2025-09-17 23:11
Sept 18 (Reuters) - India’s carbon dioxide emissions from its power sector declined by 1% year-on-year in the first half of 2025 on strong clean energy additions and lower power demand, data from a research report showed, marking only the second drop in nearly 50 years. The fall was driven primarily by record additions in clean-energy capacity and unusually mild weather, which curbed electricity demand, according to an analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) for Carbon Brief. Sign up here. The Helsinki, Finland-based think tank attributed 65% of the drop in fossil generation to slower demand growth, 20% to faster clean-energy expansion, and 15% to higher hydropower output. The analysis is based on official monthly data for fuel consumption, industrial production and power generation from different ministries and government institutes. India added 25.1 gigawatts (GW) of non-fossil capacity in the January-June period – a 69% jump from the previous record – enough to generate nearly 50 terawatt hours (TWh) annually, CREA said. Lower temperatures and rainfall between March and May that was 42% above normal reduced air conditioning use, while hydropower output surged. Fossil-fuel generation fell by 29TWh even as total power generation rose by 9TWh, CREA said. Oil demand growth also stalled, contributing to the broader emissions slowdown. However, emissions from steel and cement rose sharply due to increased government infrastructure spending. India’s power-sector emissions could peak before 2030 if clean-energy growth continues and demand remains within projections, CREA said. The sector has historically accounted for half of India’s emissions growth. The country is looking to add 500 GW of clean energy by 2030 https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/indias-power-sector-co2-emissions-fall-second-time-over-four-decades-report-says-2025-09-17/
2025-09-17 23:11
Selic rate held at 15%, highest since July 2006 Central bank's 2026 inflation outlook unchanged 2025 rate cut looks unlikely, given hawkish tone BRASILIA, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Brazil's central bank held interest rates steady on Wednesday for a second straight policy meeting and signaled it would keep them unchanged for a long time, dropping language that referred to the pause as an "interruption" of its rate-hiking cycle. Still, policymakers kept a reference to possible hikes, suggesting that borrowing costs in Latin America's largest economy could rise further if needed. Sign up here. The bank's monetary policy committee, known as Copom, decided unanimously to keep the benchmark Selic rate at 15%, its highest level since July 2006, as forecast by all 41 economists surveyed by Reuters last week. "The Committee will remain vigilant, evaluating whether maintaining the interest rate at its current level for a very prolonged period will be enough to ensure the convergence of inflation to the target," it said in its policy statement. In July, the central bank halted an aggressive tightening cycle that had added 450 basis points to the benchmark rate since September 2024 and stressed that the bank would not hesitate to resume hikes if necessary - wording maintained in Wednesday's statement. However, policymakers dropped a previous line referring to the "continuation of the interruption" of rate increases, which had underscored uncertainty over whether holding rates steady at this level would be enough to bring inflation to the 3% annual target. The modest tweaks suggest policymakers are sticking to their flight plan, with small nuances reflecting a marginal improvement in their inflation outlook, as the bank's projections for consumer prices improved only for this year. "The prospect of an interest rate cut in 2025 is moving further out," Inter's chief economist Rafaela Vitoria said, noting that the central bank maintained a "quite hawkish tone," leaving little room for short-term rate cuts despite recent improvements in the external environment and exchange rate. The caution came even as market expectations for inflation have moderated on longer horizons where they had been stuck for months, a welcome development for the central bank, which had long stressed concerns about market forecasts deviating persistently from the inflation target. Brazil's currency has strengthened since the bank's last meeting in July, easing price pressures on imported goods. The Brazilian real has gained more than 13% against the U.S. dollar so far this year. Many analysts see that trend supporting cooling inflation in the months ahead, especially after the U.S. Federal Reserve cut rates on Wednesday and signaled more reductions this year, widening the interest-rate differential and boosting the appeal of Brazilian assets for yield-seeking investors. Even so, Brazil's central bank held its 12-month inflation forecast on the relevant horizon for policy, now the first quarter of 2027, at 3.4%. XP chief economist Caio Megale said markets had anticipated at least a marginal improvement on that front. "The central bank is clearly leaving the possibility of monetary policy flexibility for the first quarter of next year, rather than the near term," he said. The inflation forecast for this year was revised down slightly to 4.8% from 4.9%, while the 2026 projection was kept unchanged at 3.6%. Policymakers said Brazil's economic growth is moderating as anticipated, but the labor market remains resilient. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazil-central-bank-keeps-rates-steady-signaling-extended-hold-2025-09-17/
2025-09-17 23:06
LIMA, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Peru's President Dina Boluarte said on Wednesday she had signed the modification of a hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation contract that would allow U.S. firms Chevron (CVX.N) , opens new tab and Westlawn to formally enter the country. The contract formalizes the companies' entry via a consortium operated by Texas-based Anadarko [APCFC. UL], a subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY.N) , opens new tab. Sign up here. The contract allows the firms to work on three offshore blocks off Peru's northern La Libertad region, blocks Z-61, Z-62, and Z-63. "The arrival of Chevron, the world's third-largest oil company, sends a strong and clear message: Peru is a reliable, serious, and stable country for large-scale investment," Boluarte said at a ceremony at the government palace. "If the exploration confirms oil and gas reserves, we will be facing a true energy renaissance with the capacity to ensure our economic growth for decades," she added. Chevron and Anadarko will each hold a 35% stake in the consortium, and Westlawn will have a 30% stake, according to government data. The government had previously announced $100 million in investment in the exploration work's initial phase. The contract amendment was signed by executives from the three oil companies and state regulator Perupetro. Occidental Petroleum's vice president of international exploration, Pedro Romero, said he was optimistic about the project. "This is a project we have been working on for years," he said in a speech. "It is the beginning of a new adventure." https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/peru-president-signs-contract-allowing-chevron-westlawn-entry-2025-09-17/
2025-09-17 23:06
SYDNEY, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Australian gas producer Santos (STO.AX) , opens new tab said it was willing to proceed with the ADNOC-led consortium's $18.7 billion bid for the company before the international group pulled the offer, saying commercial terms could not be agreed. Santos said in a statement early Thursday it told the XRG consortium on Monday it was willing to finalise a deal at $5.626 a share. Sign up here. The original offer in June was made at $5.76 a share but adjusted for Santos's recent dividend payment. XRG pulled the offer on Wednesday and said "a combination of factors, when considered collectively, have impacted the Consortium's assessment of its indicative offer." Taking into account net debt, the deal would give Santos an enterprise value of A$36.4 billion ($24.2 billion), which would have made it the largest all-cash corporate buyout in Australian history, according to FactSet data. The deal's collapse will now put pressure on Santos's board, given it was the third offer from a buyer in the past seven years not to proceed. Santos previously rejected a $10.8 billion offer from private equity-backed Harbour Energy in 2018 and walked away from talks with its bigger Australian rival Woodside Energy (WDS.AX) , opens new tab, to create a possible A$80 billion oil and gas giant. "Santos has a clear strategy, strong leadership and high-quality growth opportunities across our global portfolio. The board is confident these strengths will deliver long-term value for shareholders," Santos Chair Keith Spence said in the statement. Jarden, the investment bank, on Thursday downgraded its rating on Santos from overweight to underweight following XRG's exit. Jarden cuts Santos's 12-month price target by 16% from A$8.40 to A$7.05 per share. "We expect Santos shareholders to be bruised by the sudden withdrawal of the proposed takeover offer and ask the board and management questions regarding negotiation tactics over the past few weeks," Jarden analyst Nik Burns said. "We anticipate share price weakness in response to this news, but also would expect investors to take advantage of any material sell-off if they believe the stock looks oversold." ($1 = 1.5035 Australian dollars) https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/santos-says-it-was-ready-approve-187-billion-adnoc-led-bid-before-deal-collapsed-2025-09-17/
2025-09-17 22:10
BRUSSELS, Sept 18 (Reuters) - ExxonMobil (XOM.N) , opens new tab is pausing 100 million euros ($118.4 million) of investment in European plastic recycling because of draft EU rules that determine the recycled content in a final product. The U.S. energy producer has two projects for chemical recycling at existing plants in Rotterdam and Antwerp to process 80,000 metric tons of plastic waste per year. Sign up here. However, Senior Vice President Jack Williams told Reuters in an interview the two projects had now been paused because of the draft EU rules he said discriminated against using existing petrochemicals sites versus standalone facilities. "Everything else is on track. We've had local support," he said. "We want to make these investments... The only thing standing between us and doing this project is EU policy." At issue is a draft law to calculate the recycled content based on the mass of waste going into the system and the mass of the output. ExxonMobil says it significantly favours standalone technologies where the path from plastic waste to output is clearer and penalises more complex integrated facilities into which fossil feedstocks are fed. Williams said that, based on the draft law, its facilities would get less than half of the credits due. The draft has been the subject of a public consultation that ended a month ago. Industry groups and companies, including Finland's Neste, share Exxon's view. The EU has targets to increase plastic recycling rates, such as 30% recycled content in plastic bottles by 2030. The industry says it needs to combine mechanical recycling that reprocesses waste without changing its chemical structure and chemical recycling, which can process more complex plastics by breaking them down into basic chemicals. Williams also said that although U.S. import tariffs were not a significant problem for the company, EU regulation was. He specifically urged the EU to repeal the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) that requires larger companies to check if their supply chains use forced labour or cause environmental damage. Williams said it was complex, bureaucratic, costly, in some cases unachievable and applied beyond the EU. The EU has already eased the rules and delayed its implementation. ($1 = 0.8447 euros) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/land-use-biodiversity/exxon-pauses-european-plastic-recycling-plans-over-draft-eu-rules-2025-09-17/
2025-09-17 21:41
LOS ANGELES, Sept 17 (Reuters) - U.S. retailers have wrapped up imports of holiday goods at least a month early in a bid to limit costs tied to President Donald Trump's evolving tariff policies, the top executive at the nation's busiest seaport said on Wednesday. "Much of the year-end holiday cargo has already arrived and is working its way through the national supply chain system," said Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka. Sign up here. The traditional retail-led holiday surge ahead of Christmas, known as the peak season, came early, he said. Retailers account for about half of the volume at the Port of Los Angeles. In July, the port notched the highest total monthly cargo volume in its 117-year history with 1,019,837 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) handled by dockworkers. August total volume was 958,355 TEUs, down 0.2% from a year ago, at the Port of Los Angeles. Seroka expects import volume to ease through the remainder of the year. September is shaping up to be roughly 850,000 TEUs, about 10% softer than a year earlier, he said. Several trends are pointing to a ho-hum 2025 holiday season, forecasters said. The National Retail Federation, representing companies like Walmart (WMT.N) , opens new tab and Target (TGT.N) , opens new tab, this month said it expected container imports to steadily decline for the remainder of the year due to rising U.S. tariffs. "Shifting trade policies continue to create uncertainty for businesses and consumers," said Mario Cordero, CEO of the Port of Long Beach, which abuts the Port of Los Angeles. That is contributing to slowing job growth and lingering inflation, which are making importers and consumers just a little more cautious, Seroka said. U.S. retail sales increased more than expected in August, marking the third consecutive month of gains against the backdrop of a tariff-fueled price increases. But a PricewaterhouseCoopers survey released this month showed that holiday spending by U.S. consumers is set for its steepest drop since the pandemic as shoppers — particularly Gen Z — pull back amid economic uncertainty. https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/holiday-season-imports-have-arrived-early-busiest-us-port-executive-says-2025-09-17/
