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Engie boosts its guidance after flat earnings by announcing a UK power grid purchase
The French utility Engie announced on Wednesday that it had agreed to purchase electricity distributor UK Power Networks for $14.2 billion. This was in an effort to expand the power business. The company stated that the deal, which is due to be completed in mid-2026 will boost earnings per share from the first full year. UK Power Networks, currently owned by Hong Kong listed CK Infrastructure Holdings Limited, is expected to boost per-share earnings from the first year. Engie, a company that produces, trades, and sells gas and electricity, wants to protect its business against energy market fluctuations due to geopolitics. Regulated assets, such as power distribution networks, earn fixed fees based on the energy volumes transported. Engie CEO Catherine MacGregor said on a recent press conference that the company had stated nearly two years earlier its desire to increase?our presence within electricity networks and distribution networks. "Today, we feel like we're making this ambition real," she told journalists. Engie lost its major gas supplier, Gazprom, after the invasion of Ukraine 2022. Three early-stage offshore projects in the U.S. have been frozen by President Donald Trump last year. MacGregor stated that the acquisition will make Britain Engie’s second most important country in terms EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) after France. UK Power Networks operates 192,000 km of power lines (119,300 miles), serving 8.5 million clients in London and parts of the east and southeast of England. DEBT AND EQUITY FINANCED DEAL Engie anticipates a net recurring profit attributable the group in 2026 of between 4.6 and 5.2 billion euro, up from an earlier range of 4.2 to 4.8 billion euro. EBIT in 2026, excluding nuclear, is expected to range between 8,7?billion and 9,7?billion euro. Engie anticipates that by 2028 the group's share of net income will be between 5.2 and 5.8 billion euro, with EBIT (excluding nuclear) ranging from 10.3 to 11.3 billion euro. MacGregor stated that the deal will not affect Engie’s dividend or investment grade rating. The deal is financed by 5 billion euro worth of hybrid securities and debt, 3 billion euro in new shares up to a maximum of 4 billion euros of asset sales through 2028. FULL-YEAR EARNINGS FLAT, MISSING EXPECTATIONS Engie's results for the full year were down by 1%, which was at the upper end of the company's guidance but fell short of analyst expectations. This is because higher gas sales during colder weather did not offset lower hydropower output due to less rainfall. EBIT without nuclear for 2025 is 8.8 billion euro, up from 8.9 billion euros in 2024. Engie's share of the group's net recurring income increased from 4.1 billion euros to 3.8 billion euros in the previous year. According to a LSEG consensus, analysts had predicted EBIT excluding nucleic of 9.1 billion euro and group share of net recurring earnings of 4.9 billion euro. The fourth-quarter operating profit reached?2.5 billion, up from 1.8 billion in the same period last year. This 39% increase was linked to 'the divestment assets for gas-fired power plants and desalination in Kuwait and Bahrain. The company announced that Engie chairman Jean-Pierre Clamadieu would step down in the next year due to his reaching the legal age limit. Michel Giannuzzi will succeed him. He is the former chairman and CEO of French glass bottles maker Verallia.
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Law group: Louisiana utility regulator rejects request for investigation of Meta data centre deal
Louisiana utility regulators deny a group of environmental lawyers' claims Request for Investigation Earthjustice, a law group, said on Wednesday that a $27 billion Meta Platforms Data Center 'deal was being negotiated. Earthjustice sent a request to the Louisiana Public Service Commission last month asking them to investigate project financing. The group argued that this could lead to unfair costs being passed on the utility customers. The motion focused on Meta's proposed Richland Parish data center project, where three new gas-fired energy plants would be built. Earthjustice's petition stated that Meta had signed a new financial agreement for the data center around the same time as the commission approved the gas plants. The motion stated that the new agreement would allow Meta to abandon the data center project after four years instead of 15 and release it from financial guaranteeing the project. Earthjustice stated that the utility would not be able to recover the cost of the power plants in four years and the burden will fall on other customers, such as homes and businesses, through higher rates. Susan Stevens Miller, Senior Attorney at Earthjustice, said that by dismissing this motion, the PSC was giving "the green light" to other tech companies who would use financial maneuvers to maximize profits and evade public accountability. The regulator of utilities was not available to comment immediately.
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Profits from renewable energy boost Portugal's EDP-2025 by 44%
EDP, Portugal's largest power utility, reported on Wednesday a 44% increase in its 2025 net profits, largely due to a robust performance from its'renewables' arm. This was despite a drop in the gains from divestitures. The net profit for the company increased to $1.36 billion. EDP Renovaveis reported a profit of 216 million euro, which is a significant improvement from the 556 million euro loss in 2024. EDP reported that it had a capital gain of 64 million euros from the sale last year of wind and solar farms, down from 181 million euros by 2024. The company has been selling off stakes in existing plants to fund new projects. Profits of the company were also reported The results of this year's competition were affected by the lower electricity prices in Portugal, Spain, and the depreciation against the euro of the Brazilian real. EBITDA (earnings before taxes, depreciation, and amortization) rose by 5% on an annual basis to more than 5 billion Euros. EDP reported that operating costs dropped 2%, to?1.9billion?euros despite the addition of 2.1 gigawatts last year. This was due to "increasing efficiencies." Last year, the total?capacity reached 32.7 GW, with 87% coming from renewable sources. It said that the executive board would 'propose to increase by 2.5%?the dividend for 2025, to?0.205 euro per share.
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US allows resale to Cuba of Venezuelan oil
According to guidance posted to the?Department's website on Wednesday, the U.S. 'Treasury Department' will authorize companies to resell Venezuelan crude oil to Cuba. This could help 'ease' the acute fuel shortage on Cuba. The U.S. Treasury Department has said that it will allow companies to resell Venezuelan oil to Cuba, according guidance posted on the department's website. This could help?ease the island's acute fuel shortage. Venezuela has been the primary supplier of fuel and crude oil to Cuba for over 25 years, through a bilateral agreement based primarily on bartering of goods and services. According to shipping data, Mexico, who had become an alternative supplier, has also halted shipments since a cargo of fuel arrived in Havana last January. Vitol, Trafigura and other large trading houses handle the majority of Venezuela's exports. Millions of barrels are exported to the U.S. and Europe, while millions more barrels are stored in Caribbean terminals. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, has stated that Venezuela's allies who were taking its oil in exchange for debt repayments or other agreements will now have to pay fair market price. China and Cuba are among these allies. Marco Rubio, the U.S. secretary of state, arrived in the Caribbean on Wednesday to begin talks with leaders that have warned about the growing humanitarian crisis in Cuba. Cuba may not be able to afford oil purchases even with this new policy. Cuba has struggled to pay for fuel imported on the spot market over the past few years. Any potential purchase from traders will demand regular commercial conditions such as bank guarantees or cash payments. Treasury guidance makes it clear that transactions should "support the Cuban population, including the private sectors," and include exports to Cuba for humanitarian or commercial purposes. Transactions involving the Cuban military, or any other government institution, would not be covered. U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security previously issued guidance stating that the export and reexport of U.S. petroleum and gas products to Cuban private sector entities eligible for such exports and reexports would be permitted. Cuba's government is in charge of motor fuel distribution, power supply and electricity through state-owned companies. However, fuel consumers include private airlines as well as other companies. Treasury Department stated that applicants don't necessarily need to be established U.S. entities, and the limitations of a license issued in January?to export Venezuelan crude oil broadly would not apply in Cuba. UNDELIVERED CARGOES OF FUEL The U.S.'s pressure on Venezuela, Cuba and other countries has caused several fuel cargoes to remain?undelivered? since December. This is contributing to the island's inability?to keep its lights on and vehicles circulating. This week, a vessel with Cuban connections that had loaded Venezuelan gasoil in early February in a state-run port PDVSA was still anchored in Venezuelan water awaiting?authorization to sail. A company document revealed that the ship had loaded Venezuelan jet-fuel, but then returned it. Since January, no oil cargoes have left Venezuela without Washington's authorization. Washington now controls Venezuela's exports as well as its sale proceeds in accordance with an agreement reached with the interim government of President Delcy Rodriquez. Ship tracking data revealed that on Wednesday the Hong Kong flagged?tanker Sea Horse - carrying fuel bound for Cuba - halted its navigation in the Atlantic Ocean. It may have arrived as soon as this week. TankerTrackers.com, a monitoring service, reported that the tanker was loaded via a ship to ship transfer in Mediterranean. Hongkong Hangda Shipping LTD and PDVSA have not responded to comments made by the media. Reporting by Bhargav Asharya, Marianna Parraga, in Houston, and Daphne Psaledakis, in Washington. Editing by Costas Pittas, Matthew Lewis, and Paul Simao.
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Ghana targets 127 tonnes of artisanal Gold annually under reforms
Ghana's Finance Minister said that the country plans to transfer 127 metric tonnes of gold per year from small-scale artisanal mining to official trade as part of revised sector reforms. This will boost foreign exchange earnings and reduce smuggling losses. African countries suffer from major gold leakage due to ASM. They lose billions of dollars in revenue every year, as undeclared and smuggled gold is transported through porous border crossings into global hubs like Dubai. According to Swissaid, Ghana's non-profit foundation, it is the continent's largest gold producer, Ghana has lost about $11.4 billion between 2019-2023. ARTISANAL SILVER TO RECOVER $20 BILLION ANNUALLY Cassiel Ato Forson, a member of the Ghana Gold Board, told parliament that they would have to purchase a minimum 2.45 tons ASM gold per week and consolidate their purchases into an official pipeline aiming for more than $20 billion in annual inflows. Ghana's GoldBod, created in 2025 and the soaring gold price, helped boost national production in that year to 186 tons. Forson stated that, under the new policy starting next month, GoldBod would be fully responsible for negotiating and selling off-take agreements as well as all ASM gold they procure. The regulator will use derivatives and hedging to manage the price risk and raise funding to cover three to four weeks worth of gold purchases. ASM currently purchases gold from the Bank of Ghana. Forson stated that GoldBod could "employ" price incentives by 'purchasing gold at the spot world market price and giving bonuses to licensed miners. GoldBod and the Bank of Ghana will also'sign a deal that requires all foreign currency from the program to be sold to the central banks at an agreed-upon rate. The Minister said that formalisation efforts would be extended to?environmental and enforcement efforts, tracability systems, an expansion of?local refining capacities and?reforms for lower operating costs. Ghana is also pushing forward with reforms in the financial system of the mining industry, which are said to choke off investment and slow production. Reporting by Emmanuel Bruce, Writing by Maxwell Akalaare Adombila, Editing by David Goodman
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White House hosts Big Tech to pledge to reduce power costs
The White House announced on Thursday that it would host leading data centers and artificial intelligence companies in the next week, including Microsoft, Anthropic, and Meta Platforms. This is to formalize an agreement to protect consumers from rising energy costs. The meeting is scheduled for 4 March and was first reported by. It will advance a initiative that President Donald Trump announced during his State of the Union Address on Tuesday. He said he told major technology companies they had to build their own power plant to run the fleet of rapidly expanding data centers and other artificial intelligence infrastructure. Microsoft has already committed to investing in new energy generation and efficiency measures earlier this year. Taylor Rogers, White House spokesperson, said that "major Tech companies" will be joining President Trump next week at the White House to sign the Ratepayer Protection Pledge he announced in his historic State of the Union Address. The Trump administration is committed to advancing artificial intelligence as a means of competing with China. However, the impact of a proliferation of AI data centers in the power market has become a vulnerability for Republicans before the midterm elections of November. Microsoft has not said if it will be attending next week's event or if it will sign a new pledge. Brad Smith, Microsoft Vice Chair and president said: "We are grateful for the Administration's efforts to prevent data centers from contributing to higher prices of electricity to consumers." A spokesperson from Meta declined to make any comment. Sarah Heck, Anthropic's spokesperson, wrote on X that "American families should not be paying for AI." Anthropic is committed to paying 100% of any electricity price hikes that our data centers cause. This commitment supports the rate payer protection pledge of (the White House). Trump's second term has been dominated by the AI race around the world and the massive amounts of energy needed to fuel it. This agenda has, however, become politically unstable ahead of the midterms, as data center energy demands are driving up power prices across a large swath?of?the nation. Local and state protests have increased over the recent proliferation of giant data center projects, which are needed to expand artificial intelligence technology. They're concerned about rising bills and pollution associated with?the development. Many data center projects or power related projects have been canceled or delayed due to opposition from the surrounding towns. Last month, several governors of states that are part of the largest electric grid in the United States, PJM Interconnection released a framework to address the rising power bills in this region. PJM covers the largest concentration of data centres in the world. The projections?for an increase in the number?of centers connecting to?the grid have caused some power costs to rise by more than 1000% within two years. Two sources have confirmed that the White House's plan to reduce power costs for data centers is based on the PJM framework. (Reporting and editing by Timothy Gardner; Laila Renshaw and Jarrett Renshaw)
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Eagle Nuclear Energy, a uranium-explorer, begins trading after the SPAC merger
Eagle Nuclear Energy shares rose 14.6% on Wednesday afternoon after it began trading on the Nasdaq. This was following the merger of the blank-check firm, Spring Valley Acquisition Corp II. This listing comes at a time when nuclear energy is gaining traction in the U.S. after decades of stagnation. The surge in electricity demand for power-hungry centers has been a major factor. Eagle Nuclear's flagship Aurora project is one of the U.S.'s largest undeveloped uranium reserves, located along the border between Oregon and Nevada. Mark Mukhija, CEO of the project, said that there are no 'offtake agreements' yet, but it is beginning to attract a certain amount of interest. This is because supply will be expected to begin in the early 2030s. The U.S. Department of Energy is also expected to be interested in the pre-feasibility report that the company has completed. Eagle Nuclear anticipates starting production in 2032. However, the timeline may be accelerated if favorable conditions are met, including support from President Donald Trump’s administration. Last year, he issued executive orders to speed up the approvals for nuclear reactors. This allowed the Department of Energy to approve the test reactors even without the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's approval. Mukhija also expects that hyperscalers will start to look at uranium producers, not just utilities, for a source of energy supply in the next couple of years. Eagle Nuclear's'merger with SVAC II' includes a $30 million public/private investment, which is expected to finance the company's operation for two years. (Reporting and editing by Katha Kaalia in Bengaluru)
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EU controls ARA oil imported from China following infant formula contamination
After contaminated supplies of arachidonic oil (ARA) made their way into batches of infant formula, the European Commission announced new controls on Wednesday. This was after dozens of European babies became ill as a result of contaminated supplies. Nestle, Danone and other producers were forced to recall millions of dollars worth of products due to contamination by the cereulide toxin, which can cause nausea and vomiting. In a document released on Wednesday, the?commission said that arachidonic oil imported from China posed a serious health risk. The commission stated that "Consignments must be accompanied by a certificate which states all the?results of?sampling? and?analyses show the absence of the cereulide toxins." This regulation must be implemented as soon as possible to ensure the safety of food and prevent the importation of arachidonic oil from China. Nestle, Danone, and other producers of infant formula have stopped supplying Cabio Biotech, the Chinese manufacturer identified as responsible for?supplying contaminated ARA. Cabio Biotech was not available for comment after Chinese business hours. Lin Jian, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, responded to Lin Jian's question about Cabio Biotech and its role in the recall scandal. "I want to?point out the?Chinese Government takes food safety very seriously and will continue taking strong measures to protect the legitimate rights of consumers."
RWE and Proxima Fusion will collaborate on nuclear-fusion reactors, Bavaria reports
The regional state of 'Bavaria' announced on Wednesday that the technology start-up Proxima Fusion will collaborate with RWE, Germany's Max Planck Institut for Plasma Physics and Germany’s RWE to develop a nuclear fusion pilot plant.
In a media invite, the state government announced that it would sign with these partners a Memorandum of Understanding on Thursday for a project titled?Fusion Demonstrator Alpha.
Proxima Fusion announced in a separate press release on Wednesday that it had launched the Alpha Alliance, a group of over?30 companies from around the world to build a net energy-gain fusion demonstration based on stellarator technology.
The Alpha project, said the?technology company that raised 130 million euros in June of last year ($153.40?million) aims to demonstrate in principle that net-fusion energy can generated continuously. It has stated that the pilot project to be completed by 2031 would be "a milestone" on the road to a commercial plant.
Dozens of global initiatives are exploring the use of nuclear fusion to generate electricity. This is a relatively new technology that aims to harness the same physical reaction that powers our sun.
There is a 'race' between the state and private companies, governments of European countries, U.S.A., and China and between different 'technology options such as the?plasma confinement used by Proxima or the use lasers.
Proxima is a competitor of Gauss Marvel and Focused Energy.
(source: Reuters)