Power Markets

The United States has withdrawn some diplomatic staff as well as military families from the Middle East citing regional security threats that are not specified. The long-standing rivalry between Iran and the United States may have contributed to tensions. This article explains the history of the rivalry and how it played out. It also explains why tensions have risen again. Why did Iran and the United States become enemies? Iran and the United States have been friends for much of the 20th Century. In the 1950s as the Cold War began to take hold, Washington relied heavily on Iran's ruling...

Here are some key passages of a four-page Iran resolution that the 35-nation Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency passed on Thursday, according to diplomats. The text was still classified and only seen by. The Board of Governors ,... (d) Referring to the Board of Governors resolutions of 19 juin 2020..., of 8 june 2022..., of 17 november 2022 ..., of 6 june 2024 ...,, and of 21 november 2024 ...,, which called on Iran to cooperate fully with the Agency, and decided it was essential and urgent for Iran to act in accordance with its legal...

The Omani Foreign Minister said that a sixth round of U.S. - Iran nuclear talks would be held in Muscat on Sunday, following the announcement by U.S. president Donald Trump that Tehran will not be permitted to possess a nuclear device. Trump stated on Wednesday that U.S. military personnel are being removed from the Middle East, because it "could be a dangerous area". Here are some of Iran’s most important nuclear facilities. Where are Iran's nuclear facilities? The Iranian nuclear programme is spread out over many different locations. Despite the fact that Israel has been threatening airstrikes for decades, some...

Ajay Banaga, president of the World Bank, said that its board had agreed to lift a ban on financing nuclear energy projects for developing countries. This is part of an effort to meet the growing demand for electricity. Banga sent an email outlining the bank's new energy strategy to its staff following what he described as a constructive meeting with the board. Banga said that the board had not reached a consensus on whether or not the bank should be involved in upstream natural-gas projects. He wrote, "This will need further discussion." In 2017, the global development bank, a lender...

Lee Zeldin, the administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said that it has proposed to repeal Biden administration rules intended to curb carbon dioxide and mercury emissions as well as other air pollutants from power plants. This is in line with a March promise made by the agency. The announcement is part of President Donald Trump's larger efforts to undo environmental regulations that he sees as unnecessary obstacles to industrial development and increased energy production. Zeldin, at EPA's headquarters, said that "EPA has taken an important step in reclaiming sanity, demonstrating we can protect the environment while growing the...

According to three sources, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will announce Wednesday that it is rolling back the Biden administration's rules to reduce carbon dioxide, mercury, and other air pollutants from power plants. This follows through on the promise made by the agency in March. The announcement is a major step in President Donald Trump’s efforts to undo environmental regulations that he believes are unnecessary barriers to industrial growth and increased energy production. In March, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced his intention to undo three dozen air and water regulations. Sources say Zeldin is expected to roll back carbon...

Talen Energy, a U.S. utility company, announced Wednesday that it has expanded its nuclear energy partnership agreement with Amazon.com. The two companies will supply electricity up to 1,920 Megawatts from the Susquehanna power plant in Pennsylvania to Amazon Web Services data centers. Why it's important Talen will receive a long-term, steady revenue stream until 2042. This deal also supports Amazon's increasing demand for carbon-free power to run its AI and cloud operations. Both companies will explore the possibility of building Small Modular Reactors in Talen's Pennsylvania footprint, and expand the energy output from this nuclear plant. CONTEXT The U.S. demand...

Oklo, an American company that hopes to build micro-nuclear power plants, announced on Wednesday that the Energy Logistics Agency of the Defense Department had issued a Notice of Intent to Award a Power Purchase Agreement for a Pilot Reactor. Why it's important After President Donald Trump's executive orders on nuclear power last month, companies that produce nuclear power are now seeking U.S. government contracts. Trump's first administration also included a directive to agencies to build small nuclear reactors at military bases, but no plants were built. Oklo’s project for Air Force could produce up to 75 Megawatts of electricity as...

Proxima Fusion is a Munich-based company that specializes in nuclear fusion technologies. It announced on Wednesday that it had raised 130 million Euros ($148.8 Million) to move it closer to its goal to develop a novel power station. Why does it matter? Around the world, dozens are exploring nuclear-fusion technology, which is a newer form of energy generation that harnesses the same intense process that powers our sun. There is fierce competition between private and public companies, governments of European countries, United States, and China and technology options such as Plasma confinement used by Proxima or lasers. The new conservative...

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said Tuesday that data centers, which are power-hungry and provide computing power to artificial intelligence and crypto currencies, will drive U.S. electric consumption to new records in 2025 and in 2026. EIA projects that power demand will increase to 4,193 billion Kilowatt Hours (kWh) by 2025, and 4,283 kWh by 2026. This is a significant rise from the record 4,097 kWh of 2024. The United States is expected to increase its electricity consumption for heating and transportation, in addition to data centres. EIA estimates that by 2025, residential customers will consume 1,517 billion kWh...

In an interview with its CEO on Monday, Allied Gold said it could consider other options for a deal to supply power at its Sadiola Mine in Mali due to the surge in gold prices. In February, the gold miner had signed an agreement with UAE-based Ambrosia Investment to give Ambrosia Investment a 50% stake of the mine for the installation of a new system which would have reduced the costs. Ambrosia was supposed to pay Allied Gold $500 million and $250 million upfront in cash. The deal has not yet closed. Peter Marrone, CEO of Allied Gold, said that...

The companies announced in a Monday statement that they will invest $1 billion into a 100 megawatt data center in Thailand. Southeast Asia and its neighbours are becoming a popular destination for tech companies looking to invest in data centres and digital infrastructure. They want new clean energy sources to meet the soaring demand of artificial intelligence. The announcement on Monday was the latest of a series by tech giants to invest in Thailand. Bytedance Tiktok will invest $8.8 billion in five years, and Alphabet Inc.'s Google is also planning an $1 billion facility. The Thai Investment Board approved in...

China, the largest coal importer in the world, reduced its imports by 18% on an annual basis, according to customs data released Friday. Low-cost domestic coal eroded overseas purchases, while renewables slowed down coal-fired electricity generation. According to the General Administration of Customs, imports were 36.04 millions metric tons for the month, down from 43.82million tons in May 2024. This was the third consecutive month that China's imports of coal fell year-over-year. They had increased previously every month from November 2022. January and February were excluded because they are affected by Lunar New Year holidays. The data shows that coal...

The U.N. nuclear watchdog reported on Thursday that international monitors heard gunfire at the Russian-owned Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine. It appeared to be directed at drones which were reportedly attacking the training centre at the plant. In the first weeks before Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russian forces captured the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Europe’s largest facility with six reactors. Since then, both sides have accused each other of attacking and threatening nuclear safety the Zaporizhzhia plant. IAEA monitors reported hearing five explosions, preceded each by gunfire between 11:15 a.m. to 13:45 pm local time. The statement did...

The Kremlin reported on Thursday that President Vladimir Putin had told Donald Trump, President of the United States, that he would use Russia's close relationship with Iran to assist in negotiations regarding Iran's nuclear program. Trump told Putin in a telephone call on Wednesday that Iran had a limited time to decide on its nuclear program and that he thought Putin agreed with him that the Islamic Republic shouldn't have nuclear weapons. Trump said that Putin suggested that he take part in the talks with Iran, and that he "could, perhaps, help in getting this to a quick conclusion", even...

Alparslan Bayraktar, Turkish Energy Minister, said that Turkey has been in discussions with Candu Energy of Canada and other companies about plans to build Turkey's second and third nuclear plants. Bayraktar, who spoke to journalists during a trip to southeast Turkey Monday, said that Turkey wanted to "put names" on the projects it planned for this year. "Russia, South Korea, and China are all interested in the second or third power plant. He said that in addition to the countries and companies mentioned above, we were also in negotiations with other nations. Canada is one of them. "The Candu company,"...

Analyst and trade sources say that Saudi Arabia will burn more crude oil this summer for electricity generation than it did last year as the country ramps up production after OPEC+ relaxes supply controls, and fuel oil is becoming more expensive. OPEC's kingpin, by burning more crude oil, could help ease concerns about global oversupply. OPEC+ (which includes the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, as well as allies like Russia) agreed to increase production in April, may and June by almost 1 million barrels a day. Wood Mackenzie predicts that Saudi Arabia will consume 465,000-470,000 bpd for electricity generation this...

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who met with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Friday in Moscow, criticized the U.S. president Donald Trump's policies regarding trade and tariffs. He said that they were harmful to multilateralism. Lula is visiting Russia to celebrate the 80th anniversary since the Soviet Union defeated Nazi Germany during World War Two. Russia celebrated this milestone on Friday. Major Military Parade Also in attendance was Chinese President Xi Jinping. "The recent decisions of the U.S. President to unilaterally impose tariffs on all trade with countries around the world undermines the great idea? "Free trade and...

Customs data released on Friday showed that China's coal imports dropped 16% in April compared to the same period last year, due to lower domestic prices. According to the General Administration of Customs, imports were down 37.83 millions metric tons from 45.25 in April 2024. This was the second consecutive month that China's imports of coal fell year-over-year. They had increased previously every month from November 2022. January and February are excluded because they are affected by Lunar New Year holidays. Imported coal's profit margins are being cut by the domestic price, which is at a four-year low. According to...

Rosatom, a Russian company, has filed a suit in Moscow against Finland’s Fortum and Outokumpu. The lawsuit demands 227,8 billion roubles (2.8 billion dollars) as compensation for losses resulting from the termination of the contract for the Hanhikivi-1 Nuclear Power Plant in Finland. The dispute between Rosatom and the former Finnish partners over the cancelled contract dates back to May 2022. This was when the Finnish partner terminated the contract shortly after the conflict in Ukraine 2022 began. They cited significant delays, risks of political nature, and doubts regarding the feasibility of the project. Rosatom, which announced its intention to...

Donald Trump, the U.S. president, said that he will speak with Vladimir Putin of Russia on Tuesday to discuss ending the Ukraine conflict. The question of who controls the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is likely to play a major role in the discussions. Russia and Ukraine accuse each other of drone attacks and military activity around Zaporizhzhia - Europe's biggest nuclear plant - and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has warned about the dangers of a catastrophe there for years. The plant is located 500 kilometers (300 miles), away from the site where the 1986 Chornobyl nuclear disaster, which...

The U.N. nuclear monitors arrived in Ukraine on Saturday for the first ever time via Russian territory at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which is owned by Russia. The IAEA's rotation was delayed for weeks by military activity on the site. Each side blamed the other, claiming that the rules were not followed to ensure the safety of the team. In a video posted on Telegram, Yuri Chernichuk said that it was important for the route to pass through Russian territory. He added that the arrival of three inspectors was guaranteed by Russia's Defence Ministry and National Guard and came...

An industry source said on Wednesday that the Ukrainian parliament will vote on a bill next week to allow for the construction and startup of two new nuclear power plants. This would help support Ukraine as it is constantly under attack by Russian missiles. Ukrainian energy officials said that the new reactors would be built at Khmelnytskyi Nuclear Power Plant in western Ukraine, and will be equipped with Russian designed equipment which Kyiv is looking to import from Bulgaria. The Ukraine planned to sign an agreement last June with Bulgaria to purchase two nuclear reactor bodies to compensate for the...

Denmark's energy agency on Tuesday said it had actually approved Nord Stream 2 AG, a system of Russia's. Gazprom, consent to carry out preservation deal with. the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in the Baltic Sea, which was. harmed in a series of blasts in 2022. The upkeep work is necessary to decrease ecological. and security threats coming from the pipeline being filled with. seawater and staying gas, the agency stated in a. declaration. The work intends to protect the damaged pipeline by. installing customised plugs at each of the open pipeline ends to. avoid even more gas blow-out and...