Norway's wealth fund will probe shoemakers and crypto firms in 2025 for ethics
Next year, the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund will investigate the potential ethical violations of shoemakers, crypto-firms and gambling operators that the fund holds, leading it to sell its holdings. Norway's Parliament has set ethical guidelines for the world's biggest sovereign wealth fund. It owns 1,5% of all listed shares in 8,700 companies around the globe. The Council on Ethics of the $1.8 trillion fund investigates companies where it has invested money to make sure they are being respected.
Wall Street Journal Sept. 27
These are the most popular stories from the Wall Street Journal. These stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch their accuracy. U.S. Antitrust enforcers will bar Hess CEO John Hess joining the board at Chevron in a deal that approves a $53 Billion tie-up between Hess & Chevron. Accident investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board urged Boeing and the Federal Aviation Administration to fix a potential safety hazard in about 350 Boeing 737 models that are currently flying. DirecTV has advanced in its talks to buy satellite TV rival Dish. A deal could be completed as early as Monday.
Russia is considering limiting metals exports to the West
In response to Western sanctions, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested this week that Moscow limit exports of metals or other commodities in which Russia has a large share on global markets. Putin mentioned uranium and nickel as well as titanium, but suggested that other commodities could be restricted, pointing out that Russia is a major producer for natural gas, diamonds, and gold. Putin said that any restrictions do not have to be immediately implemented and they should not harm Russia. Commodity exports provide a major source of foreign currency income for many of Russia's biggest companies.
The Case for 3D Printing Downhole Tools
Advanced design software supports growth of additive manufacturing applications in the oil and gas industryAdditive manufacturing (AM, aka 3D printing) is beginning to impact product-development strategies in the oil and gas industry just as it already has in many other industries—by shifting the production paradigm in unexpected ways.Particularly in the case of downhole tools, overall tool size is compatible with the range of part dimensions that today’s AM systems are capable of manufacturing. Consider a common piece of equipment on any oil and gas rig: the tricone drill bit.
Saudi Aramco Restructures Non-oil Assets ahead of IPO
Saudi Aramco has created a subsidiary to house its multibillion-dollar pension fund and could spin off its aviation division, sources said, as it restructures some assets not related to oil and gas ahead of its planned initial public offering (IPO).The move is designed to streamline Aramco's operations and could make it easier to value since its business risk would be clearer and that may help it achieve a higher price for its shares, financial and industry sources told Reuters."This makes Aramco a leaner company…
Iran says extension of sanctions act shows U.S. unreliable
A U.S. Senate vote to extend the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) for 10 years shows the world that Washington cannot be relied upon to act on its commitments, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Saturday. Iran has vowed to retaliate against the ISA extension, passed unanimously on Thursday, saying it violated last year's agreement with six major powers to curb its nuclear programme in return for lifting of international financial sanctions. "To the world community, the extension of sanctions against Iran shows the unreliability of the American government…
Once Critical, Gulf Executives Want to Do Business with Trump
Gulf executives who were upset by Donald Trump's campaign trail comments about Muslims took a conciliatory tone following his election victory and said they were open for business with the United States. In Dubai, boards displaying the President-elect's name and his support for a DAMAC project to build a gated community, spa and Trump-branded golf course can be seen from a road on the edge of the city. Gulf business links with Trump and other U.S. firms are strong. The United States imported…
UK’s Largest Marine Robot Mission is Underway Off NW Scotland
An ambitious two-week mission involving ten marine robots has commenced off northwest Scotland. The third in a series of demonstrator missions, this latest phase sees the largest fleet of marine robotic vehicles simultaneously deployed in UK waters. The mission comprises seven submarine gliders and three surface Wave Gliders that are working together in fleets to collect a range of environmental data. The National Oceanography Center (NOC) started the ‘Exploring Ocean Fronts’ program in 2014…
Unmanned Underwater Vehicles: Is Bigger Better?
Undersea Superiority will rely on Large Underwater Vehicles, but the question begs ... Is bigger better? The U.S. Navy has many mundane, messy and perilous underwater missions that are better performed unmanned vehicles. When considering the right vehicle for the mission, size does matter. Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) are classified into three basic size categories: man-portable, lightweight, and large displacement based on size (as measured by displacement) and endurance. The Navy considers vehicles that are larger in diameter than the standard submarine 21-inch torpedo tube as “large displacement” UUVs.
Lower Oil Prices Squeezing U.S. Manufacturing Sector
New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods in December recorded their biggest drop in 16 months as lower oil prices and a strong dollar pressured factories, the latest indication that economic growth braked sharply at the end of 2015. Despite the slowdown in growth, which was acknowledged by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday, the labor market remains on solid ground. First-time filings for jobless benefits retreated from a six-month high last week, other data showed on Thursday. Economists…
BIG DATA: First Intelsat EpicNG Satellite Launched
The launch yesterday of the Intelsat 29e, the first of the Intelsat EpicNG high throughput satellites, promises to usher in a new era of "Big Data" in the maritime sector, among others. The satellite was launched from French Guiana aboard an Ariane 5 vehicle. Manufactured by Boeing and equipped with advanced digital payload, Intelsat 29e will bring high throughput capacity in both C- and Ku-band to North and Latin America and the North Atlantic region. Intelsat 29e will be placed into service at 310° East, where it replaces Intelsat 1R.
GE to Move Turbine Jobs to Europe, China
General Electric Co said on Tuesday that it will move 500 U.S. power turbine manufacturing jobs to Europe and China because it can no longer access U.S. Export-Import Bank financing after Congress allowed the agency's charter to lapse in June. GE said that France's COFACE export agency has agreed to support some of the industrial giant's global power project bids with a new line of credit in exchange for moving production of 50-hertz heavy duty gas turbines to Belfort, France, along with 400 jobs. GE also said in a statement that 100 additional jobs will move from the United States to Hungary and China.
After Iran Deal, U.S. Firms Outside Looking In
Within hours of the announcement of an Iran nuclear deal early on Tuesday, lawyers around Washington were fielding calls from U.S. corporate clients eager to know what the 159-page deal would mean for their business prospects. In the near term, the answer for most of them is: not very much. U.S. companies face losing out to foreign competitors in Iran as they wait for signs that Tuesday's historic nuclear agreement is sticking and that U.S. lawmakers are willing to loosen long-standing restrictions on trade and investment, according to corporate lawyers and company executives.
U.S. Manufacturing Stabilizing, Housing Improves
Core capital goods orders rise 0.4 percent in May; durable goods order drop 1.8 percent on transportation. A gauge of U.S. business investment spending plans rose in May, a tentative sign that the manufacturing sector was stabilizing after hitting a soft patch in recent months. But the lingering effects of lower oil prices and a strong dollar will continue to constrain factory activity for a while, economists say. Other data on Tuesday showed new home sales increased to a more than seven-year high in May. Manufacturing is lagging an overall rebound in the economy after output shrank at the start of the year.
Obama Aviation Emissions Plan Panned by Left
For two years, President Barack Obama has used his executive power to impose new rules to cut carbon emissions, targeting cars and power plants, buoying environmentalists and infuriating industry. His latest foray - regulating commercial aviation - had the opposite effect. On Wednesday, the administration took a first step toward cutting greenhouse gas emissions from the nation's fleet of aircraft, releasing a scientific finding that said emissions from plane engines pose a risk to human health because they contribute to climate change.
Airlines Fly Slower to Cut Fuel Bill
Higher oil prices have had a traumatic effect on U.S. airlines, forcing carriers to re-examine every aspect of the way they do business in a bid to control costs. Between 2002 and 2012, the price of jet fuel quadruped from 70 cents per gallon to over $3. Fuel bills rose from 15 percent to more than 40 percent of the total operating costs of U.S. airlines to become their single largest operating expense. The airlines have responded by changing almost every element of their operations - from restricting capacity growth…
France to host airshow-style nuclear exhibition
France hopes to boost its nuclear industry with a biennial exhibition modeled on the Paris Air Show, although it does not expect reactor orders to pile up as fast as airplane contracts. To be held in the same Le Bourget venue as the airshow, the October 14-16 World Nuclear Exhibition (WNE) expects some 7,000 visitors will visit stands representing nearly 500 French and foreign nuclear industry companies, the organisers said on Thursday. "Obviously, it would be an illusion to expect to sign as many nuclear reactor contracts there as the airline industry does at the airshow…
Port San Antonio, Chromalloy Renew Lease Agreement
Port San Antonio today announced that long-time customer Chromalloy has executed a new five-year lease for its gas turbine engine repair and manufacturing campus. "Chromalloy underscores the Port's role as a strong foundation for the region's economy, where innovative businesses and talented workers can serve growing industries," said Bruce E. Miller, President and CEO of Port San Antonio. "Chromalloy is proceeding with plans to expand core projects in support of aircraft engines while continuing to pursue new business in the region's burgeoning oil and gas industry," said Joe Gasparino, Jr., General Manager.
U.S. to Cut Nuclear Launchers under Russia Treaty
The United States will scale back its nuclear bombers, submarine launchers and ballistic missiles in the first cuts to its leftover cold war nuclear arsenal since ratifying a landmark treaty with Russia in 2011, officials said on Tuesday. Under the treaty, known as New Start, the U.S. military will disable four missile launch tubes on each of the 14 U.S. nuclear submarines, convert 30 B-52 nuclear bombers to conventional use and empty 50 intercontinental ballistic missile silos, senior administration officials said. The Pentagon, however, will not retire a missile squadron as some lawmakers had expected.
