2025-06-16 18:56
LONDON, June 16 (Reuters) - Guatemala has launched a tender to contract 1500 megawatts (MW) of new electricity generation capacity to meet growing demand, with around 700 MW to be awarded to projects based on liquefied natural gas (LNG). "Guatemala expects to contract at least 700 MW of firm power, in one or two facilities located in the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean or in the Pacific, which will receive LNG ships. This will satisfy the dynamic electricity demand of our country," said Victor Hugo Ventura, Guatemala's minister of energy and mines. Sign up here. Speaking to Reuters during an interview on the sidelines of an industry conference in London, the minister said natural gas would be one of the drivers of economies of Central American countries. "We are sure that we can get very bigger efficiency in the process with natural gas. We consider the natural gas as a very important part of the transition to the low emissions economy." The tender is closing in November and is open for companies worldwide. Guatemala is among the 10 to 20 countries most affected by climate change. It is home to a region known as the Central American Dry Corridor, where, over the past decade, droughts have been more prolonged and severe and extreme weather events, such as hurricanes, have caused widespread damage. Several hurricanes have caused widespread damage to infrastructure, including power plants, transmission lines and distribution networks. Guatemala has implemented an energy transition strategy that has allowed it to produce between 55% and 70% of its energy from renewable sources. There is a significant impact in the case of dry years with insufficient rainfall. For this reason, this tender seeks the contracting of firm energy, to produce 365 days a year and with lower emissions, and "this can only be achieved with fuels such as natural gas," the minister said. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/guatemala-seeks-700-megawatts-gas-power-tender-2025-06-16/
2025-06-16 18:45
June 16 (Reuters) - Justin Sun's crypto platform, Tron, has reached a deal with Nasdaq-listed company SRM Entertainment (SRM.O) , opens new tab under which it will buy tokens, be renamed Tron Inc and have Sun join the company as an adviser, SRM said on Monday. SRM's statement did not name the private investor whose $100 million equity investment - valued at $210 million if warrants are exercised - would be used to purchase Tron's cryptocurrency. The Financial Times reported that the funds would be injected by Tron itself and that Tron was set to go public in the U.S. via a reverse merger with SRM. Sign up here. Spokespersons for Tron and SRM did not respond to requests for comment on whether the $100 million in funds were going to come from Tron itself. SRM's statement did not say how Tron would be run in the future or whether the ownership would change as a result of the deal. The SRM deal was organized by New York-based boutique investment bank Dominari Securities, the statement said. Two of U.S. President Donald Trump's sons, Don Jr and Eric, joined the board of Dominari Holdings, which owns Dominari Securities, in February, the company said at the time. Dominari Securities did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Chinese-born Sun, the founder of the Tron blockchain network, was sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2023. The billionaire has close ties to Trump's World Liberty Financial crypto venture. This year he increased his investment in the project to $75 million. Sun's Tron network has also listed USD1, a stablecoin issued by World Liberty. Those purchases, involving an entity where Trump benefits financially, have raised concerns among political opponents and ethics experts about potential conflicts of interest. The president has said he put his business interests in a trust managed by his children to avoid conflicts of interest. A civil fraud lawsuit by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission against Sun has been put on hold. SRM also designs and sells custom merchandise such as toys and souvenirs. Its shares jumped more than 300% on Monday, reaching as high as $6.70, compared with Friday's close of $1.45. https://www.reuters.com/technology/crypto-group-tron-go-public-us-via-reverse-merger-with-srm-2025-06-16/
2025-06-16 16:29
June 16 (Reuters) - Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT.O) , opens new tab is seeking to launch an exchange-traded fund that will invest in both bitcoin and ethereum, the two largest cryptocurrencies, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday. This marks the second cryptocurrency ETF filing from the social media company associated with President Donald Trump in less than two weeks. If approved, the Truth Social Bitcoin ETF and the Truth Social Bitcoin & Ethereum ETF would join a crowded and competitive market already dominated by a handful of established asset managers such as BlackRock (BLK.N) , opens new tab, whose iShares Bitcoin ETF has $72.5 billion in assets. Sign up here. "It will be a challenge for any new entrant in this market," said Bryan Armour, ETF analyst at Morningstar. "The only way to stand out will be through fees or brand." The filing for the new bitcoin and ethereum ETF does not disclose proposed fees, and Trump Media has yet to reveal fees for the bitcoin ETF. Similar products have fees of 0.12%. Trump Media representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Armour noted that the latest filing spells out a specific allocation ratio between bitcoin and ethereum. The issuer, Yorkville America Digital, said it initially anticipates holding three bitcoins for every ethereum token in the ETF. "There is little that is different about this new venture other than the way it could be marketed," said Sui Chung, CEO and chairman of CF Benchmarks. "Given Truth Social's involvement, it may very well be that (these) are marketed directly to individual investors and that this ends up getting attention from those investors in the same way that people who love their iPhones buy Apple (AAPL.O) , opens new tab stock." https://www.reuters.com/technology/truth-social-bitcoin-ethereum-etf-files-with-us-sec-nyse-arca-listing-2025-06-16/
2025-06-16 13:03
MUMBAI, June 16 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee experienced choppy trading before ending nearly flat on Monday as a broad based decline in the U.S. dollar blunted risk aversion spurred by the escalation in the Iran-Israel conflict. The rupee closed at 86.0650 against the U.S. dollar, nearly unchanged from its close of 86.08 in the previous session. Sign up here. The South Asian currency hovered in a 85.9525-86.23 range on the day with traders pointing to exporter hedging, oil prices and broad-based dollar weakness among the cues that impacted its trajectory. While "traders were biased towards buying dips (on USD/INR), the price action was somewhat confusing, leading to cutting of speculative positions," a trader at a state-run bank said. Meanwhile, the dollar-rupee forward premiums eased. The 1-year implied yield was down 5 basis points at 1.83%, weighed by an uptick in near-tenor U.S. Treasury yields and exporter hedging. The dollar index was down 0.3% at 97.9 and Asian currencies were trading mixed. The offshore Chinese yuan rose 0.1% while the Thai baht declined by about 0.3%. Investors are keeping a close eye on signs that the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict may escalate into a broader regional conflict. "All eyes are now on the trio driving market sentiment— war, trade wars, and central bank moves," said Amit Pabari, managing director at FX advisory firm CR Forex. Pabari expects the rupee to remain volatile in the near-term and reckons that an intensification of hostilities in the Middle East could push the currency towards 86.50-86.80. Meanwhile, India's merchandise trade deficit (INTRD=ECI) , opens new tab narrowed to $21.88 billion in May, according to government data released on Monday. India and the U.S. aim to sign an interim trade deal before July 9, an Indian trade ministry official said on Monday. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/rupee-ends-nearly-flat-following-choppy-trading-forward-premiums-dip-2025-06-16/
2025-06-16 12:40
OTTAWA, June 16 (Reuters) - Canadian housing starts were largely flat in May compared with April as a slight rise in groundbreaking in multiple unit urban homes was offset by a marginal drop in starts in single-family detached urban homes, national housing agency data showed on Monday. The seasonally adjusted annualized rate of housing starts was down 0.2% at 279,510 units from a revised 280,181 units in April, the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) said. Economists had expected starts to fall to 247,500 units last month. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/canadian-housing-starts-largely-flat-may-april-cmhc-2025-06-16/
2025-06-16 12:37
June 16 (Reuters) - Dozens of Greek firefighters struggled on Monday to tame a wildfire that raged through a thick forest near a village northeast of Athens that has forced authorities to order evacuations. Assisted by 17 aircraft and 30 engines, 120 firefighters were deployed to the village of Ano Souli, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) from Athens. Residents of the village and the nearby town of Marathonas were ordered to leave their homes. Sign up here. Sitting at Europe's hot southernmost tip, Greece has felt the economic and environmental impact of frequent wildfires and floods in recent years that scientists say has been exacerbated by a fast-changing climate. The country has spent hundreds of millions of euros to compensate households and farmers for damage related to extreme weather and acquire new and modern firefighting equipment to deal with wildfires, which have become harder to tame amid rising summer temperatures. Greece has hired a record number of firefighters this year in anticipation of a difficult fire season. One of Europe's largest wildfires on record burnt for weeks in northern Greece in 2023, killing at least 20 people. Last year a destructive wildfire barreled down from a mountain to built-up areas on the edge of Athens, forcing residents to flee. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/wildfire-rages-outside-athens-residents-urged-flee-2025-06-16/
