Serica Energy UK forecasts production increase for 2025
Serica Energy, a UK oil and gas company focused on the North Sea, expects to increase production by 15.6% in 2025, thanks to improved reliability, the company said Tuesday. Serica has increased production by acquiring and investing in the past few years. The company's output was affected by an outage on its Triton floating storage and offloading vessel (FPSO) in the North Sea, in 2024. Serica stated in a press release that production has increased since the resumption.
Glencore opens to deals as investors prepare for more mining M&A
Glencore, the commodity and miner trader, said that it was open to M&A deals that created value for its investors. It is leveraging its position in the top three producers of copper globally. Investors in the sector were most concerned about potential M&A transactions in 2024. However, BHP's failed $49 billion bid for Anglo American last May demonstrated the difficulties of merging diversified producers. Two sources familiar with the situation say that Glencore approached Rio Tinto in late 2013 and proposed a merger of the two mining firms.
Bloomberg News: RPT Rio Tinto and Glencore are in early merger talks
Bloomberg News reported Thursday that Glencore and Rio Tinto have had early-stage discussions about merging their businesses. The report was based on people familiar with this matter. If successful, the merger would be the largest in the mining industry and would create a combined company valued at around $158 billion. This value is higher than the $126 billion market valuation of BHP, the top miner. It was not clear whether the talks are still ongoing. Both companies declined to make any comment.
Bloomberg News reports that Rio Tinto and Glencore are in early merger talks.
Bloomberg News reported Thursday that Glencore and Rio Tinto have had early-stage discussions about merging their businesses. The report was based on people familiar with this matter. If successful, the merger of the two iron-ore mining giants would be the largest in the industry and create a combined firm with a value of $158 billion. This is more than the $126 billion market valuation for BHP, the top miner. It was not clear whether the talks are still ongoing. Both companies declined to make any comment.
Sources say that India's steel minister is seeking $1.7 billion from the budget to assist mills reduce emissions.
Two government sources who are directly involved in the matter said that the Indian steel ministry requested 150 billion rupees (1,74 billion dollars) to be allocated to the budget as incentives for mills to produce low carbon steel. Nirmala Sitharaman, Finance Minister, will present the federal Budget for 2025-2026 on February 1. India, which is the second-largest steel producer in the world after China, is working on a policy to decarbonise the production of the alloy.
Sweden builds 100,000-year storage site for spent nuclear material
Sweden began building a final nuclear fuel storage facility on Wednesday. It is only the second site of its kind in the world where highly radioactive wastes will be stored for 100 years. Since the commercialization of nuclear reactors in the 1950s, the question of how to safely store radioactive waste has plagued the industry. Finland is the only nation that has a permanent site in its final stages of construction. World Nuclear Association estimates that there are approximately 300,000 tonnes of spent nuclear fuel in the world.
China's Polysilicon Futures Debut on Guangzhou Exchange
On Thursday, China's Polysilicon Futures were launched on the Guangzhou Futures Exchange. Prices fell across the board at the midday break. Seven contracts are available for delivery beginning in June 2025. On Thursday, the price of the front month contract for June deliveries fell by half to 41 710 yuan (5 714.48 dollars) per metric tonne from its initial listing price of 44 000 yuan. Trading volumes stood around 260,826 lots. China is the largest producer of polysilicon in the world, which is a raw material for solar panels.
Japan Gas Lobby urges stronger diplomatic efforts to drop LNG Destination Clauses
The head of Japan Gas Association urged on Friday the government to intensify diplomatic efforts in order to eliminate destination clauses from long-term contracts for liquefied gas. This would allow the government more flexibility in reselling LNG in response to changing demand. The Japan's Industry Ministry unveiled on Tuesday a draft version of its revised basic policy for energy, which shows that LNG-fired electricity is needed to transition from dirty energy sources to cleaner ones.
US graphite miners ask Washington to impose tariffs of 920% on Chinese competitors
On Wednesday, North American miners of graphite asked the U.S. Government to impose tariffs as high as 92% on Chinese suppliers for the battery metal to combat what they call Beijing's "malicious" trade practices. This is the latest effort by Western suppliers of critical minerals to counter China's control over the extraction and processing of building blocks used in electric vehicles and electronic devices. Graphite can be produced synthetically or from natural sources.
Qcells claims that a new technology could reduce the space required for solar panels
Hanwha Corp.'s Qcells announced on Wednesday that it had made a significant breakthrough in a new solar technology. This has the potential of reducing the space needed by panels to generate electricity from the sun's light. The solar industry is facing a number of pressing challenges, including the need for more space. In some areas of the United States, large-scale projects that occupy vast tracts of land are being met with opposition. Qcells announced…
BHP and Rio Tinto will build a low-carbon iron plant in Western Australia
BHP Australia and Rio Tinto Australia will develop together a pilot plant for producing low-carbon iron using Pilbara ore as part of their efforts to accelerate decarbonisation within the steel industry. The companies announced this in a statement released on Tuesday. The facility will produce molten steel using direct reduced iron technology (DRI), and renewable energy in an electric melting furnace (ESF). It could have a production of up to 40,000 tons per year. BlueScope Steel will develop the facility in Western Australia's Kwinana Industrial Hub.
US House panel finds BlackRock and other asset managers reluctant to join climate initiative
According to a report published on Friday by the Republican-led U.S. Congress committee, top asset managers in the United States were concerned that signing up for an industry climate initiative would make them look like they worked too closely together and attract regulatory scrutiny. This is the latest report released by the U.S. House Judiciary Committee’s Republican majority in a probe that they claim has revealed fund firms and activists were part of a “climate cartel” which colluded through shareholder organizations to reduce emissions.
US House panel finds BlackRock and other asset managers hesitant to join climate initiative
According to a report published Friday by a Republican led U.S. Congressional Committee, top asset managers in the United States are concerned that signing up for an industry climate initiative will make them look like they're working together too closely and attract regulatory scrutiny. This is the latest report released by the majority of the Republican panel as part of an investigation they claim has revealed that fund firms and activists were part of a 'climate cartel' who colluded through shareholder groups pressing for emissions reductions.
Indonesia's plans for renewable energy may endanger forests
Indonesia, which is heavily dependent on coal for electricity, needs to move away from fossil fuels. It aims to generate 75 gigawatts from renewable sources over the next fifteen years. This compares with the 13 gigawatts it produces today. This push will be based on the use of biofuels that burn cleaner, i.e. organic material converted into liquid fuel. The government claims that biofuels will reduce Indonesia's dependence on costly fuel imports and greenhouse gases, while increasing palm oil production. This will in turn spur economic growth.
India announces a formula for classifying green metal
India's Steel Ministry announced on Thursday a formula to define 'green steel', classifying it into three categories based upon the amount of carbon emissions produced per metric ton of the alloy. A presentation by the Ministry of Steel in New Delhi revealed that "green steel" is steel with carbon dioxide emissions less than 2.2 tonnes per tonne. Steel with emissions less than 1.6 tonnes per ton of alloy will be classified as "five star green-rated steel", the cleanest among the three.
Russell: China's crude oil imports in November recover and other commodities remain strong
The Chinese economy is having a great week, as the outlook has improved amid new stimulus measures. Commodity imports have also performed well in November. The CSI300 index, which is the benchmark, rose 3.2% on the opening day, while government bonds rallied. The announcement of additional monetary stimulus in the official media boosted sentiment. However, the high imports of commodities in November also helped. Natural resources are an important indicator of China's health, as it is the largest buyer in the world.
Petrobras Slashes Platform Decommissioning Budget
Brazil's state-run oil firm Petrobras PETR4.SA cut $1.1 billion in planned investments in decommissioning oil and gas platforms in its strategic plan for the 2025-2029 period, compared to what was earmarked in its 2024-2028 plan, the company told Reuters.Petrobras expects to invest $9.9 billion in platform decommissioning through 2029, compared with more than $11 billion previously estimated for the 2024-2028 period.The plan now is to decommission 10 floating platforms, down from 23 originally.
Tauron, a Polish utility, has seen its third-quarter profit increase by 65% due to lower costs
The Polish energy utility Tauron reported on Thursday that its net profit for the third quarter of 2014 increased by 65% compared to last year, due mainly to lower coal and material costs. The group's net profit was also boosted by the increase in distribution costs. Tauron is looking for funding to support its renewable energy investments. The company also owns some coal-fired units that receive capacity payments from the European Union. This system expires in 2025.
ENTEK wins $1.3 billion US Loan for EV Battery Plant
The U.S. Department of Energy's loans office said on Friday it has finalized a loan of $1.3 billion to ENTEK Lithium Separators to finance a plant in Indiana for making lithium-ion battery separators used mostly in electric vehicles.WHY IT'S IMPORTANTThe Loan Programs Office is racing to finalize billions of dollars in loans to companies developing cutting-edge technologies expected to help speed an energy transition and curb climate change.The loan was offered conditionally in July through the LPO's Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program…
Elliott Affiliate's Citgo Bid to be Challenged
Companies seeking to claim proceeds from a court auction of shares in a parent of Venezuela-owned Citgo Petroleum are pressing a U.S. court to lift an exclusivity deal with an affiliate of Elliott Investment Management, which could pave the way for at least two new bids, sources close to the matter said.The auction of shares in the U.S. oil refiner's parent PDV Holding, aimed at paying 18 creditors up to $21.3 billion in awards against Venezuela, has…
