attain its yearly financial target. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.7% at $9,275 per metric load by 0313 GMT, while the most-traded October copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange advanced 1.2% to 74,280 yuan ($ 10,449.76) a. lot. Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday advised authorities. to strive to attain the nation's yearly financial and social. advancement objectives, in the middle of expectations for more measures to. reinforce a sluggish financial recovery. This is truly good to raise sentiment. Products costs. are higher in expectations of a stimulus, stated a trader. We likewise have the mid-autumn long vacation next week for. China so all commodities are having this typical little restocking. All the buy volumes that are typically spread out are focused. so area purchase is quite decent today, the trader included. Chinese markets will be closed for the Mid Autumn Celebration. from Sept. 16-17. On a weekly basis, LME copper is up 3.1%, on track for the. biggest weekly gain because the week of July 1. All other base. metals were likewise increasing week-on-week. A softer dollar on Friday likewise assisted make greenback-priced. metals cheaper to holders of other currencies. The U.S. Federal. Reserve is most likely to cut rate of interest next week. LME aluminium increased 0.4% to $2,425.50 a load,. zinc edged up 0.2% at $2,862, lead sophisticated 0.8%. to $2,043, tin climbed up 1% to $31,730, while nickel. fell 0.2% to $16,100. SHFE aluminium climbed up 1% to 19,775 yuan a load,. nickel edged up 0.3% at 123,820 yuan, zinc. leapt 2.6% to 23,800 yuan, lead increased 0.7% to. 16,760 yuan and tin advanced 1.8% to 258,570 yuan. For the leading stories in metals and other news, click. or
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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.
BP to buy out Bunge's stake in Brazilian biofuels JV in $1.4 bln deal
BP has accepted purchase grain trader Bunge's 50% stake in Brazilian sugar and ethanol joint venture BP Bunge Bioenergia for $1.4 billion in a. bet on growing demand for lowcarbon biofuels.
Following the completion of the offer, expected by end-2024,. BP will take full ownership of Bioenergia which has production. capability of around 50,000 barrels a day of ethanol equivalent. from sugarcane.
BP will consolidate Bioenergia's financial obligation and lease responsibilities. of $1.2 billion, it said, implying it will pay an overall of. $ 800 million to Bunge, according to estimations.
The acquisition comes amidst growing investor issue over. BP's strategy after scores company S&P Global previously this month. revised down BP's credit outlook, mentioning slower than anticipated. debt decrease.
BP said the acquisition is anticipated to fulfill its returns. threshold for bioenergy of more than 15% and will be within its. existing yearly spending structure of around $16 billion.
BP Bunge Bioenergia is one of the biggest sugar and ethanol. operations in Brazil. It runs 11 mills in 5 states, with. capacity to procedure 32 million metric lots of sugarcane per. season. Beyond ethanol, it produces more than 1 million tons of. sugar annually.
Bunge has been trying to offer its sugar and ethanol. assets in Brazil for some years.
It had talks
with possible purchasers of its stake in the JV in 2022, with. no deal.
Later,
it was revealed
that BP would likely exercise its right of very first refusal. over any outside bid, and purchase Bunge out.
Bunge shares were up around 1% on Thursday, while BP. rose 0.8%.
Ethanol has actually been a challenging company in Brazil, with. business hardly making any cash, stated Willian Orzari, a. partner at consultancy FG/A.
He believes BP is looking at the long term with the. deal, perhaps looking for to guarantee materials of low-carbon. biofuels to produce sustainable air travel fuel (SAF).
Sugarcane-based ethanol has a low carbon footprint. Numerous business in the country have actually acquired accreditation to. supply SAF.
BP also stated on Thursday it is scaling back prepare for. the development of brand-new biofuels jobs.
The company is stopping briefly two biofuel tasks at its Lingen. refinery in Germany and its Cherry Point refinery in the U.S. state of Washington. It is examining three other tasks.
Taken together, these changes can enable us to deliver the. development and returns we expect from biofuels, however in an easier,. more focused way. This is fully in line with BP's top priorities of. driving focus into business and growing investor. returns, BP's head of clients and products Emma Delaney said.
(source: Reuters)